Malaysia sipadan. Around borneo. sipadan island. Cuisine and restaurants
This island attracts lovers of exotic, unusual landscapes, experienced and novice divers and snorkelling enthusiasts. Sipadan's area is about 13 hectares. The island is washed by the waters of the Sulawesi Sea, it itself is covered with jungle, along the perimeter it is bordered by sandy beaches.
Sipadan is famous for the richest underwater world: the island is one of the top 5 best diving spots in the world. The coastal zone is home to several thousand species of fish, several hundred different corals, but the turtles brought fame to the island, which swim to this place during the breeding season. While diving, you can see up to a hundred turtles.
The climate of this island, as well as other nearby islands, can be described as equatorial, that is, sunny and hot throughout the year. Relaxation from the eternal heat is brought by infrequent rains, as well as the ocean breeze. The average air temperature is + 30-35 degrees, the water heats up to 30 degrees.
sights
In addition to the most beautiful natural places of the island, there are a number of other sights of miraculous origin. One of them is the rain forest located in the central part of the island. Local authorities prohibit entry into its territory in order to preserve the pristine nature of this place.
Another feature of Sipadan is its diverse fauna. Excursions to the island are organized daily to acquaint tourists with the birds, turtles, fish and corals of these places. Travelers are interested in the underwater cave, which has a terrifying name "Turtle Cemetery". The cave consists of numerous chambers and intricate tunnels: they are filled with a large number of turtle skeletons that were once lost in this underwater labyrinth.
Sipadan has an amazing place called Barracuda Point, which is an area of water where barracudas often congregate, forming large flocks. They create fantastic patterns in the water by spinning in spirals. A similar spectacle can be seen on the opposite side of Sipadan, where the quranks gather in the same flocks.
Entertainment
Diving is considered the main entertainment of the island of Sipadan. Divers from all over the world strive to get to this small island to explore its underwater world, which is often compared to the Galapagos. Sipadan's dive sites are composed of many walls and rocks overgrown with sponges and corals. Scuba diving is allowed from April to early December, but the best time is July-August, when favorable conditions for diving come: the water temperature reaches 30 degrees, the visibility under water - up to 45 meters. The diving depth ranges from 5 to 55 meters. There are 12 dive sites near the island located just offshore. Diving is possible from boats or from the coastline. The most popular diving spots are presented below.
North Shore:
South coast:
East coast:
- Turtle Cave (Turtle Cemetery). The depth near this reef is up to 23 meters, visibility in some parts may be zero. It is a labyrinth cave with skeletons of lost turtles. Dives are carried out only when accompanied by local divers.
- Wall. The depth in this place reaches 38 meters. An interesting reef wall, overgrown with sponges and corals. Night diving is carried out in this area.
Diving is developed and on neighboring islands- Mabule and Kapalai. Diving in muddy waters is popular in Mabula, which is suitable for macro photography of marine life.
How to get to the island?
To come to the island, you will have to travel a difficult path. First of all, you need to get to Tawau - one of the largest towns in the state of Sabah. There are flights to Tawau by plane from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Kinabalu, and then another flight from Kota Kinabalu to Tawau. Travel time will be about three and a half hours. There is a direct flight from Kuala Lumpur, which will save a lot of time.
Vacation prices
Since Sipadan is a closed island, the infrastructure is not developed in it: there are no cafes, restaurants, hotels. When visiting this place, it is worth buying food in advance and taking it with you. Tourists usually stay on two neighboring islands - Kapalai and Mabule, where good chalets are built. They are three-star hotels, consisting of two parts - a jungle chalet and a water bungalow overlooking the island of Sipadan. Prices for vacations in 2020 per night in a room will be from 4 thousand rubles.
The Malaysian island of Sipadan is a real paradise surrounded by azure waters of the sea. Holidays on the island are suitable for active people who love the water element and sports associated with it.
Sipadan ("Pulau Sipadan" in Malay) is an island off the east coast of Borneo, part of the Malaysian state of Sabah. The island is considered one of the best diving spots in the world.
