Lankayan Island Dive Resort

We had a fantastic stay. The water chalet was stunning, spacious and the view from the balcony was beautiful! The staff at the resort were friendly and helpful. The food was tasty and as a vegetarian there was a good choice. We were diving too and the equipment was good and dives were great. We had a fantastic stay, thank you!

Lankayan Island was everything I had hoped for and more. White sand beaches, often all to yourself, the clearest blue water I've ever seen, peaceful and lush surrounds, with beautiful people and service. We didn't dive, but spent our days reading and relaxing, and snorkeling. We saw so much very close to the shore, and our only regret was not exploring more! The beach chalet was much larger than expected, stylish, with a huge bathroom and outdoor shower. We were in number 18, right opposite the turtle hatchery, and it was nice and quiet. We were so lucky to be there for the release of some baby turtles too. Considering how far from amenities the island is, the food and drinks were good; it's not 5 star but its tasty and plentiful, which is what I'd expected from a tiny island :) What a dream- will remember it forever.

This island really is a paradise on earth. Clear blue waters, white beaches, and the beach chalet we had was amazing and super luxurious. The restaurant had everything you needed, staff was super friendly and the only remark we had for this trip was that the food was a bit repetitive and not very creative. Wild-life wise this is a must-do trip, we saw so many animals (turtles, rays, squid, even a parrotfish) just looking down from the pier. I definitely recommend getting up early to snorkel. There was no one else in the waters, the waters were super clear and we saw so many colourful fish. Some parts of the coral reefs here are even colorful, which you don't see in many places in the world. One night, a mama turtle lay her eggs right in front of our chalet. One of the most special experiences of my life. This is definitely worth the high price!

Paradise island. We had the most lovely relaxing 4 days. The resort is beautiful and the sea and beach are beautiful. Very quiet and restful. Snorkeling was v good and can see lots of turtles a d sea life. Staff v nice. Rooms are great. Air con could be better doesn't cool.room down as much as would like. Food is good enough and they will cater for vegetarian to best they can. 1.5 hour trio by boat can be a bit choppy so be prepared.

Lankayan Island was the perfect place to relax and recharge in between our other Borneo adventures. We stayed two nights, I wish we’d stayed 3. The snorkeling off the jetty at the dive shop was absolutely amazing and the best parts were close, no need to go far out. I also did a discover dive, which I highly recommend, Jerry was a great instructor. We also enjoyed just walking on the boardwalk and sitting on the deck at the lodge and off our room, there was lots to see in the crystal clear water. We were there for a turtle release, which was very exciting! We had an overwater villa, which was large and comfortable. The shower was amazing and the AC cool. The food wasn’t spectacular, but it was always good and flavorful, it was the best we had in Borneo. I loved out stay and would go back again, but there could be some improvements. The bar serves only beer and wine, the hair dryer was terrible (same for my friends in the villa next door), the shampoo/body wash, while eco-friendly, was terrible and like everywhere else we stayed in Borneo, there was no conditioner. On the boat ride the middle cushion in the back will get soaked with water and so will you. Be prepared if you’re unfortunate enough to get the seat, I suggest you put your purse/backpack in a dry bag and wear something you don’t mind getting wet.

What a beautiful island! I knew it was remote but was surprised when I couldn't see any other land masses in any direction. We had a room over the water. It was so lovely! It was very hot, but a fan under the air conditioning kept things fairly comfortable during the peak of the day. The staff were awesome and accommodating for food restrictions. The coral around the island is beautiful and the marine life abundant. We got to see two turtles laying eggs and two turtle nests born! It was amazing!!

Very beautiful small island in the middle of nowhere with turtle hatchery project that is really nice to see. Nice beaches, very clear water, stunning coral and sealife to snorkel and dive. Apar**ents are good and spacious, airco works well. Friendly staff. A few small recommendations: it is not always clear which parts of the water are allowed for snorkelling or not, depending on the tides. A more visible flag would be great and better for the coral. 🙃 It would also be nice if there were cushions for the beds and more beds on the beach or maybe beds like the ones on the terrace at the restaurant.

If paradise exists, this is it. The tiny little island in the middle of wide sea was super relaxing. We stayed in over water villa, and it was just magical. Even if some things could be improved, we would be glad to visit it again. The large villa was well maintained, but it was difficult to keep it cool. Since the villa is not fully closed it was quite a challenge for AC and fans to cool it during the night for a good sleep. But that did not affect a fantastic stay there. The water in Marine Nature Resort was so calm and clean that we really enjoyed the turtle swimming around and under our villa. The food was delicious and although the variety was limited did not miss anything. It was also possible to buy wine and beer – limited but nice selection for a reasonable price. It was amazing to see the passion of Marine Rangers when taking care of turtles and turtle’s eggs. It was a very nice experience watching the release of little turtles into the sea. We also adopted a turtle nest, and we cannot wait to receive the movie of “our” turtles being released into the sea. There are soldiers stationed on the island, but we seldom saw any of them and their presence made us feel safe. This island was one of the most relaxing experiences in our lives, peaceful and silent with no traffic either on the sea or in the air.

We read some mixed reviews of this place. I will try and summarise - accommodation, resort, and snorkelling. We did not dive. Accommodation - we stayed in the water bungalows which we would highly recommend to go for over the beach villas. While they have access to the beach there is nothing better than waking up to views of the sea and nothing else! The accommodation is large and has seating areas as well as a large bathroom. The bathroom is open to the elements in that you can view the sea bed through the gaps in the floor boards and in the morning you hear the sound of the sea while you get ready for the day. The balconies are large and screened. If feels like you have so much privacy while below you the sea creatures are everywhere! The only gripe I would have is that the AC was not as effective as what you would expect in a 5 star hotel - however you have to remember this is not a beach resort! It’s wonderful accommodation that is simple and it’s all about the location! Here it’s all about the sea and the isolation. We were able to see the starts most nights with the Milky Way visible to us… with distant thunder and lightning on the mainland far away! Resort - this is a dive resort with a focus on this. The central hut which serves as the dining area, a library and bar / lounge. Again it’s paired back and not the same as a hotel lobby - however again it’s all about the location. Meals are Malay with a range of veggie and non veggie options. Non veggie were more varied. Meals are nothing too extravagant - however we’re tasty and plentiful. Dinner on the deck looking out to sea every day was sublime. The rest of the resort includes the dive hut, the beach and over water villas, staff accom and the jungle interior of the island. The island is surrounded by white sand beaches and is so small it takes 10-15mins to walk around. We were fortunate to see baby turtles hatch every evening and a mummy turtle come to lay eggs one evening. Both magical experiences. Snorkelling - as we didn’t dive we can’t comment, however it looked like you had a lot of options for diving. The house reefs were fantastic with lots of fish. We were able to swim with turtles every day… there were at least 5 or so who were regularly there. There were also baby reef sharks we could swim with as well as plentiful fish. Having swam in the Caribbean, Red Sea, Australia, Galapagos and the South Pacific these were some of the best snorkelling we did - the fact you don’t need to get on boat tours to see them - just swim off the beach! The negatives were that there were a number of jellyfish - the ones here were not overly dangerous and you would be unlucky to get stung - no one suffered when we weee there. However they were annoying and were more alarming for some swimmers who may not be used to them. The second negative is that there were meant to be boat rides for snorkelers however due to a lack of staff this was not possible. We only found out once we arrived! While it was