When to dive Sabah

If you want the best visibility on the east coast you should aim for March to October. If you want to see a whale shark you might try Lankayan between March and September. If you want to dive Sipadan you must avoid November. If you plan to travel during July, August or Chinese New Year you need to book months ahead.

The Semporna archipelago is the transit point for Sipadan. The weather patterns here dictate the diving conditions for Mabul, Kapalai, Mataking and Pom Pom.

The water temperature barely moves throughout the year. You only need a 3mm wetsuit at any time. The northeast monsoon impacts the region between December and February. This brings reduced visibility and choppy surface conditions. Diving operations continue during this time. The underwater conditions are generally less clear during these weeks. Be sure to pack a light rain jacket if you travel in January.

Semporna town caters heavily to the Chinese demographic. International tourists can bind foreign cards to WeChat Pay and Alipay. You can use these platforms across Semporna town. Physical cash remains critical for mainland transit and marine park fee collections. Offshore resorts present different facilities realities. Premium facilities run 24-hour power systems. Budget homestays on Mabul operate entirely off-grid. They enforce power cutoffs during daylight hours to conserve diesel fuel.

If you pre-book on a Sipadan classic package with the right resort your Sipadan days can be secured well before you travel. Read the travel information page to understand the logistics of reaching the islands.

Sipadan is completely closed to all visitors every November 1 to 30. It reopens on 1 December. This is an annual Sabah Parks mandate to allow the reef to recover. The closure is strictly enforced.

The other islands stay open. You can still dive Mabul, Kapalai, Mataking and Pom Pom. Mabul Water Bungalows sits on the east side of Mabul. The resort offers premium water villas and an open-air dining pavilion. Sipadan-Mabul Resort shares the estate. This is a beach resort geared heavily towards divers. Borneo Divers Mabul Resort runs a smaller turtle hatchery than the one at Scuba Junkie's Mabul Beach Resort with fewer releases. Seaventures Dive Rig is a decommissioned oil platform stationed off Mabul. It features a hydraulic lift to lower divers directly to the house reef.

Sipadan-Kapalai Dive Resort stands on stilts over a sandbank between Mabul and Sipadan. There is no land beneath it except at low tide. That is why couples and photographers choose it. The reef is under the walkway and Sipadan is 15 minutes away. Mataking is a private island northeast of Semporna with the boat journey to Sipadan crossing the Alice Channel. The resort runs a sea-turtle hatchery and an underwater post office. Pom Pom runs two turtle hatcheries.

The macro diving at Mabul is excellent all year. If you want to dive Sipadan you must pick another month. If you dive Sipadan on your second day during the rest of the year you will have the rest of the week for Mabul's macro.

The logistics of reaching the east coast dictate your first and last days. Tawau is the arrival airport for Semporna. European legacy carriers typically land in Kuala Lumpur between 15:00 and 18:00. The final flight to Tawau departs at 18:05. European arrivals routinely miss this connection. This forces an overnight stay in Kuala Lumpur or Kota Kinabalu. Chinese low-cost carriers frequently arrive in Kota Kinabalu in the early morning hours. These passengers connect easily to the first wave of Tawau flights. This enables same-day island check-ins.

The overland journey from Tawau to Semporna takes 70 to 90 minutes depending on traffic. The subsequent speedboat transfer to Mabul or Kapalai takes 30 to 45 minutes depending on the tide. The transit from Semporna to Pom Pom takes roughly 45 minutes. Mataking takes 40 to 60 minutes depending on the sea. The boat from Mabul or Kapalai to Sipadan takes 15 to 25 minutes.

Island boats do not run after dark. The last boats typically leave between 14:30 and 16:00. If you arrive late you will need to stay overnight in Tawau or Semporna. Be sure to check the exact boat transfer times with your chosen resort.

The Malaysia Digital Arrival Card is mandatory for most visitors. You must submit the declaration no earlier than 3 days prior to your scheduled arrival. The system rejects early submissions. Singaporean citizens are fully exempt from the MDAC requirement. Chinese nationals enjoy visa-free entry. They face a cumulative stay limit of 90 days within any rolling 180-day window. You need to have your documentation ready before you fly.

You must observe a 24-hour no-fly interval after your last dive. You need to schedule your outbound flights from Tawau or Sandakan accordingly to prevent decompression sickness. Complex emergencies require helicopter evacuation to Kota Kinabalu. The team briefs every diver on emergency arrangements at booking. Comprehensive dive insurance covering aerial evacuation is mandatory for all remote itineraries.

Lankayan Island Dive Resort sits in the Sulu Sea off Sandakan. It operates on a different rhythm to the Semporna islands and closes annually in January and February. The transit from Sandakan takes 90 minutes by boat. The resort operates highly rigid transfer schedules. The inbound boat departs the Sandakan PSR Jetty precisely at 10:00. You must book flights arriving at Sandakan strictly before 09:00. The outbound boat departs Lankayan at 07:00. You must book departing flights strictly after 11:00.

The resort will not hold the boat if a commercial flight is delayed. Unscheduled private boat charters carry exorbitant surcharges. Groups of fewer than four adults pay a specific fuel surcharge.

Whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) pass through between March and September and are seen occasionally. Sightings are a bonus in season. Turtle nesting happens on the island itself. The resort protects the nests and monitors the hatchlings. Lankayan is an excellent destination for quiet diving. It is not a Sipadan base. You cannot dive Sipadan from here.