Short description
Sipadan Island is located 35 km south of the city of Semporn on the southeast coast of Sabah (Malaysian part of the island of Borneo), 5 degrees north of the equator in the Sulawesi Sea. Sipadan is located in the Indian-Pacific Basin region, one of the richest areas of marine life in the world. Over 3,000 fish species and hundreds of coral species are classified in this richest ecosystem. Manta rays, hammerhead sharks, whale and reef sharks, schools of barracuda decorate his underwater kingdom. The marine flora and fauna are incredibly diverse here. The island is regularly ranked among the top 10 diving spots in the world.
Sipadan is the only oceanic island in Malaysia, that is, it is not connected with any continental shelf. At 600 m high (measured from the bottom of the sea), it was formed by living corals that have grown over the top of the extinct volcano's cone over many thousands of years.
Short story
1933 ... Britain has declared Sipadan a Bird Sanctuary.
1964. Sipadan Island is included in the Sabah State Turtle Conservation Area.
1989. Jacques-Yves Cousteau's documentary Borneo: The Ghost of the Sea Turtle) brought the island international fame. In this film, the charismatic French explorer of the sea, in particular, mentioned: “. ... ... I saw other places like Sipadan 45 years ago, but now there are none. We found an untouched work of art. " Enterprising tour operators have taken up this statement and still use it as an advertising slogan to attract divers from all over the world. Unfortunately, the influx of tourists has made this work of art "less pristine."
1990 ... Five resort complexes have been opened on an island 500 meters long and 200 meters wide.
1992 ... British Royal Society representative Elizabeth Wood began continuous monitoring in the area of Sipidan Island. There has been an apparent deterioration in reef health over the past few years as a result of diving and snorkelling.
1996. Sipadan was hit by Tropical Storm Greg, which destroyed the shallower part of its reefs. The corals were unable to recover due to further global warming and rising water temperatures (leading to coral bleaching in 1998). Another sign of a worsening situation was the detection of signs of untreated wastewater entering the sea from the island's resorts.
1997 ... The Malaysian government recognized the threat to the natural beauty of the island and imposed restrictions on the number of tourists visiting the island. Unfortunately, it was not possible to organize effective monitoring of the observance of this decree.
2000 ... On April 23, 2000, the Islamic extremist group Abu Sayyaf took hostage 21 people from among tourists and resort personnel. Most of them were held captive for a year, later all the hostages were released. Divers avoided the island for a long time after this incident. Since then, the area has been regularly patrolled by the Royal Malaysian Navy.
2002 ... Sipadan Island is the object of a territorial dispute between Malaysia and Indonesia. The issue has been brought up for consideration by the International Court of Justice. At the end of 2002, the International Court of Justice announced the final decision in favor of Malaysia, not Indonesia.
2004 ... By a decree, the Malaysian government ordered the relocation of all resort complexes from the island by December 31, 2004. From now on, everyone who wants to dive on the island of Sipadan has to stop at the resorts of the nearby islands of Mabul and Kapalai.
The long-term goal is to include Sipadan Island on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This application is supported by the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), the Government of Malaysia and travel industry operators to ensure a higher level of funding and environmental protection. Hopefully, the future of the pearl of Malaysia will be less cloudy than its past.
How to get there
Most tourists fly to Tawau either from Kuala Lumpur (3 hours) or Kota Kinabalu (50 minutes).
Air Asia (www.airasia.com) flies directly to Tawau daily;
Malaysia Airlines (www.malaysia-airlines.com, Mas Wings airline webpage) flies to Kota Kinabalu with connecting flights to Tawau daily;
2. From Kota Kinabalu.
Swimming and snorkelling
Snorkelling is excellent all around the island. A wide variety of corals, small fish and, with a little luck, sharks, barracudas and turtles can be seen from the surface without diving into the depths. The safest and potentially most interesting snorkeling area around the island is marked by buoys. Diving operators organize special snorkelling trips. For the price, such tours are not too different from the cost of diving.
