Gaya Island Resort

Thomas Bauters

What an amazing place to end our Borneo trip. Very nice room (understatement!) with an amazing view over the sea & mount kinabalu (in clear weather). Food in all locations was great, although slightly expensive (but that is normal and to expect). The island is quite big so there is a bit a distance to cover between your room and the common areas but nothing excessive (although it includes going upwards). Nice pool and beach (including a private beach) with great snorkeling places. Personnel was cleaning the sea in front of hotel (this is endless but a nice gesture). Place does look like it gets crowed during summer months so would definitely recommend to avoid the busy periods. We booked a diving trip (via Borneo Dream) and had a great time with their team. Amazing breakfast with a variety of choices (included cheese, which we missed!).

Sanja R

We stayed for three nights and Gaya Island Resort didn’t meet our expectations. Overall it is overpriced and their web page is far from reality. AC in the room has two options, low and high, you can’t regulate the temperature. If you want nice view, sunrise, from your room you have to take Kinabalu villa. The only issue is uphill walking. Resort is offering some activities for additional fee. There is not much that you can do. Marine center was not working during our stay.

Mike Churchill

We really enjoyed our stay, but I can imagine it depends on your expectations. We were lucky that by mid February it was getting quiet and so plenty of loungers and not too crowded at meal times. The eco-aircon hot water system gave up on the second day and as typical in Borneo accurate resort services information takes some effort. Nonetheless, the staff are extremely helpful and responsive and the Fisherman's restaurant is outstanding. We didn't try the wine, which looked a bit pricey, the cocktails were pretty weak and limited beer options. Since you are captive, if you have a favourite tipple, I recommend you bring it yourself. Being close to KK it is not the tranquility of a desert island however, it is easy to get to and if you can enjoy what it does have, it's a relaxing stopover. High Tide snorkeling was pretty decent, but it doesn't really have a beach.

Wendy Wei

I came here 5 years ago in November 2019. It was so amazing and I promised I would bring my family later—-and now is the time. We have wonderful experience here—- kayaking, snorkeling and private island lunch. Every staff is very friendly and helpful. The hotel is as same as 5 years ago. Hopefully I will come back in a short time.

Michael Seddon

A delightful hotel for a holiday. Every member of staff was friendly and helpful. Bedrooms are huge with big bathroom with both shower and bath. Aircon and ceiling fan in bedroom worked well. Beautiful grounds and the pool really is a long as it looks in the photos. When the hotel has higher occupancy the main restaurant serves a buffet dinner which was nice but not as good as the a la carte when occupancy is lower. There is a small gym which has seen better days and could be better maintained. The reef just offshore offers wonderful opportunity for snorkelling beach. Pool is a lovely place to chill out and never a problem to get a sun lounger. The jungle walk was fun to do and Haziq who led this is very knowledgeable. Similarly Dihtiv who does marine conservation is very friendly and knowledgeable. And a big thank you to Sharon, June, Ying, Nelson and Rhosan in the restaurant / bar, all of whom were so lovely.