Sandakan hotels

Pros: Absolutely gorgeous setting with charming bungalows set right in the jungle on the water. Staff was fabulous ... but a special thank you to my guide, Sonny, who was an absolute delight and a fabulous animal “spotter”.

Cons: The food menu could use some improvement. I think they are trying to cater to the western / Chinese palette ... personally I think more authentic Malay food would make all the difference. The satay and randang eggs for breakfast is excellent.

Pros: Beautiful, beautiful location. You're right in the midst of nature and the views are stunning. Huge, spacious chalets with everything you need (except WiFi, but you can get that in the lobby). Just a few minutes to walk to the Sun Bear and Orangutan sanctuaries and about a 20-minute walk to the Rainforest Discovery Centre.

Cons: The food was a bit expensive, so I didn't eat there often. There are cheaper places with good food just down the road.

Pros: I five five stars to this place! Beautiful surrounding, cozy and stylish cottages, great food and perfect staff! My piece of heaven!

Cons: Nothing to complaint.

Pros: Amazing location, atmosphere and lovely staff.

Cons: Nothing

Pros: Great location in walking distance to the sun bear Centre and orangutan Centre Room spacious and complimentary water and coffee etc Night walk with sonny was good worth doing He accompanied us to the orangutans (we didn’t ask) he just tagged on but was ok ( can be abit full on) Would recommend staying but no longer than 3 days

Cons: Staff were abit unattentive had to call them Over to ask for drinks etc very slow! Reception staff did not give us any talk when we arrived which was disappointing as the next couple after us did which was strange! WiFi is rubbish and you can’t get it in your room ( other hotels have great WiFi) asked about another setting which they gave us eventually and it was a lot better Food is ok but can get better outside at another hotel And the food and bar close early 9pm which is strange as no early morning activities as it’s not safari.

Pros: Resort like hotel in the middle of the forest just a 4 min walk from Sepilok Orangutang centre. Incredible atmosphere surrounded by vegetation and the sounds of the nature. Comfy large chalets with balcony perfect for chilling out. They kindly changed the dates of my booking without charge.

Cons: My experience was not as good as others. The electric box in my room made a terribly annoying buzz and after complaining we were told it was normal. Light switches would work madly and the second night we couldn’t turn off the terrace light, no solution either. Wifi only accesible form the restaurant area and running terribly poor. Food was really overpriced considering amount and quality. Very poor taste for Malaysian standards and pricey even for mid-range European ones. Expect to pay as much as 4€ for a cappuccino or 6€ for a glass a wine. I would definitely recommend having lunch at Sepilok reserve cafeteria, incredibly good and cheap.

Pros: Everything except the lack of respect for dietary requirements

Cons: Need veggie, vegan, low carb, gluten free, low sodium etc. This is 2020! And I’m a head of tourism from a London college!

Pros: Clean and well presented facility. Friendly and helpful staff.

Pros: Really enjoyed breakfast - watermelon cubes, some salad, your choice of egg (omelette/fried/?), and free flow of coffee / tea / orange juice. Living quarters were spick and span - I stayed in a dormitory which was tidy and had great air-conditioning, and the shared toilets were amazingly clean and well-kept. I was there during the low season, which probably also helped. Staff lent me hangers upon request. There's also a nice open-air seating area at the reception with a few books on Borneo - comfortable and very chill. 10/10!

Cons: Nothing :)

Pros: Well maintained place.

Cons: No door mats or slippers in the toilet

Pros: Breakfast is simple,but ok, WiFi is only in the reception area.

Cons: Location is perfect if you go to Rain forest and Sepilok. Room is fine, bed is very comfortable,bathroom is in outdoor area - that’s very cool. You can get free drinking water every day. .

Pros: The chalets are realy clean and lots of space. The staff is verry friendly and helpfull. It's only a short walk to the main attractions in the area. There is a smal shop for buying drinks and snacks. The restaurant provides affordable and tasty meals.

