Sipadan/Mabul 12 days enough?

[Luko]

Muck diving wise having been in dauin mabul or kapalai are nowhere near though pretty good they don't compare with the galore of flambo sea horses and ghost pipefish of dauin

Dived the place 5 different occasions, macro life in Mabul area is very much season dependant if you come in the right season from late feb to early april, Mabul or Kapalai can be amazing while in august you might be disappointed.

As a exemple on a certain dive on Mandarin valley early march, staying low on the bottom against the reef and simply doing a 360° turn on myself, I was able to spot within 10 minutes and some patience 5 ghostpipefish, with 3 different colors black/orangy/red, a flamboyant cuttlefish, two frogfish, one yellow one orangy, add on top a white and a pink leaffish, leave apart the usual coi or ribescia nudis.

That said a week in Mabul/Kapalai/Sipadan area is certainly sufficient.

 

[Interceptor121]

I did not say it is disappointing at all I just said compared to Dauin there was definitely less to see in the muck diving sites, also mabul and kapalai have normal sand and not vulcanic and that actually makes spotting harder
I am not aware of flamboyant being season, they do lay eggs at certain time of the year but they don't usually leave the place
When I was there in November 2010 the guides who had been there for a long time told me some of the critters had just gone, that might have something to do with weather or someone picking them up not sure
Even mandarin fish where a hard find, compared to Moalboal where they just go party it was hard work
however the diving at Sipidan makes up for it and all in all one of the best varied weeks of diving you can have

 

[Luko]

I am not aware of flamboyant being season

Dived Lembeh last year in august, zilch flamboyant.
Dived Lembeh this year late feb, at least one flamboyant on every dive, any age from minus a few days before coming out of their eggs to the old lone hunter, via juve, one centimenter long just popping out of the egg. I stopped photographying flamboyants after 4 days diving.

 

[dirtfarmer]

Thanks for all the input.

I loved Dauin a few years ago! I don't expect Mabul to compare to it or Lembeh which I dove 2 years ago. I got shut out on most the pipefish in Lembeh. But we had blue rings coming out our ears! I've booked 9 days diving with 3 days at Sipadan in early November. I'm looking forward to Sipadan and Mabul macro. I shoot photos/video.

And maybe I'll luck out with some of the spectacular shark dives that pop up at Sipidan every once in a while. I dove Palau last year for the shark action. Hoping for more at Sipadan. And I'm looking forward to barracuda's and bumphead parrots! How about Napoleon wrasse? Are they in the area?

 

[Quero]

How about Napoleon wrasse? Are they in the area?

Yes, they were very well represented, but I didn't see many big ones--mainly juveniles.

 

[mobeeno]

12 days would be just nice because everyday will be different (different dive conditions, visibility ect., whose guiding, what you will see varies daily) The best dive sites in the world is not at its best everyday. The more days you dive a location the better chances of having a greater dive experience. I was lucky to see a blue ring octopus on the first day at Mabul and saw my first leopard shark and a family of grey reef sharks at Sipadan, BUT the day I left, I heard that divers saw hammerhead sharks. Wish I stayed 12 days instead of 6.

 

[Interceptor121]

Ideally when you dive a place every day you see also things that are more occasional however every place as a 'minimum' stay for Kabul and sipadan I believe that is one week

 

[Quero]

Ideally when you dive a place every day you see also things that are more occasional however every place as a 'minimum' stay for Kabul and sipadan I believe that is one week

LOL, do you mean Mabul? or Kapalai? (Not Kabul for sure.) Anyway, the "minimum stay" might be imposed for getting into the Sipadan permit pool but not as a general rule. Even on the liveaboard, a diver can stay for a little as three days.

 

[Interceptor121]

Spell check on phones disaster! Ka-bul Kapalai-Mabul

What I meant you want to be in the area at least one week, that gives you 4 days of local diving and 2 days at Sipadan

Of course the longer the better, but when I did my Malaysia trip I thought going and seeing the orang tang was more worth it than a few days more diving. Personal opinion of course and scarce time