Dive Review of Borneo Divers in
Malaysia/Mabul, Sipadan

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Borneo Divers, Sep, 2009, by Eric Eckes, CA, United States ( Contributor 18 reports with 11 Helpful votes). Report 5205.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Planes, Trains, and Automobiles would best describe the trek from California to Borneo Divers located on the island of Mabul in Malaysia as it took three flights, a bus ride, and finally a boat ride to reach the resort. Borneo Divers was one of the original dive resorts that vacated the island of Sipadan in 2004 by government order and they resettled on the island of Mabul. The Borneo Divers resort was comfortable. There are two rooms to a bungalow with several bungalows arranged in two rows facing towards the ocean. The rooms themselves were adequate, nothing fancy. Several members of our 13-member group reported plumbing problems which were promptly resolved. Getting clean towels was often a problem as the housekeeping staff would take away the dirty towels without replacing them. The restaurant served as the central meeting place. Free Wi-Fi was available in the restaurant and adjacent meeting room. The restaurant offered a variety of food at each meal which typically included beef, chicken and seafood dishes. Food was served buffet style. The food was adequate, although several members experienced bouts with intestinal flu. The dive operation was an improvement over the accommodations. Borneo Divers maintains several dive boats and they worked just fine during our visit. Our boat captains, Sing and Rudi, were most helpful. Entry into the water was via backroll and they had ladders available to board the boats. They assisted those in need with retrieving their gear from the water. Dive gear is maintained in a large, secure facility on the dock. Each diver was provided a basket to maintain their gear and these baskets were routinely transported between storage and the boats by the crew. There were dedicated rinse tanks for camera gear, wetsuits, and regulators. There is a nice sized camera room with 220v power. Hairdryers, rather than compressed air, were available to dry camera gear. The one disappointment from the dive operation was their failure to deliver promised Nitrox. They do not have a membrane system so tanks are blended individually. At $15 per Nitrox fill it would seem that a membrane system would pay for itself in no time. Diving Mabul is a tale of two dives: the beautiful reefs of Sipadan and the muck that surrounds Mabul. Sipadan allows only 120 visitors a day by permit and Borneo Divers has 14 of these precious permits allocated daily. As a result, we were most fortunate to dive Sipadan three of our six days of diving (twelve dives in all). Diving Sipadan is an out of this world experience. There is an abundance of coral and we were treated to large schools of barracuda, jacks, and bumphead parrotfish. In fact, the size and mannerisms of the bumphead parrotfish reminded me of the old days of buffalo roaming the plains. Turtles, the largest I have ever seen, were found on virtually every dive. Our divemasters, Amanda and Christ, were excellent are finding a variety of sealife for us to photograph. Our persistent pestering paid off as we convinced a skilled divemaster, LJ, to take us into the Turtle Tomb. The Turtle Tomb is a cavern dive. Over the years a number of turtles, a porpoise, and a marlin, have found their way into the cavern only to lose sight of the entrance and die. Their bones can be found throughout the cavern. The muck diving was equally rewarding. We dived a number of sites around Mabul including the famed Seaventure resort. Seaventure is an old oil rig that has been converted into a dive resort and sits just offshore from Borneo Divers. Borneo Divers sports a very healthy house reef. Here we saw turtles, blue spotted rays, mandarinfish, flamboyant cuttlefish, and the most curious cuttlefish you will ever come across! In six days I was able to get in twenty five dives. Each dive was special in its own right. I highly recommend that everyone dive Sipadan in their lifetime. The reefs are healthy, beautiful, and are teeming with sealife. The muck dives did not disappoint with nature’s oddities. I give top marks to the dive staff. With just a little more focus on the resort amenities this could be a first class destination.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Cozumel, La Paz, Fiji, Galapagos, Hawaii, Indonesia, Palau, Philippines, Yap
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	cloudy	Seas	choppy
Water Temp	82-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	20-60 Ft/ 6-18 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Depth: each dive set separately. Max: 100
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter	N/A	Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	Secure, large camera room. 220v. No compressed air.

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Dive Review of Borneo Divers in Malaysia/Mabul, Sipadan

Borneo Divers, Sep, 2009,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Borneo Divers in
Malaysia/Mabul, Sipadan