Pros: Room was clean. Receptionist was nice and allowed me to check out at 11 a.m. Also arranged taxi for pick up due to late arrival.

Cons: Cement stairs leading up to reception and down to room. No offer of help for luggage. No hot water. Artificial air freshener in the room (3 of them) made me sick and I had to remove them. Taxi driver who also works at the hotel was late, causing me to stand alone on a dark road after 8 p.m. Room has thin walls and you can hear everything next door. Major construction so no nice grounds. Breakfast was so so. Check out at 10:00 a.m. is early.

Pros: Staff was friendly and quite helpful. Very clean. Other guests were friendly and interesting.

Cons: Location is close to the nature park but far from anything else. Restaurant was not great. Showers stop working at 10pm, which caused me to miss an evening shower on the first day.

Pros: The people, the beds, the food and the location

Cons: Some rubbish behind the smoking area

Pros: Everything is very good.

Pros: Staff super friendly and helpful. Really close to the Sepilok centre, short walk distance. Food at Mango Restaurant absolutely amazing. Perfect stay in Sepilok Terima kasih

Pros: Clean and comfortable place with nice restaurant. Very convenient location with walking distance from the orangutan center.

Pros: It is located near to Pasar Umum, but not much to see around the hotel except nice view from the hotel room.

Cons: Breakfast buffet was moderate in selection. Could add more variety to it.

Pros: A lovely touch of class and comfort- close to everything with a spectacular view over the pool and water beyond. The staff were lovely as were the facilities. Great for our family visit.

Pros: Pool was amazing! We stayed out there for ages ordering drinks and relaxing as the rest of our stay was really hectic with tours and treks. Room facing onto the sea had an amazing view and the bathroom had a window opening onto the view also Breakfast was the best we had I Asia in 3 weeks!

Cons: Not enough sun loungers. Only about 16 for a hotel with hundreds of rooms

Pros: Lots of choice for breakfast. Good location. Disappointed booking.com or the hotel didn't tell us the hotel was undergoing maintenance, will be putting a complaint in. Staff were lovely, everything was very clean.

Pros: Comfort of a Four Points hotel

Cons: Staff promised one thing, and another colleague did not fulfil that promise

Pros: Very clean and confortable, good price, amaizing breakfast.

Cons: The alarm clock started to ring at 6 am !! We arrived very late, i didn t even notice we have a radio with alarm next to the bed... The refrigerator and the hairdryer were not working The hotel is located near the fish market which is very dirty and smelly.

Pros: Clean showers and toilet and never had to queue. Good and quiet AC. Comfortable room. Good breakfast.

Cons: The WiFi didn't work while we were there. There was also an issue with the water (but I think if affected the whole street so not really their fault). Also the pillows are memory foam ones which aren't my favourite.

Pros: It's a great hostel, clean bathrooms, good sized rooms and the staff were very helpful. Was meant to stay here for 2 days ended up staying for 4 instead. Would definitely recommend this place.

Pros: This was one of our favourite hostels in 7 months of travelling. The room was huge, comfortable, clean. The AC worked great. Shared bathrooms where clean and tidy and even had hot water. Common room area was a nice place to be with comfy couches. You can play board games and watch films and theres also a lot of information on tours and activities. In the kitchen area there were free hot drinks and drinking water. Fruit and toast for breakfast. The staff where very friendly and helpful. We had already booked a tour with another company but they let us store our bags there for 3 days. Location is great, just a few minutes from the shopping mall, food market and waterfront restaurants. On Sunday theres a little market on in the streets around the hostel. Over all we were very impressed with this hostel! If only all other hostels couldn't be as comfortable and good quality as this one.

Pros: Great location, rooms are clean, my bed was comfy and WIFI superstrong! Since I left very early I can't say much about the breakfast but I got toast butter jam even in the very morning which I really liked. Staff was nice and helpful. I would book there right away if I would return to Sandakan

Cons: Sandakan in itself is not very nice.

