Staying near Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

Whilst most tourists visiting the west coast of Sabah, Borneo choose to stay in central Kota Kinabalu (or 'KK' as it is known locally) for part of their holiday, some also choose to stay further north or south along the west coast of Sabah. Within a ~45 minute taxi transfer from Kota Kinabalu there are a selection of beach based Resorts and some affordable hotels (located at 1Borneo Shopping Mall).

Staying outside central Kota Kinabalu is an ideal choice if you are wanting access to a beach during your holiday in Sabah. You can also still choose to join a range of popular trips (which typically depart from central Kota Kinabalu) including snorkelling, try dives, scuba diving in TARP (Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park), Mount Kinabalu, Klias Wetlands and Padas Gorge for white water rafting.

We can arrange rooms for our customers at a selected number of hotels along the coast from Kota Kinabalu (KK), accommodation which meet our quality standards and budget range. We have selected hotels and resorts which cover a range of needs - what they all have in common is the 'creature comforts' - comfy beds, nice showers, clean rooms and helpful staff.

Our Team will provide you with an expert, professional, personalised and high quality service experience from your first email enquiring about where to stay during your holiday, through to recommending specific hotels, completing your bookings and offering support once you arrive in Sabah for your holiday. If you would like to have the convenience of working with one company to arrange your your holiday in Sabah - your accommodation and your trips - just contact the Borneo Dream team and we can meet your needs perfectly!

Further along the coast (north / south) from Kota Kinabalu (KK) we can arrange rooms at the following Resorts / Retreats:

• Langkah Syabas Beach Resort - located ~30 minutes south of Kota Kinabalu with access to a swimming ooh, restaurant facilities and a beach.
• Novotel Hotel - located ~ 15 minutes north of Kota Kinabalu at 1Borneo Shopping Mall. An affordable 4* hotel with courtesy buses into central KK.

You can find out more about the facilities offered at the above Resorts by visiting the Hotel / Resorts own web page or by asking our team.

For further help arranging your accommodation along the west coast of Sabah near Kota Kinabalu, Sabah please contact the Borneo Dream team.

Malaysia's inbound agents reel from Japanese cancellations

TWO Malaysia-based inbound agents popular with the Japan market have seen an influx of cancellations for March and April and are anticipating that this year's demand would be slashed dramatically.

SMI Holiday planning manager Tanaka Miho said business from Japan had been almost wiped out since last week's disasters. It has received cancellations from MICE and FIT travellers all over Japan for up to May.

“The peak travel season to Malaysia is in July and August, but it still is too soon to gauge demand,” she said, adding that she expects only 40 to 50 per cent of the company’s market forecast to be met this year.

Japan Travel Bureau hotel & reservation manager Jacqueline Lee said about half of the bookings for March and April have been cancelled. These were mainly FIT and package tours.

She added that while the company had met its January and February targets, this would likely be a difficult year.

Both agents noted that suppliers, such as hotels and restaurants, had offered full refunds, and they were in turn extending the same arrangement to their partners in Japan.

Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa Kota Kinabalu director of sales and marketing Suzaini Ghani said the hotel had lost about 300 roomnights due to cancellations for March and April. She said: “We will extend whatever assistance we can to ease the difficulties (by Japanese guests and partners) during this period, including refunds and allowing guests to postpone their stay.”

Dining in Kota Kinabalu - From Fine Dining to Nibbling on the Pavement in Style By Pushpitha Wijesinghe Platinum Quality Author

