PULAU KAPALAI

Luxury Water Resort
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KAPALAI

Guests visiting Kapalai don’t even need to get wet in order to see the magical marine life all around them – needlefish and lionfish are visible right from the footbridges and balconies of the resort!

A vacation at Kapalai Island is a fantastic getaway for divers and non-divers alike. Choose to spend your long sun-filled days on the beach or on your private balcony, or better yet jump into the water and experience some of the top-rated dive sites in the world.

The stilted chalets provide exceptional sunrise and sunset views over the water, a gentle breeze can be felt throughout the day and night, and the proximity to world-renowned diving is unsurpassable.

MUCK DIVING

Muck diving is a major draw for those visiting Kapalai. Muck diving refers to shallow diving with limited visibility, generally due to a sandy sea floor where the smallest and strangest of critters like to hide. Macro marine life is what it’s all about in muck diving, and if you’re a budding underwater photographer you’re in for a real treat – you can capture close-up shots of odd-looking and well-camouflaged critters to your heart’s content.

KAPALAI MARINE LIFE

Be sure to look out for the colourful mandarin fish as it performs its spectacular mating dance under the jetty of the resort. The stars of the show are the flamboyant cuttlefish, the rare and odd-looking frogfish and the small-but-mighty blue-ringed octopus. A supporting act of sea moths, ghost pipefish and mantis shrimp ensure that there is always plenty to enjoy when diving at Kapalai. In fact, many visitors leave Kapalai with a brand new passion for macro diving, simply because it is so easy to do when staying on the resort.

The easiest way to experience the muck diving at Kapalai is to simply dive under the Kapalai jetty which has become one of the most frequently dived spots thanks to its remarkable convenience and ease of access for divers. Scuba divers can also find crocodile fish, leaf scorpion fish, lion fish, gobies and shrimp right under their noses.

SIPADAN DIVE TRIPS

Kapalai Dive Resort is often used as a base for diving nearby Sipadan, which can be reached in just 10 minutes by boat.

Diving Day trips to Sipadan Island are subject to Permit availability. Sipadan Day trips include 3 guided boat dives, a picnic lunch on Sipadan island along with fresh snacks for after the dives, plus of course wonderful memories to take home with you.

KAPALAI RESORT

Sipadan-Kapalai Dive Resort consists of 41 individual chalets that stretch out over the water on stilts. Each wooden chalet comes equipped with private en-suite bathroom facilities as well as private balconies with magnificent views.

The chalets in the Sipadan Kapalai Dive Resort are large and well-equipped with fresh water, a bath tub and hot water showers. Available as twin-sharing rooms, the chalets are connected with long walkways ensuring the privacy of each individual chalet. These walkways also make for a great place to take a morning run or walk – the views are postcard-worthy. The food on the resort is very impressive and is served in the open-plan terraced area, whilst a large sundeck is the ideal spot for sun downers or after-dive socialising.

NEARBY RESORTS

All the dive resorts on Mabul island organize daily diving and snorkeling trips to Kapalai which is only 5 minutes away by speedboat.

Mabul Dive resorts bringing divers to Kapalai:

  • Mabul Water Bungalows
  • Sipadan Water Village
  • Sipadan-Mabul Resort
  • Borneo Divers Mabul Resort
  • Seaventures Dive Resort

Muck Diving

FAQ

More Infos about Sipadan Island

HOW TO GET TO KAPALAI

For guests staying on Mabul island, there are daily diving and snorkeling trips to Kapalai.

Guests staying at Kapalai Dive Resort itself usually fly into Tawau Airport with Malaysia Airlines or Air Asia. About an hour’s drive from the airport is Semporna Town, from which you’d get a 45 minute speed boat ride to Kapalai.

PEAK SEASONS

Note that Kapalai is often fully booked several months in advance.

The super peak touristic seasons are: July & August, Chinese New Year, 1st week of May & 1st week of October, >Christmas & New Year

BOAT TRANSFER SCHEDULE

  • From Semporna to Kapalai Resort: 09:30, 12:00 & 15:30
  • From Kapalai Resort to Semporna: 06:00, 11:00 & 13:30
  • From Mabul Island to Kapalai: Please Enquire

WHAT KAPALAI VISITORS SAY

Kapalai has some extraordinary dive sites of its own that are well worth exploring.

William

Australia
5 stars for the service, resort's facilities and amazing snorkeling at Kapalai.

LIN

China
Kapalai is the ideal muck diving destination thanks to its warm and shallow waters.

Wu

Guangzhou

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