Pros: Good location friendly staff.

Cons: One of the staff always slept in the reception room, if you were an early riser you couldn’t sit on the sofa to watch a movie.

Cons: Bedsheets need to double wash ..

Pros: Great value for money, big comfy room, super nice stuff and location. I liked it so much that decided to come back once again. Thank you guys!

Cons: Nothing

Pros: Staff break fast place vibe

Cons: None

Pros: First things first, the group we had was amazing. We made such great friends that made the whole thing 10x better. The rooms were surprisingly comfortable, the food was excellent and the whole vibe of the place was great. The safari itself was also great. We saw 3 orangutans!! Which is apparently super rare. We also saw a crocodile and about 500 monkeys. The night walk for birds was also sick. We didn’t see elephants though :/. But the orangutans made it all worth it. Mohammed is a very nice guy

Cons: The boots/binoculars flashlight should really be included in the price. That’s kind of what we are paying for here. The binoculars shouldn’t be rented FYI not very good quality. My only real complaint about the tour is you only have 1 full day to do safari and there was about a 4-5 hour period in the middle of the Day with nothing planned. Also they canceled they 2nd night walk for “wind” but there was literally no wind so we did our own tour without the lodge

Pros: This property is close to a small village in the middle of the jungle on the banks of the Kinabatangan river so is a fantastic location for observing the wildlife of Borneo. The guides for the boat safaris and the jungle walks (which are included in the price) are friendly and knowledgeable about the local wildlife. We were fortunate enough to see Orangutans on our 5th and 6th days of our stay. We also saw four varieties of horn-bill and a plethora of other birds, proboscis monkeys, macaques, silver leaf monkeys, crocodiles, sleeping birds, civet cats, Malaysian civet (like a fox); a viper; and loads of exotic bugs. The staff at this hotel were all fantastic, professional and friendly and the team gave us an unforgettable wedding anniversary on our last night, giving us a special dinner with four of the staff singing to us while we ate. We will always have a special place in our heart for this hotel and thanks to them for Eric Clapton's Wonderful Tonight. Perhaps the biggest pleasant surprise for us was quality of the food which during our 7 night stay was exceptional.

Cons: The only things we did not like were those that were not controlled by the hotel, namely: biting bugs; and humidity. There's nothing that you can do about this but keep applying the repellent and covering up.

Pros: Going on the river boat cruises and seeing all the wikdlife

Cons: Unfortunately the electric was turned off during the day which meant no water and no air con, with humidity at 80% it was very uncomfortable. A bucket of water was asked for but in never appeared.

Pros: One of our highlights in Malaysia - Smooth pick up from our hotel in Sandakan and 2 hour transfer to lodge. Very clean cabins and decent food. All was very organized when we arrived we had a greeting and outline of the plans for the days. For a small fee you can rent wellies torches and binoculars there is also a small shop to buy chips, beer and soft drinks. Wine is available but super expensive.The sightseeing program (all included for us) was really good. Early morning boat cruise for 1 hour then breakfast. A 1 hour hike then lunch. free time until 4pm boat cruise for 2 hours. 7pm was dinner and 8pm was the night walk. We very much enjoyed all the activities. we stayed for 3 nights and felt the last day the information on the 2 walks was repetitive. We were very lucky we saw elephant, big croc, all the monkeys, a bearded pig many hornbills and birds it was great. I would highly recommend Nature Lodge Kinabatagan.

Pros: Very well organised Meals good - rice and curry for lunch and dinner Ac in dorms as well as chalets Brilliant guides and staff

Pros: Good guide on river cruise

Cons: Don't expect jungle trekking. Just walking around the village.

Pros: Overall, the experience was excellent. I had a dorm bed which was fine. Really nice to have aircon. All the team were very helpful and delightful and our river guides were amazing (Anwang and Henry) We saw more wildlife then could have imagined.

