Gaya Island Resort, Kota Kinabalu - a Small Luxury Hotels of the World

I can not praise Gaya Island resort enough. The resort staff are fantastic, welcoming and helpful, Chef and his team clearly love what they do and Chef would spend the night walking through the crowd and making special, off menu dishes for people. Scott is incredibly passionate and great to talk with. Had a great time with him snorkelling. The wild life is like nothing I've experienced in one condensed area, from the reef sharks, turtle and multitudes of fish to monkeys, moniters, lizards and stunning birds. If you ever want to go anywhere, even just once, I can not recommend enough.

A bit of a mixed bag. Service was poor and slow, everything costs extra, and prices are much higher than outside. But the beach is stunning and incredibly clean. There are also lots of activities—every day started with all kinds of water fun: snorkeling, kayaking, meditation, pool, marine research center class, beach bonfire, lawn movie nights, and more. I spotted barracuda, blacktip shark, stingray, clouded monitor, hornbill, countless small fish, and countless monkeys!

The facility is around 3.5-4 star standard. Some staff are friendly and some not. There is no staff to clean up the chair and table in front of the beach. It took me 10 minutes to wait for the staff to make order. Also, the 10 minutes boat trip takes $388 MYD for couple. Government fee is $70 MYD. I stayed in other hotels in Sabah booking through the same platform, there is no such charge.

As a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World and a Hilton Honors participating hotel, Gaya Island Resort feels intimate, exclusive, and beautifully connected to nature. Beyond the scenery and comfort of Bayu Villa, the true luxury was having time to slow down and be present with one another. Our daughter’s laughter on the beach swing became our most treasured memory. Really appreciate the hotel management team staff very friendly and welcoming us and treat every guest very well. Boat transfers are costly and limited in schedule, so clearer booking information would be helpful. Overall, a peaceful and meaningful family escape worth remembering.

Nice chalet, boat shuttle to nice beach

Liked: Large pool, great games room for kids, kind staff, good choice of food in buffet, nice rooms.

Disliked: This is sadly not a 5 star experience. The beach is disappointing - the water is extremely shallow (below knees) and very hot and feels swampy, there’s no beach to lie on or walk along and you’re looking out at Oil Tankers waiting to dock in Kota Kinabalu. The activities are expensive and everything is booked up in advance - Coral Garden snorkelling involves a boat ride through trash-filled waters to see dead coral at a cost of RM150 pp. Food and drinks are very expensive. No sign of monkeys or other wildlife (other than Monitor Lizards), nowhere to walk… All in all an expensive and disappointing stay that resulted in us leaving a day early. Deceptive marketing.

The hotel is not at the standard of the SLH. The place is great but the management on site is very bad. No communication, no clear instruction, difficult logistic, no answers to email. Waste of money!

Great to get some R&R for a few days after being in the rainforest for wildlife activities. It’s a nice stop, but the hotel is starting to look worn now and it’s in need of a refurb soon. The room sizes are great, enjoyed the yoga and it’s a fab size pool. Definitely visit their other beach - much more idyllic than the one in front of the pool.