A spectacular beach in Malaysia, Sipadan.

Sipadan

Overview

Sipadan is the only oceanic island in Malaysia, rising 2,000 ft from de seabed. It is located in the Celebes Sea off the east coast of Sabah, East Malaysia (which is on the island of Borneo. It was formed by living corals growing on top of an extinct volcanic cone that took thousands of years to develop.

Aerial picture of the island.

Sipadan is located at the heart of the IndoPacific basin, the centre of one of the richest marine habitats in the world. More than 3000 species of fish and  hundreds of coral species have been classified in this ecosystem. 

Diving in Sipadan

Sipadan Island was at the top of Rodale's Scuba Diving Magazin Gold List for "The Top Dive Destination in the World". Frequently seen  in the waters around Sipadan: green and hawksbill turtles(which mate and nest there), enormous schools of barracuda in tornado-like formations as well as large shcools of big eye trevally, and bumhead parrotfish. Pelagic species such as manta rays, eagle rays, scalloped hammerhead sharks and whale sharks also visit Sipadan.

Skeleton in Turtle Tomb at Pulau Sipadan

A turtle tomb lies undertneath the column of the island, formed by an underwater limestone cave with a labyrinth of tunnels and chambers that contain many skeletal remains of turtles that become lost and drown before finding the surface.

Get in

Getting in requires some effort. Most visitors fly to Tawau from either Kuala Lumpur or  Kota Kinabalu, continue by minivan or taxi to the port town of Semporna and from there to sipadan itself.

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Get around in Sipadan

Walking along the beautiful sandy beaches, snorkeling sites on all sides of the island can be reached. Scuba divers usually will take a boat a few minutes from the beach to their dive site.

"It is no longer possible to stay on Sipadan itself"

See

The beautiful sandy beaches and the coral reef with its rich marine life. On the island there are large monitor lizards (more than 1 metres in length) which sometimes come out onto  the beach or even into the water.

Dive shops

Dive shops include:

• Borneo Global Sipadan Backpackers & Dive Centre: Guaranteed Sipadan Permit and located in Semporna. +60 89 785088, +60 88 270976.
• Big John Scuba: Located on Mabul Island. Nice diveshop affiliated with Lai's Homestay. bigjohnlim@hotmail.com, +60 14 2843723. Office located in Semporna near Dragon Inn.
• Scuba Junkie: located in Semporna (very basic hostel and main dive office) and on Mabul (nice dive resort) - Sipadan dives are only available to divers staying on Mabul. Good rep for well-maintained equipment and safe diving in small groups (up to 4 people per divemaster). Mainly international divemasters, with a few locals as well, who focus on nature conservation and marine biology (2013 winner of Responsible Tourism Awards; turtle hatchery; Manta ray and shark awareness and protection). They head out around 7:30AM for Sipadan and do 4 dives. They have a divemaster who is able to take people into the Turtle Tomb with torches.

For more information:

visit the official website of Malaysia tourism.