Sandakan serves as the primary access point to Sabah's terrestrial wildlife experiences. The Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre fits easily as a half-day stopover. The Kinabatangan River requires a two-hour overland drive from Sandakan. River cruises operate at dawn and dusk.

Kota Kinabalu serves as the main aviation hub for Sabah. The diving in the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park is convenient for training. The reefs are easy and shallow. The park offers gentle reefs close to the city rather than the walls of the east coast.

The west coast has its own wetter months towards the end of the year. The box-jellyfish season runs in the first half of the year. Ask the local dive centres for current advice.

Labuan offers 4 wrecks with verified identities. The American Wreck is the USS Salute. The Australian Wreck is the SS De Klerk. The Cement Wreck is the MV Tung Hwang. The Blue Water Wreck is the MV Mabini Padre. This is a specialist add-on for wreck divers.

Lahad Datu is a smaller aviation hub wedged between Sandakan and Semporna. It services two premier terrestrial conservation areas. The Danum Valley Conservation Area requires a two-hour overland drive via unpaved logging roads. The Tabin Wildlife Reserve sits 48 kilometres northeast of Lahad Datu. Darvel Bay is an emerging diving destination accessed from Lahad Datu. The sites include the Blue Ring Hole and the Japanese Timber Wreck.

Layang Layang is a seasonal destination arranged on request. It is an atoll roughly 300 km northwest of Kota Kinabalu. Scalloped hammerhead aggregations happen between March and September. Sightings are occasional between March and September. The team confirms the operating status at enquiry.

You see specific marine life depending on the time of day rather than the month. The resident species are there all year.

Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) and hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) are resident all year. You see them on almost every dive at Sipadan. Mabul and Kapalai also have strong resident populations.

Chevron barracuda (Sphyraena qenie) form a massive school most mornings at Barracuda Point. The tornado forms often.

Bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum) gather in herds most reliably at dawn. You need to be in the water early to see them moving across the shallows.

Scalloped hammerheads (Sphyrna lewini) are a bonus in season. They are deep-water pelagics. You might see them occasionally at South Point.

Grey reef sharks (Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos) and whitetip reef sharks (Triaenodon obesus) patrol the walls all year. Bigeye trevally (Caranx sexfasciatus) schools are common.

Mabul offers excellent macro life all year. You can find flamboyant cuttlefish (Metasepia pfefferi), ghost pipefish (Solenostomus spp.) and blue-ringed octopus (Hapalochlaena spp.) on the muck sites.

The dive sites at Sipadan offer sheer walls and pelagic encounters.

Barracuda Point

Skill level: Advanced | Typical depths: 5 m to over 40 m This is the dive most people come to Sipadan for. On a good morning the resident school of chevron barracuda tightens into a column above the wall. You can hang in the current and watch it turn. The current dictates the dive plan.

South Point

Skill level: Advanced | Typical depths: 20 m to over 40 m The southern tip features deeper waters and stronger currents. This is the primary location for spotting deep-water pelagics. Scalloped hammerheads are occasionally seen here in season. It is a fast drift dive.

Turtle Tomb

Skill level: Cave/Cavern trained | Typical depths: 17–23 m This limestone cave system contains the skeletal remains of turtles. The entrance sits at roughly 18 to 20 m depth. You must have specialised overhead environment training and a local guide to enter. Standard divers may only view the entrance from the open water.

The Drop-Off

Skill level: Advanced | Typical depths: 5 m to over 40 m The reef flat extends only a few metres before plunging vertically into the 600 m drop. You often see patrolling reef sharks and schooling jacks here. It sits just off the old northern jetty.

July and August are the busiest months. Chinese New Year and Easter also see very high demand. You need to book your trip months in advance for these periods.

Sabah Parks issues 254 Sipadan permits a day. The history of the quota saw it rise from 120 to 176 and finally to 254. These daily permits cover both divers and snorkellers. The official register shows 42 registered operators. Allocations are weighted rather than equal. The MV Celebes Explorer is the only licensed liveaboard at Sipadan. It holds 16 permits daily.

The permits sell out quickly. The operators run to their own schedules from early morning until the afternoon. Night diving is strictly prohibited at Sipadan.

A Sipadan permit day gives 3 dives if you are staying on Mabul or Kapalai or aboard the Celebes Explorer. A Sipadan permit day gives 2 dives if you are staying further away on Pom Pom or Mataking. The timing depends on the operator's schedule, the tide and the sea.

You must hold an Advanced Open Water certification or equivalent to dive Sipadan. Sabah Parks enforces this rule at the registration jetty. You cannot do your training dives on the island.

FAQ

Is Sipadan open all year? No. Sipadan is closed every November. It reopens on 1 December.

When is the best visibility? The clearest water runs from March to October.

What is the water temperature? The water stays between 26 and 30 °C all year.

Do I need an advanced certification? You need an Advanced Open Water certification or equivalent to dive Sipadan.

Can I guarantee my permit dates? A guaranteed Sipadan permit comes with the right combination of resort, dive package and minimum number of nights. Exact dates depend on the resort.

When can I see whale sharks? Whale sharks pass through Lankayan between March and September and are seen occasionally.

Nearby places / alternatives

Sipadan Sipadan permits Travel information Lankayan Kota Kinabalu

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