Best Gaya Island Hotels

"Just got back home yesterday, and I'm determined to write a thorough review for this hotel. My kids also encouraged me to review it, because it truly deserves it. We booked four ocean villas for two nights, and I initially thought our chances of encountering issues would be higher with such a large booking. But we didn't run into any problems at all! In fact, I even regretted not booking more nights, mainly because I was put off by too many negative reviews on Ctrip. 1. **Service:** If you're comfortable communicating in English, the hotel service is absolutely fantastic. Most of the staff speak excellent English and were diligent in explaining activities, facilities, schedules, and programs. They showed us where everything was in the room and proactively informed us about the cost if we broke any of the toiletries bottles. The higher cost for broken bottles is because the contents are genuinely expensive – they're pure plant essential oil toiletries. As someone who regularly uses essential oils, I know they shouldn't be stored in plastic. Plus, these toiletries left our hair and skin feeling moisturized, not dry. I found them to be very effective. If you're worried about breaking them, just place them on the floor. 2. **Seawater:** The seawater is quite clear. While it's not a 'jelly blue,' the clarity is definitely good. We did experience a heavy downpour one day, and the water became a bit murky the next, but it was still perfectly acceptable. The photo of the large sea turtle looks a bit blurry because it was taken with a waterproof phone case, but the water itself was actually very clear. That was taken from under our water villa. The manta ray was photographed near the stairs of our water villa room. 3. **No Outside Food Policy:** They don't allow outside food in the rooms because it attracts ants and monkeys. The front desk has a dedicated area for storing snacks. We didn't bring any snacks into our room and always closed the door promptly, so we didn't have any bugs or insects. A crucial point: absolutely do not feed the monkeys! 4. **Meals:** We had all our meals at the hotel restaurant, and the food was truly delicious. A main meal costs around 90+ MYR per person (about 160 CNY). We felt the food was excellent, with a good variety of dishes and drinks beyond just the main courses. The kids' portions were a bit small; our four children ordered 7 kids' meals, and eventually, we just ordered them regular adult meals instead. 5. **Hot Water:** Regarding previous reviews mentioning no hot water, one of our rooms indeed had this issue. We called the front desk, and it turned out there's a 'water heater' button on the wall. Hot water was available within 15 minutes. So, don't hesitate to ask! Don't be shy; good service often requires you to speak up. 6. **Free Rentals:** Paddleboards, small boats, fins, and masks are all available for free rental. 7. **Marine Life:** In the ocean, we spotted baby sharks, baby manta rays, triggerfish, archerfish (the ones that shoot water), porcupinefish, and even a large sea turtle (which is rare, but we got lucky!). 8. **Welcome/Farewell:** We received a welcome ceremony and a welcome drink upon arrival. Upon departure, we sometimes had the whole staff waving goodbye to us. 9. **Guest Demographics:** There were a lot of European and American guests at the hotel, some Koreans, but not many Chinese guests. I wonder if this is due to the excessive negative reviews on Ctrip. 10. **Cleanliness:** The hygiene was excellent, and the rooms were very clean. Each room came with life vests, so you could go snorkeling anytime. That pretty much covers it. I believe if your English communication is good, feel free to chat with the front desk and restaurant staff; they are very engaging. At 8 AM, the hotel organizes a free jungle trek. It was a bit tiring, and we didn't see much – just hiking uphill. For reference, my experience this trip, and with these four rooms, was genuinely excellent. Having been to places like the Maldives, Bali, and Koh Lipe... I think this hotel offers great value for money, and I would definitely come back. Hotels at this price point on Koh Lipe before were significantly worse."

"1. If you're planning to dive into the sea for a simple snorkel in January or February, make sure to do it before 10 AM. Otherwise, the waves will be too strong, and the beach will be covered with seaweed and trash. 2. If you've never tried a jungle zipline before, it might be worth a shot, but it doesn't offer the same value for money as places specializing in ziplining. The view of the sea from the highest platform, however, is much more appealing. 3. The hotel breakfast is incredibly thoughtful, with a set portion per person plus a buffet. If you have high standards for breakfast, you should definitely give it a try. 4. There's no convenience store at the hotel. If you're interested in Malaysian instant noodles, it's a good idea to bring a couple of packs with you. The restaurant is quite expensive, although the chefs there are very dedicated. 5. Overall, I don't think it's worth 2000; around 1500 would be more appropriate."