Cons: The bathroom for the dorms is outside with an open roof so no protection from mosquitoes. This made it impossible to shower without being bitten alive. It is the only thing that I would change. A simple adjustment to include some form of screen above the shower rooms would greatly improve comfort.

Pros: The food was absolutely amazing!!! And 4he dorm room was very clean and even had an AC :D

Cons: The shared bathroom area could be improved a bit, but was ok considering it's in the jungle. As I told the receptionist, it would be improving the experience a lot if the staff and guides gave way more information about the animals, the river, the local people and the lodge with it's sustainable approach.

Pros: This is an authentic jungle lodge. There will be bugs flying around! Great staff- river guides extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Very good value for what you get!! Food, river trips, jungle walks, pick up...

Cons: No WiFi but this is also quite nice.

Pros: They provide a free shuttle service to the Orangutan Sanctuary and even picked us up when we arrived in Sepilok by Bus in the evening. Also Trips to all the nearby attractions can be arranged by them. The food is amazingly delicious and fresh. We loved eating there! Also the juices are wonderful. The Room had the most beautiful view!

Pros: Great location in the middle of the jungle. Really quiet, perfect to relax.

Pros: Lovely family bussines and the most amazing location ever. Go for it!!! Wildlife all around you and great people. Couldn't ask for more

Cons: Nothing

Pros: Amazing soup! And we ate very well! The accomadation is outside the city but they give you transportation for the main places and they help you a lot! The location is in the middle of the nature super quite ! A bangolow perfect with the squarles who woke up us! A dream coming true!

Cons: The shower didnt have hot water

Pros: The view from the room was amazing. The shuttle bus made it really easy to get to and from the orangutans. The food was very good.

Cons: That you could only pay cash. ATMs are not easy to come by in Sepilok and we had to pay our own way to an ATM that was 25 minutes away. I did not know it was cash only prior to coming. We probably would have stayed longer if we could have paid with a card. The walkways are not very safe to and from our room. They are extremely slippery and there are no lights when it is dark out.

Pros: Breakfast is served outside by one of the team there. There is one option each day and it can change day to day but it was always really nice and served very quickly. They have tea, coffee and jams for your use as well.

Cons: Just make sure to take insect repellent and to have the mosquito net down at night. Also don't leave lights on in your room or outside your room when you are out otherwise you will come back to a lot of insects. This is no fault of the hostel, just the nature of being in the jungle!

Pros: Staff were helpful and friendly. Nicely located in rustic quiet setting. Basic breakfast to start the day, evening meals limited range but good. Good shuttle to orangutan sanctuary. Well coordinated taxi arrangements for airport

Cons: Internet access at the reception and dining area challenging and erratic. Must be pretty hard to maintain cleanliness in this situation but a little more effort may help. Paganakan Dii Tropical Retreat must have been amazing in its prime.

Pros: Friendly and helpful staff. Good ibformation.

Pros: Could be amazing, but needs a lot of TLC. It was not in a great location for me and my family.

Cons: You had to request internet every time that you wanted to use it - 1st world problem but a real pain - difficult (and expensive) to get taxis in and out.

Pros: The hotel is immersed in the jungle and not far from the airport. Nice cafe with indoor and outdoor areas, nice lounge. It was the governor house once, the Borneo wing reminds the old building. Relaxing option if you need to stay close to the airport but prefer to avoid the town centre. Staff is very kind.

Cons: No staff attending the swimming pool, we had to look for them, no big issue. Maybe because it was low season. Swimming pool area was being repaired. Furniture in the rooms is not super modern but still in very good conditions.

Pros: Pleasant clean hotel, nice staff , nice pool and gym. Breakfast, very average, limited buffet and hot dishes Luke warm.

Cons: Breakfast , wifi erratic.

Pros: Pool was lovely.

Cons: A little tired/dated.

Pros: Swimming pool, food, staff , locatieontwikkelaar, green environment

Cons: Coffee

Cons: The pool was amazing!