As one of the leading commercial and economic hubs of East Malaysia, it is not surprising that Kota Kinabalu is a popular tourist destination. Its scenic beauty and well planned settings make it an eye catching sight from the waves of the South China Sea. Being the homeland for a number of ethnicities, an assortment of victuals can be found easily. From gourmet food to corner shop flavours and hawker's stalls, Kota Kinabalu is blessed with it all.
For those who just love delectable Indian cuisine, the Anjappar Chettinad Restaurant is the perfect place. 'Dosai', 'chapathi' and 'kulcha', accompanied by a spicy cottage cheese curry or an authentic chick-pea curry will leave your tastebuds craving for more. The Kohinoor North Indian Restaurant is the kind which will suit any occasion. From treating your business client, to partying with your family, this restaurant and its Indian chefs are well geared.
If you yearn for cheesy pizzas or aromatic pastas and lasagnas, Little Italy is the place for you. Its cozy atmosphere and brightly lit restaurant has won the hearts of all its customers the world over. The King Hu Restaurant serves some of the best Chinese dishes in Malaysia and is well received by foreigners and locals alike.
Drift away in to a world of food at the Kamoung Nelayan Floating Seafood Restaurant where you will be entertained by cultural performances and treated to a host of fresh seafood and appetizing dishes. The restaurant itself is anchored in a botanical garden, which adds to the aura and ambience, making it a place where your romances can bloom. If you're not the sea going kind, revolve in the air at 'Atmosphere', the restaurant on the 18th floor of Menara Tun Mustapha. Feast your eyes to the beauties of the South China Sea and Mount Kinabalu, while indulging on the delicacies they serve.
Once you have had your fair share of fine dining and formal restaurants, you may also want to take a stroll down the roads to savour the ambrosial food of the hawker's stalls. Specially if you are busy shopping at any of the shopping malls or at a fair, these corner shops come in handy to satisfy your hunger pangs and generally the food tastes great.
Even if your only motivation to visit Kota Kinabalu is to dine and wine it will still be worth it, particularly if you spend your days at a hotel in Kota Kinabalu or get yourself pampered at a Kota Kinabalu resort. If it's an absolute holiday you wish for, Shangri-La's Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa Kota Kinabalu is the among the best spots for accommodation.

Pushpitha Wijesinghe is an experienced independent freelance writer. He specializes in providing a wide variety of content and articles related to the travel hospitality industry.

A Trip to Sabah

Sabah is always a good place for having a vacation in South East Asia. Sabah is located on the Third largest island in the world with tropical climate. It means that the weather there is generally hot and sunny throughout the year.
Sabah is known as "the land below the wind" because it is located just South of the typhoon-prone region around the Philippines. The Capital of Sabah is Kota Kinabalu and it is also the biggest city here. There are many locations that you can visit in Sabah. Examples are: Tanjung Aru Beach, Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park, Pulau Tiga (Survivor Island), Sipadan Island, Gomantong Cave and more.
If you are a more adventurous person, you can try to climb Mountain Kinabalu which is the 5th highest mountain in South East Asia. Mountain Kinabalu is the 5th highest mountain in South East Asia. It was previously promoted by some unethical travel agents as the highest mountain in South East Asia which was false. It has been corrected since then.
For adventurous vacation, you can also try White River Rafting at Sungai Padas (Padas River). This river can only be accessible by a train at Beaufort. The river is situated on the South Western part of Kota Kinabalu. This river rafting is class 3-4, therefore you will definitely experience the adrenaline rush at some part of the 9km of the river. One thing that you have to be aware is that Only 16 years old and above allowed to raft at Padas River.
The Tunku Abdul Rahman (TAR) National Park is located near Kota Kinabalu. It consists of five islands (Gaya, Sapi, Manukan, Sulug and Mamutik). The entire area of TAR National Park is about 4,929 hectares. The islands are easily accessible because you will only need about 20 minutes boat ride to get to any of the islands. As you can imagine, there are many people prefer to go to the island for 1 day trip rather than staying in expensive resorts in the islands.
Tanjung Aru Beach is located in Kota Kinabalu as well. The night scenery is quite beautiful, so, you might want to take your date to pay there in the evening. I am sure that both of you will enjoy a great deal there.
Pulau Tiga is more well-known as The Survivor Island. It is named that way because the first episode of the survival television reality show was filmed there back in 2000. The white sandy beach in the survivor island is a perfect island beaches for retreat vacation. The water there is crystal-cleared and fishes are friendly. During the dusk, you might be witnessing a group of crabs that are trying to walk down to the ocean.
Sipadan Island is located in the Celebes Sea east of the major town of Tawau and Samporna. If you are looking for diving, for your information, there are 12 dive sites in Sipadan Island. A few popular dive sites are the Turtle Cavern, Barracuda Point, South Point and Hanging Gardens. Since 2005, no dive resort is allowed to operate on the island. This move is done by Malaysia Government with the purpose to conserve and maintain a balanced marine and land ecosystem on Sipadan. But still, you will be able to get there by riding on a ferry from the mainland.

A vacation in Sabah will definitely be an enjoyable experience for you and your family. Please visit Hotel in Sabah if you want to look for information on either high class or budget hotels in Sabah.