Located only about 15 minutes by speedboat from the famous Sipadan Island, Mabul Island has gained its own recognition as one of the best muck-diving sites in the world
Mabul Island is recognized as one of the world’s best “muck-diving”and “Macro Paradise” with superb playground for macro photography with rare critter species.
Mabul is a small island off the south-eastern coast of Sabah, Borneo in Malaysia. The island has been a fishing village since the 1970s, then it became popular to divers due to their proximity to the World Famous Sipadan Island.
The dive sites of Mabul and Kapali, that at first glance do not look very picturesque and inviting, have a shallow reef profile with sandy bottom and patches of sea grass and also one of the richest single destinations for exotic small marine life in the world. Flamboyant cuttlefish, blue-ringed octopus, mimic octopus, gobies and frogfishes are everywhere, as are moray, snake eels and practically the whole scorpion fish family.
The dive resorts in Mabul offer all inclusive dive packages with 3 boat dive a day.
The best dive sites around Mabul and Kapalai are Oil Rig, Eel Garden , Crocodile Avenue , Ray Point , Mandarin Valley and Lobster Wall.
Although all the excitement is underwater, you can always set your scuba gear aside for a day to laze on Mabul’s soft sand to work on your tan.
Non-divers can spend great time too! It’s possible to book an island hopping tour or charter a boat to visit the beautiful islands ofSemporna Tun Sakaran Marine Park. The island hopping tour includes Bohey Dulang Island , popular for hiking and climbing activities, Mantabuan Island and Sibuan Island where it’s possible to do snorkeling.
Most Foreign offices have warned tourists against all but essential travel to all islands off the coast of eastern Sabah, following a number of attacks involving people travelling in the area.
Today, in the interests of tourist safety, there is a significant police and army presence in Sabah East Coast (from the town of Kudat in northern Sabah to Tawau), and several road checkpoints.
The Malaysian government also enhanced efforts to patrol its maritime border with the Philippines. The border between the Philippines and Semporna is about 3 hours by boat.
Dusk to dawn curfew (between 7pm to 5am) are strictly enforced on the sea to ensure the safety of tourists and divers. There are also fully-armed Malaysian security forces stationed on the islands with resorts.
These terrorism preventive measures are welcomed by all Malaysian people, to ensure safety and security for all Malaysians and visitors.