Pros: Excellent facilities Price versus quality is really good

Cons: A bit far from the city centre. Just use a grab

Pros: A beautiful place, tranquil settings surrounded by jungle. Amazing Malay food, lovely plunge pool, walking distance to the orangutan and sun bear sanctuary. Staff super helpful and friendly! Loved it!

Cons: Mosquitoes! Don’t forget your repellent, they weren’t too bad but they were there.

Pros: This place was the top from our trip around Borneo. Special place that provides great chill out with extremely helpful staff and beatiful views to the garden and forest. Walking distance from oragutan and sun bears conservation centers. Nothing that we asked was a problem.

Pros: Great place, nice food, cool staff.

Pros: Location, comfy dorm beds, really helpful and friendly team

Cons: Nothing

Pros: Really really lovely place to stay. Walking distance to the main attractions in sepilok (super close to orangutans and sunbears, a little further to the rainforest discovery centre). Staff lovely and helpful. Resort itself was in beautiful surroundings and relaxing place to be. Excellent value for money if staying in dorms. The dorm room was one of the nicest Ive stayed in.

Cons: Food was expensive for portion size. Dont expect a big pool, it is far too small to swim in.

Pros: The food in the restaurant was delicious and the cocktails were great. Staff were very helpful and friendly. The lodge was clean and bigger than we expected.

Cons: The resort was a little further from the main attractions than some of the other resorts but still pretty close and staff helped to organise grab taxis when we needed them (very affordable).

Cons: The hotel needs renovation. The food at the cafe can also be improved.

Pros: I love the spacious room, the friendly staff, the price and all. I find that this is the best hotel in town since i moved here in 2018.

Cons: Maybe breakfast? I've been here so many times and the breakfast almost always the same. Variety instead?

Pros: It is excellent value for money. Even the breakfast was good for westerners including a egg station and French toast. We had a room on the 7th floor with a nice seaview.

Cons: It's hard to find something we didn't like! Probably the only downside is the mosque next to the hotel. But if you have aircon and the windows are closed it's not too bad.

Pros: Good internet, good location and nice staff. Breakfast included to the price.

Pros: I love everything about this hotel. Feels like home! The spacious room, the friendly staffs, the price and all.

Pros: In town

Cons: Facilities could be more up to date

Pros: Extremely nice and helpful reception-staff. Good location within walking distance to city center. Rooms on 7th floor are lovely and huge.

Cons: restaurant-staff could do with some customer-relations training. Rooms on lower floors are really not very good.

Pros: Convenient location for orangutans and sun bears. Beautiful gardens, ponds and bird life. Can get bus to/from town, taxi to/from airport very affordable.

Cons: While very affordable it has seen better days, but perfect for the budget conscious and large family groups.

Pros: Excellent location just a 5 min walk to the orangutan reserve. The area was incredible in the middle of a pond and the forest. Room was basic but comfortable and clean. Breakfast basic but very tasty, didn’t try other meals.

Cons: We arrived at night and the reception was closed, it was a little tricky to find our way but somebody was waiting for us with the key.

Pros: Location's good, the pool is OK, and the ponds and vegetation are quite pleasant

Cons: Temperature of air conditioning is fixed... lighting in our room isn't great. Breakfast is rather poor and dull

Pros: Nice relaxing hotel in the middle of the jungle. We picked this one because it is only one with pool which was amazing relax after observing animals in Sepilog. Room was very nice and clean with space balkony. We loved way to the restaurant using bridges, hearing jungle sounds. Would stay again.

Cons: All resort it bit old, no much renovations. But clean and that is all you need.

Pros: Amazing location and really interesting resort! Loved the pool and the walkways through the rain forests. Close to the main attractions and we highly recommend a trip to the rain forest discovery centre! Restaurant was basic but fine for a few nights and room was clean and spacious.