Popular diving sites
Barracuda point considered one of the 5 best diving spots in the world and the most popular dive site in the Sipadan Island area. Huge shoals of thousands of barracuda often form in this place something like a tornado. If you're lucky, you can see the schools of barracuda form a spiral wall of fish circling in a continuous vortex. This is the most exciting moment for any diver. You can also see green cone parrotfish and dozens of turtles and reef sharks circling the area. Sometimes hammerhead sharks can suddenly appear. Barracuda point consists of a sheer wall, often with very strong currents. After drifting slowly with the current, you will end your dive in a shallow coral garden. Enjoy this incredible dive site! Barracuda Point is a 3-minute speedboat ride to the right of the pier. Level: for advanced divers. Immersion depth: 5-40 m.
South point is a special diving site in the area of Sipadan Island. South Point consists of a wall, followed by a ledge about 20 meters under the water, and then a sudden drop down. The steep walls are completely covered in beautiful coral. There are many pelagic fish, schools of barracudas, cavallas and many turtles. Manta rays can often be seen. An experienced diver can descend to deeper depths in the early morning and, with luck, spot dozens of hammerhead sharks swimming together. Rare sharks such as hammerhead shark and fox shark can be found at a depth of about 40 meters. If you don't dive to great depths, you can see many turtles and white-nosed sharks. Please note that this dive is only for those with technical diving skills with special equipment. Strong currents are often observed at South Point, and is 15 boat sails from the pier. Visibility: over 30m. Level: for advanced divers. Diving depths: 20-40 m.
Mid-reef is a 10-minute boat ride from the pier. The emphasis here is on corals and small fish. As well as diving around the island of Kapalai, here you can see fish from the clown family, stone fish (also called wart), octopuses, mandarin fish, mantis shrimp, lobsters, nudibranchs. Mid-Reef is famous for its small seahorses hiding in corals. This area sometimes has a strong current. Recommended for night diving. Visibility: over 20 m. Level: for advanced divers. Immersion depth: 10 -25m.
Turtle cavern- a special place for diving, not comparable to any other in the area of the island of Sipadan. Lovers of diving in caves should definitely try their hand at this labyrinth of underwater tunnels. The entrance to the cave is located approximately at a depth of 18 m. After the entrance to the cave, there is another tunnel, from which side tunnels with dead ends branch off. You can walk up to 200 m from the cave entrance. During the dive, be careful not to build up a thick layer of dust at the bottom of the cave or reduce visibility to zero. During the dive, discover the skeletons of turtles, dolphins, marlin. Legends say that turtles come to this cave to die. In fact, lost in the maze of passages, they died. Please note that the Turtle Cavern is for advanced divers only, with special equipment and an experienced guide who knows the caves well. Level: for advanced divers. Immersion depth: 17-23 m.
Hanging Gardens. Named after the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Hanging Gardens topography consists of a 2-meter reef that descends as a terrace to a depth of about 70 meters and subsequently plunges into an abyss. The wall is covered in a wide variety of colorful hard and soft corals, sponges and gorgon corals. Along the wall, you can spot a range of swallow fish, sweet lip fish, clown fish, lobster hiding in the cracks. Sometimes it is possible to observe dozens of turtles in one dive! A good place for watching reef sharks. Quite strong currents are often observed. Immersion depth: 5 - 40 m.
Coral Gardens. Located on the south side of Sipadan Island, Coral Gardens is a very shallow diving site with many coral reefs alongside a beautiful beach. Ideal for snorkelling to see the rich underwater world of coral and fish. Level: for beginner divers. Immersion depth: 10 - 23m.
Turtle patch similar to Coral Gardens, good swimming spot with turtles, reef sharks, schools of skarfish. An easy dive on a shallow reef ideal for beginner divers. Immersion depth: 5-12 m.
Whitetip avenue literally translated from English means "Boulevard of reef sharks." As the name suggests, this is a famous diving site due to the abundance of sharks, stingrays and turtles are common. The walls are covered with black and gorgonian corals. More experienced divers dive below 30 m and can observe many gray and white-nosed sharks. Level: for advanced divers, diving depth: 17 - 40 m.
West Ridge famous for turtles and sea bass, there are many black corals. Reef sharks are often spotted. Good place for snorkelling and freediving (diving in water without scuba gear and other breathing equipment). West Ridge is ideal for divers of all levels. Level: for divers of different levels, diving depth: 18-40 m.
