Dive Review of
Pulau-Sipadan resort & touring/Lankayan Island Resort in
Malaysia/Lankayan Island,Sabah

8 trips to Indonesia, 15 places in the Caribbean, Red Sea, Thailand, Hawaii

Dive Conditions

Follow the leader only, 45 min max bottom time even with bottom being 18-20
meter depths max.   

Nothing on the boat specifically for camera gear.  Wash bin for gear &
separate for camera on the pier where you board the boat. Nothing special
for camera area on the pier that I saw.  Wet bins of gear in 1 room seemed
to be the only on the pier gear area. Rooms were a 50 meter walk away so
close by.  

Overall Rating

I do long dives and was not told up front about the 45 min limit.  Which
did not go over well at all. I had in person chats with the booking folks
prior to this trip. The resort is very nice, clean cabins on the beach,
nice private balconies, clean hot water showers/ baths w/ flush toilets,
baby blacktip reef sharks all over the shallows under the pier were nice to
watch.  Good food & friendly resort staff. Nice buffet food service in
beach front local with a good breeze.

Dive operations were another deal altogether.  The 1st, 2nd & 3rd tanks
I put my gear on were filled to over 4,000 pounds. Dive staff did not seem
to think this was unusual or a problem. Super silty dive sites (I only saw
2+ the pier) really poor for photos and very few fish.  Again I did not
stick around to see more.  So this is very limited commentary.  Got on the
1st boat only 2 other divers.  The guide, when asked what interesting
things we should look for said "follow me".  I put gear on in the
water.  When the boat driver went to hand my gear down to me, it crashed to
the floor of the boat as he had left it standing on a seat for a moment. 
The dive guide showed me not a single thing while underwater.  After 45 min
I got tapped on the shoulder and told to surface....I had more than 2,000
pounds in a 63 size tank.

Night dive was alone under the docks where there were maybe a dozen fish. 3
other divers did a 25 min dive and left. I stayed in over an hour just to
give things a really look about.

Second boat dive was the next morning.  Dive was briefed for 45 min.  I
asked what the deal was on the 45 min and was told I needed to charter my
own boat, driver and private guide for who knows how much additional $$'s
if I wished to be in the water over 45 min. During this, my last dive with
these folks, there were 9 dynamite blasts during the dive.  None of the
other 3 divers seemed surprized.

After some serious discussions with the dive operator I have reached an
agreeable settlement with them.  

Sabah itself is a really beautiful state to visit.  I did lots of land
things after this aborted diving episode.  Big green lush mountains,
jungle, waterfalls, hiking, canopy walks, orang Utangs, in all a great
adventure place to visit.  I know it offers great diving, I just did not
find it this time. Yes I'll return to Sabah anytime.






 

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