diving near Kota Kinabalu

[hmoffatt]

I'm going to dive at Sipadan, Mabul etc at the end of July with Seaventures. Afterwards I've booked a few days around Kota Kinabalu where I intended to climb Mt K, but that's probably not going to happen now so I have a couple of days free. Is it worth diving near KK or will I be disappointed after doing Sipadan etc?

I saw BorneoDream's web pages about the wrecks but that's a bit deep for me (AOW only).

thanks

 

[Zippsy]

If you like to dive, Tunku Abdul Rahman Park is a lovely place to dive. You can stay in a KK hotel and do 2-3 dives per day. Alternatively, there are also nearby islands to stay on like Pulau Tiga and Mantanani. Is it as good as Sipadan? errrr, no. but if you only are going to dive at "better" sites, you will run out of sites soon.

 

[BabyFugu]

I just returned from KK a few days ago and did 6 dives at TARP. All were very nice. Lots of dive ops there and a lot of accommodation available.

Mantanani was also lovely, excellent visibility and lovely corals. I actually think Mantanani was better than TARP.

If you want any more info, please PM me. I can recommend a good dive shop in KK and give more info on Mantanani.

 

[Dreamdivegirl]

Hi Hmoffatt,

First of all let me mention that I work for Borneo Dream - a Dive Operator in Kota Kinabalu. My aim, here is to share information on dive sites you might consider when you're in KK (not to promote our trips).

Sipadan is a world class dive site - often listed in the top 10 dive destinations in the world. So, it's fair to say that diving from Kota Kinabalu will not be as good as diving at Sipadan (it's not in the top 10 list . Having said that, if the conditions are good (sea state, weather, tidal) there is some nice diving to be enjoyed along the west coast of Sabah, accessible from Kota Kinabalu (KK). If you're in KK for a few days and want to get as many dives in on holiday as possible then it's a nice way to end your holiday.

The most popular diving destination from KK is to Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park. Here there are > 20 different sites. All generally involve diving along shallow coral reefs (5m - 25m) with typically little current and vis ranges between 5m - 25m (depending on conditions and dive site). The better quality coral reefs are on the westward facing side of the islands (Sulug, Manukan, Sapi & Gaya). Good sites include Clements Reef, Edgell Patches, Sulug North, Ron's Reef and Soft Coral Garden. There is also some good muck diving too (not as fantastic as Mabul, but still pretty good being so close to a city) - a good variety of nudbranches, Ghost Pipefish, Frogfish, Seahorses, Blue Ringed Octopus etc. You just need to go with a Dive Guide who knows the dives sites well.

If you fancy somewhere a bit different, with typically better quality reefs and little / no other divers in the water then consider Pulau Tiga, Mayne Rock or Mantanani. Pulau Tiga and Mayne Rock are 30nm (nautical miles) from KK, Mantanani is approx. 45nm from KK. Go with a Dive Operator who knows these sites well as you need to know where the best dive sites are at these locations. Tiga and Mantanani have lovely coral reefs. Mayne Rocj involves diving round large boulders fringed by coral reefs. All three are suitable for PADI Open Water Divers. You can get mid - strong currents at these dive sites so I'd recommend them for confident divers with experience diving in currents or drift diving. I'm guessing you'll have this experience from diving at Sipadan :cool2:

Hope this helps. Enjoy diving at Sipadan and I hope you enjoy diving from Kota Kinabalu.

Thanks,

DG

 

[hmoffatt]

Thanks all! Unless I can get a last minute place on the Mt K climb I'll def. plan for a day of diving at TARP.

 

[DownbelowDiver]

Hi hmoffatt

A few friends traveling through had good luck recently visiting the Sutera Harbour Resort / Sutera Sanctuary Lodges office in Wisma Sabah (next to Wisma Merdeka Shopping Centre) where they secured accommodation for Mt. Kinabalu for the next day or the day after.

So if the agencies you're calling have no availability, then that's always a last resort - the journey to Kinabalu Park and to the peak is well worth the effort.

Failing that, there's always the diving on the city's doorstep

 

[hmoffatt]

I did the climb... my legs hurt for about 5 days afterwards and it was cloudy up the top Oh well.