Drop off is a sheer cliff going down to a depth of 600 m. An excellent place to see many turtles, reef and gray sharks, parrot fish, as well as hundreds of barracudas, sometimes forming a giant tornado. Before the closure of all resorts on the island, Drop Off was considered the best scuba diving destination in the world. Immersion depth: 5-40 m.
Climate and best time to visit
The climate of Sipadan and the surrounding islands in general can be described as hot and sunny throughout the year. Average temperature +30 ° C +32 ° C. Water temperature: +27 ° C +30 ° C. There are no monsoons or typhoons.
Diving in the Sipadan area is practiced throughout the year. The best time for diving from April to December, but especially in July and August. This is peak tourist traffic and you must book your permit and accommodation in the resort well in advance (some resorts are fully booked months in advance). From January to March, there may be heavy rains, along with them, visibility under water decreases, but diving does not stop and the resorts on the nearby islands are not empty even during this period of the year. Peaks of the tourist season:
July and August;
Golden Week (several holidays combined with weekends in early October);
Golden week (several holidays combined with weekends at the beginning of May);
Christmas and New Year;
Chinese New Year.
Island Sipadan according to the ratings of numerous publications, it is included in the five best dive sites in the world. Takes leading positions in the categories "Dive site wherever you come back again", "The best place for advanced divers", "The best shore diving", "The best diving along the sheer walls". In 1989, legendary explorer Jacques Yves Cousteau described the site as "an untouched work of art."
The island is the top of a huge seamount formed from a volcanic cone and living coral. The steep cliffs supporting Sipadan, like columns, plummet to a depth of 600 meters. A rare place on earth can offer such biodiversity, with over 200 species of fish and over 70 species of coral polyps. In terms of species diversity, the marine life at Pulau Sipadan is comparable to Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Some divers sometimes jokingly refer to Sipadan as the "Fish Capital of the World".
Briefly about Sipadan:
What is good: one of the best spots in the world for watching big fish and big flocks, drift diving, wall diving, great conditions for experienced divers.
Encountered species: the number of species is huge, it is not possible to list everything, but mainly, Sipadan is famous for the fact that here you can see huge flocks of thousands of barracudas and many sea turtles.
Depths: 5 - 40 m.; Visibility: 10 - 30 m.; Currents: can be quite strong. Water temperature: 26 - 30 ° C; Class diver: Intermediate - advanced. Number of dive sites: 12 ;
Best time to visit: from April to December, especially July and August. From January to March, some deterioration in weather and visibility is possible, however, a visit to Sipadan can be recommended all year round, since almost all the time conditions are acceptable here.
How to get there: Since 2004, living in Sipadan has been prohibited. Divers are accommodated on the neighboring islands - Mabul and Kapalai (about 30 minutes by boat). You can get to the islands of Mabul and Kapalai as follows: a flight to the airport of the city of Tawau (Borneo, Sabah state) with a direct flight Kuala Lumpur - Tawau, or with a transfer through the capital of the state, Kota Kinabalu. Next, transfer 1.5 hours to the city of Semporna, and then transfer by boat from Semporna to the island of Mabul or Kapalai for about 40 minutes.
IMPORTANT!!!
Diving in Sipadan is limited to 120 people per day. The permit is issued the day before the intended dive.
Several films about Sipadan:
Map of major dive sites
Barracuda Point - Cape Barracuda
Coral Garden - Coral garden
Whitetip Avenue - Whitefin Avenue
Mid Rif - Medium reef
Turtle Patch - Turtle Patch
South Point - South Cape
Staghorn Crest - Antler
Lobster Lair - Lobster Lair
Hanging Gardens - Hanging Gardens
West Ridge - West Ridge
North Point - North Cape
The Drop Off - break
Turtle Cavern - Turtle Cave
Cape Barracuda
Depth: 10-50 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Intermediate - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 15-20 minutes from nearby islands
There can be quite strong currents here, so it's best not to dive too deep, otherwise you may find yourself far from the island. But thanks to these currents, there are so many fish here. Gray reef sharks patrol the perimeter in search of food. Walk down the wall and you will see a huge number of parrotfish and turtles peeking out of secluded crevices in the reef. At some point, a real barracuda tornado can pick you up. This is a pretty impressive sight. Many divers, coming to Sipadan, do the largest number of dives on this site. Among other things, here you can see eels, triggerfish, blend dogs, mantissa shrimp and even leaf fish.