"The resort is very easy to get to from Kota Kinabalu airport. Using the Grab app makes it convenient to call a car to take you to the Jesselton Point to catch the boat to the resort. The resort is quite beautiful and clean. Reading other reviews, I wasn’t quite sure why several had complaints about the price and food. The food was all excellent - fresh and reasonably priced. We ate at both specialty restaurants as well - Fisherman’s Cove and Omakase - and both were excellent. The breakfast and dinner buffets had a lot of variety to choose from and all the staff were friendly and helpful. The bed was incredibly comfortable and we loved the sea view from our terrace. The bathroom was well-equipped and spacious. The pool was very clean and there were plenty of sun chairs to choose from. The gift shop had many cute items. The spa is beautiful and the massage was amazing! What needs improvement - the bathtub in our villa was a bit dirty with some dead bugs. It’s fantastic that they offer a complimentary boat shuttle to the other bay near the marine center but it’s extremely littered with plastic. I asked the staff for a garbage bag and ended up collecting about 5 kg worth of garbage from the beach and sea. This should be the government policy or authorities responsibility - they need to clean it up and charge fines for littering. Overall, we loved this resort and wanted to stay longer. We definitely recommend staying here. I would like to specifically mention Aileen, Rozana, Nathaniel and Shadar for making our stay memorable and comfortable."

"One of our best experience. Best part about Manukan Sutera lodge 1) very helpful and friendly staff. 2) i booked 2 rooms. They gave me adjoining room. Super helpful for family with kids. 3) very spacious rooms. 4) sunset viewpoint is a big plus. U get the see the beautiful sunset. But have to walk 1.5km to and another 1.5km back. 5) private beach is helpful for guests so that we don't have to share the public beach with the rest of the visitors. U get to see more fish and corals because fewer tourists to scare away the fish 6) free rental snorkeling equipment. 7) delicious and sumptuous breakfast. 8) easy boat transport. Free overnightt parking at sutera marina club. Disadvantages 1) no data signal or wifi in the room.have to go to reception for wifi or data signal. 2) dinner is slightly more expensive because there is only 1 restaurant, so no other choices. But food is delicious, even for the fried rice (see pic)"

"Because I saw the chaos of island hopping at the pier, I chose to stay on the island. Three meals were included, and snorkeling and boating were free. The staff was very polite. Chinese service was available during check-in and check-out, and the rest of the time the staff were locals who spoke English. There are two guest rooms, one sea view room and one mountain view room. The sea view room has a loud sound of waves, so light sleepers should be careful. The mountain view room can't hear the waves. The hotel can consider providing disposable earplugs. If you want to find a place to snorkel near the island in Kota Kinabalu, staying here is a good choice. On the first day of check-in, a speedboat picked up my mother and me and took us to the island."

"Travelled with my son for the first time to KK. Glad we settled for Hyatt Regency, location was excellent. Short walk to Suria Sabah mall and Gaya Street night market was just a street away. Grab to places like Imago Mall, Sutera Harbour and Airport cost between RM5 - RM9. Room was big and beds were comfortable, only downside was that the aircon was still warm at 19 degrees. Pool was average. Breakfast buffet was good. One thing that definitely stood out was the service by the hotel staff. We arrived at 12pm with the initial thought to drop off our luggages first but they allowed us to check in rightaway. Housekeeping also called our room to ask if we needed anything. Will definitely stay here again for my next trip!"

"We booked an executive family room. It was exceptionally spacious, featuring two large 2-meter beds and a beautiful sea view. The hotel is situated directly above Shuguang Department Store, making its location incredibly convenient. You can find numerous dining options and a supermarket just by heading downstairs. Even better, taking the elevator to the third floor leads you directly to Ya Yan restaurant and another supermarket. This means you literally don't need to step outside the building for meals or daily necessities, which is a huge plus! The only minor downside was the breakfast. It's served on the 7th floor, and you have to walk through a section of the parking garage to get there, which felt a bit unusual. Additionally, the breakfast itself wasn't particularly tasty."

"The room is perfect for two and incredibly close to the market. My only slight disappointment was that my room didn't face the sea, which meant missing out on those stunning evening sunsets. On the plus side, the room is fully equipped and even has cooking facilities."

"The room is a standard homestay, with a double bed and a sofa bed (if you want to sleep on the sofa bed, you need to tell the owner in advance so that the owner can prepare the sofa bed in advance), with microwave oven, toaster, induction cooker, refrigerator, coffee machine and other equipment, and a public swimming pool downstairs. The owner is very nice, see the pictures for details, the owner can speak Chinese in daily communication, but it seems that he can only speak English when typing on WeChat. If you don’t understand English, you can translate it or ask the owner to send a voice message."