Pros: Amazing location, so peaceful - 5 min walk to orangutans and sun bears and about 20 mins to rainforest discovery centre. Lovely food in the restaurant and nice comfortable, clean room. Pool was also great for keeping cool in the heat!

Cons: The fan in the room was very noisy so take earplugs if you’re a light sleeper. Also a mosquito net would be good to have in the room as they do get in so take a good repellent with you. Choice of breakfast is also a bit limited - these things are only minor though and I still had a lovely stay and would definitely come back.

Pros: Absolutely perfect stay! Experienced wildlife like never before! Also the properties Wi-Fi was very strong in our room!

Pros: Location is the best. Just 10 minute walk from all the highlights The restaurant is really good with reasonable price Swimmingpool is awesome

Cons: Only rooms for 2 people

Cons: Location and worth value for money

Pros: Location is good and the restaurant on the roof is good.

Cons: Bathroom not well done. Beds are old, noisy, and one of the beds is in poor condition.

Pros: Excellent food, awesome staff! Clean and cute room. Beautiful restaurant and terrace with a great view.

Cons: Wish there was Wi-Fi in the room as well.

Pros: Easy access everywhere as it is in the town. Beautiful view rootop dining with a great sunset view. Quaint breakfast lounge.

Cons: Old furniture, shades let in too much light. Should improve bathroom facilities

Pros: The room was clean with housekeeping every day. The staff at the property were very friendly. The rooftop restaurant was an added bonus. The food and drinks there were good - probably one of the best places around. We were staying in Sandakan for the Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary and Kinabtangan River so we didn't do too much exploring in the area. The location was fine for what we were there for.

Cons: The place could do with a bit of an upgrade but that's all I would say.

Pros: Corridor lights leads to rooms too dim. Cant even see the door light scan.

Cons: Cant request for extra towel

Pros: Parking space,comfortable area. Easy to find breakfast

Cons: No lift.No choice drinks only coffea.

Pros: Free of charge airport transfer & the location

Cons: The wifi connection is quite bad.

Pros: value for money

Cons: lighting in room

Pros: Room clean

Cons: N

Pros: Good location and airport shuttle

Cons: They charged more money for a tourist tax when we checked in after we already had an agreed upon price on kayak?

Pros: Strategically

Pros: Smoking room

Cons: I cannot smoke in the room and it is far from any entertainment outlet

Pros: The price cheap

Cons: The management not friendly n not ethical

Pros: the room!

Cons: the lift.. always alarmed overload even im alone in there. Technical problems

Pros: A short walk to the memorial. Staff are very helpful and friendly.

Cons: everything is good but there have some problem with the hot water.you need to wait for 7 minute..so poor...

Cons: signboard.. and arrow to hotel.. must put at the junction

Pros: Friendly staff, they do their best to help us with our request. Free shuttle from and to the airport. Evening shuttle to nearby restaurants.

Cons: Local breakfast. Mostly rice with meat, chicken and vegetables. No cereals, milk chease or omlette. Old hotel needs fresh furniture.

Pros: Good costumer service

Cons: Toilet dirty and smiling

Pros: Room clean and comfortable.. Friendly staff.. My family is happy to stay there especially my mum..

Pros: Fairly basic room but very helpful staff and excellent location in the centre of town on the waterfront Very good value for money

Cons: Not a lot wrong

Pros: The hotel is located strategically at the heart of town. A decent breakfast meal also provided.

Cons: The hotel staff insisted me that I have not pay full even I had paid full when checked-in. Fortunately there is CCTV at reception desk to prove the payment. Miscommunication between the staff.

Pros: Nearby to mall, market, and easy to access variety of food.. restaurant is nearby.

Cons: The bathroom no lock for the door...people can easy go in when someone is using.

Pros: Friendly personal

Cons: Dirty rooms and shower

Pros: All okay

Cons: All the personal work at the reception are extra ordenarily nice and helpful. Wonderful view.

Pros: Recomended. Good service and lacation