Coral garden
Depth: 14-22 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: calm
Level: for all levels
Season: all year round
Distance:
Despite being very shallow on this site, it is a real paradise for underwater photographers. There is a huge variety of corals and you can find almost any animal that is found on other sites. Turtles are everywhere here, they swim and feed on corals, rest or even pose for photographers. There are dog fish, wrasses and even barracudas.
Whitefin Avenue
Depth: 16-40 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 13 km (27 minutes) south of about. Mabul and 11 km (20 minutes) southwest of the island. Kapalai
It is easy to guess from the name what awaits you on this site and who these mysterious owners of white fins are. On this site, you can find entire schools of white-tailed reef sharks, which you can immediately recognize by the white triangle on the tail and fin. But this is not yet the most amazing thing that awaits you. The reef starts at a shallow depth and goes down 600 m. Diving here inevitably leads to unexpected collisions. You may find yourself surrounded by a flock of big-eyed travelly or giant pine cone parrotfish. On the wall there are a huge number of terraces, crevices, ledges, on which you will find sponges of all shapes and colors, colonies of black corals and gorgonians. These rich coral thickets are home to a huge number of reef fish. Watch out for angelfish, parrot fish, sea bass, scorpion fish and butterfly fish.
Middle reef
Depth: 5-40 m
Visibility: 10-25 m
Currents: calm
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 25 minutes south of about. Mabul and 17 south-west of about. Kapalai
On this site there is a descent along the wall. There are real thickets of soft corals on the ledges where you can meet gobies. Schools of red-toothed dogfish and unicornfish race along the wall. Like some other Sipadan dive satas, there are strong currents that can push you up. This happens when cold water rises from the depths. Small schools of imperial wrasses can swim past you. The six-meter thick coral at the very top of the reef is an ideal stopover for pine cone parrotfish. Eating their way through dense underwater bushes, these amazing fish swim somewhere on their own business, and you just have to admire them.
Turtle pig
Depth: 10-40 m
Visibility: 15-35 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 15 minutes from Mabul Island
This is a typical dive site for Sipadan, primarily known for its huge number of turtles. Here you can see 20 turtles at the same time. Some fish are found here, which, however, can be found almost anywhere in Sipadan, but the owners here, of course, are turtles.
South Cape
Depth: 20-40 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 30-35 minutes from Mabul Island
This is the farthest site from the island. Here the plateau is 3-5 meters, and then there is a soft descent. As divers note, this site, unfortunately, has a lot of dead corals, but it is a favorite spot for hammerhead sharks, leopard sharks that like to stop here at a depth of about 40 meters. You can often find a large school of barracudas that move against the current, and if you manage to get close to them, they will allow you to swim alongside you. If you dive often on this site, you can see the shark mating ritual.
Antler
Depth: 20-40 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Intermediate - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: about 20 minutes from the nearby islands
At this site, diving begins with a gradual descent, during which you will see the thickets of Staghorn corals. Underwater photography enthusiasts note that the lighting here is very good for photography. On the wall there are a huge number of ledges, cracks, which the sea inhabitants have turned into their home. Red and black corals grow along the slope, where reef fish, sea angels, shrimps, dog fish are found. Due to the strong currents that this site can have, it is best for beginners to stay close to the dive masters. However, those who are confident can sail 30 meters from the wall and see, with luck, a stingray, a hammerhead shark, a fox shark and a leopard shark.
Lobster Lair
Depth: 10-25 m
Visibility: 10-15 m
Currents: can be strong
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: about 15 minutes from the nearby islands
Despite the site's name, there are very few lobsters here. There is shallow water here. You can investigate cracks in the wall where living creatures can hide. You can also find parrot fish, lion fish, scorpion fish.
Hanging gardens
Depth: 5-40 m
Visibility: 20-30 m
Currents: calm enough
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: about 25 minutes from the nearby islands
Divers love this site for the beauty of the corals that grow on the slopes or hang from the walls like bunches of grapes. The reef starts at a depth of about 6 meters and then goes down steeply. Naturally, there is a huge number of reef fish: sea angels, butterfly fish and many others. Shrimps hide on the ledges, and sometimes lobsters look out. It is home to rare fox sharks, which are distinguished by an unusually long upper lobe of the caudal fin. If you're lucky, you can see how with a blow of the tail she stuns her victim.
Western mountain range
Depth: 10-40 m
Visibility: 05-25 m
Currents: calm enough
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance:
This is another shallow area. It is best to dive here during the day, when light penetrating the waves illuminates the rich thickets of coral. Turtles, anemones, wrasses and other small animals are found here.
North Cape
Depth: 10-40 m
Visibility: 05-25 m
Currents: calm enough
Level: Beginner - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 10 minutes from nearby islands
The wall here has several ledges where fish can hide. Diving during the day is especially interesting here, when the sunlight shines on pink, red and yellow soft corals. You can see sponges, anemones and, of course, turtles.
Break
Depth: 0-600 m
Visibility: 15-35 m
Currents: calm enough
Level: Intermediate - advanced
Season: all year round
Distance: 20 minutes from nearby islands
This site is considered one of the best shore diving sites in the world. Just 10 meters from the coast and right in front of you a cliff with a depth of 600 meters. During the dive, you can meet green turtles, reef sharks. A huge number of corals and sponges grow on the wall itself, and shrimps are hiding in numerous cracks. The place is very suitable for night diving.
Unfortunately, according to divers who dived on this site in December 2006, a significant part of the coral reef was demolished by a barge with building materials for the diving life. It is very difficult not to notice these destruction, although the "Obryv" site is quite large, and you can still see a lot of interesting things here.
Turtle cave
Depth: 14-22 m
Visibility: 0-15 m
Currents: calm enough
Level: Advanced Borneo divers only
Season: all year round
Distance: 25 minutes south of about. Mabul
Sipadan(Malay. Sipadan) - a small island (only half a kilometer in diameter, with an area of 12 hectares), a mecca for divers from all over the world.
The island is the tip of an underwater volcano, covered with corals for thousands of years. Sipadan covered in tropical jungle and bordered by sandy beaches.
Geographical location of Sipadan
Island Sipadan located in Sulawesi sea off the coast Borneo in the east of the state of Sabah. 
Sipadan was the subject of a territorial dispute between Indonesia and Malaysia, which included the Philippines, claiming all of North Borneo.
Diving
With nearby islands such as Mabul and Kapalai, Sipadan is one of the most popular diving regions South-East Asia. Sipadan is part of the Tunku-Abdul-Roman National Marine Park ( Tunku Abdul Roman Marine Park), the number of divers simultaneously on the island is limited for environmental reasons.
District Sipadana in terms of biological diversity, it is one of the most saturated regions in the world; more than 3000 species of fish and hundreds of species of coral are distinguished in the ecosystem.
Divers can spot green turtles and byss, barracuda, manta rays, eagle rays, hammerheads, whale sharks, and more. 
Attraction Sipadana is the Turtle Cemetery - an underwater karst cave with a labyrinth of tunnels and chambers filled with skeletons of turtles, which were lost and drowned here.
The most amazing place on the island is Barracuda Point - a body of water where giant flocks of barracudas, gathering in flocks of thousands of pieces, twist into spirals, creating fantastic patterns. On the other side of the island, the same flocks of quranks gather. Having swum inside the flock, you can observe this endless bizarre round dance, emitting a silvery glow.
Sipadan Hotels
Actually on Sipadane overnight stays are prohibited, so tourists are accommodated on neighboring islands Mabule and Kapalai.
Ladies and gentlemen!
We do not always have time to publish on our website descriptions of all the hotels with which we work. For details, contact your manager by phone. +7 495 938-92-92
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Island Sipadan is one of the most exotic and romantic places on the planet. It belongs to the state Malaysia and is a fragment of an extinct volcano, formed by the formation of corals in its upper part, over many hundreds of years. The distance from the ocean floor to the surface of the island is about 700 meters, while the piece of land itself can be walked up and down in just half an hour. His central part is saturated with rain forest and tourists are strictly prohibited from entering there, due to the fact that the country's authorities are concerned about preserving the high ecology in Sipadan, minimizing the possibility of its violation to the limit.
For divers from all over the world, this unique island is the embodiment of their underwater dream. A huge number of marine life, including two-meter sharks and giant turtles, move daily along the shores of the exotic resort, being a constant target for the cameras of hunters for the beauty of the underwater world. The legendary Jacques Yves Cousteau, having visited these places, paid tribute to Sipadan, calling it one of the best diving spots on the planet. At one time, several world powers in the region, including the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, waged a real political struggle for the possession of this tiny piece of land, which eventually got it.
The way to Sipadan is rather long and difficult. The first destination for any traveler heading to the island is the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur... There, from the local airport, you should go in the direction of the main city of the state of Sabah - Tawau... The flight takes about three hours. Further, from Tawau, the route lies to the port of Semporn, located about 35 kilometers from the fabulously wondrous island. In the harbor, tourists are always waiting for a speedboat, which takes just an hour to reach the island. Mabul, where there are numerous comfortable bungalows with all amenities. From there, in 15-20 minutes, the same boat delivers those who wish to Sipadan. The fact is that this unique diving paradise is considered national reserve and does not imply placement on the island territory. Therefore, all vacation spots, including bungalows and campgrounds, are located on the nearby islands, Mabule and Kapalae... In addition, due to the already mentioned concern for the environment on the part of the authorities, access to Sipadan is limited by the number of tourist applications to 120 people per day. At the same time, a fee is charged per person for visiting the corner of paradise. As for food and drink, all the relevant paraphernalia should be taken with you, since there are no restaurants, cafes, or shops in Sipadan, only the sea, fish and corals.
Despite the fact that tourists are strictly prohibited from advancing inland, they can see many of the land flora and fauna right on the sandy beaches of the resort. Especially often local monitor lizards pay attention to guests, striking in their size, boldly crawling out onto the sandy coast, even if there is a boat or cutter near the coast. Apparently, the feeling of their own diplomatic immunity comes into play. In addition, thousands of exotic birds nest on Sipadan, many of which are listed in the Red Book. Also, sea turtles sometimes crawl ashore, as well as monitor lizards, which are distinguished by impressive dimensions.
The coral reef that surrounds the island has high walls where many divers compete in depth. To date, the record is the figure of 113 meters, under diving conditions with conventional compressed air. In the same place there is also a multi-level underwater cave with mysterious passages. It is recommended to visit it only for experienced divers and only accompanied by a guide, since it has not yet been fully explored and can pose a danger to people who have never dived here.
Most of the tourists who come to Sipadan prefer to stay on the Mabul Island, which is part of the Malay Archipelago and is part of the Ligitan Islands. Its maximum length is 750 meters and a width of 430 meters. Locals, the total number of which does not exceed 2000 people, have chosen plots in the northern and southern parts of the island. More than 70% of them are engaged in the tourism sector, the rest are engaged in fishing and growing coconuts. They regularly visit the local port from the mainland sea vessels with tourists on board. Bungalows are equipped along the entire coastline, which perfectly blend with the turquoise waves of the Sulawesi sea. For vacationers, there are several restaurants and souvenir shops for every taste.
Five kilometers southeast of Mabula is another tourist island of this region, Kapalai, also part of the Ligitan Islands group. It is even smaller than its neighbor and very similar in structure to it. The main tourist attraction here is hotel Sipadan Kapalai Dive Resort, all buildings of which are installed on special piles, which are supported directly by the coral reef itself. There are practically no normal sandy beaches, but perfectly organized transport connection with Mabul and Sipadan, where there are all the missing Kapalai, the attributes of sea recreation. The coastal waters of the Sulawesi Sea are traditionally rich in fish and always attract fishing enthusiasts.
Above all the islands of the region, a humid equatorial climate reigns. The average air temperature during the year exceeds +30 degrees here, while often reaching +40. Precipitation is moderate throughout the twelve months. Summer is characterized by monsoons from the Indian Ocean. Tourists visit Sipadan all year round, and in terms of the number of repeated visits, the island occupies one of the leading places in Southeast Asia.
