Gaya Island Resort
A YTL resort of 120 hillside villas and suites on Gaya Island, in the marine park off Kota Kinabalu, with a mangrove spa and guided nature walks.
- Neighbourhood
- Malohom Bay, Gaya Island, Sabah
- Status
- Open
Why we recommend it
Most resorts near Kota Kinabalu are on the mainland. Gaya Island Resort is the alternative: an island inside a marine park, reached only by boat, where the forest was kept and the buildings were fitted into it. Trees grow through the walkways and mangroves reach the boardwalks, and the common areas are left open to the air.
The natural setting is treated as the main event. Guided walks go out by day and after dark, the resort runs expert-led wildlife expeditions and coral planting, and hornbills are among the birds regularly seen. It suits travellers who want Borneo’s forest and reef without giving up comfort, and who are content with a resort that is walked rather than driven.
Those who prefer a long mainland beach with golf should look instead at Shangri-La Rasa Ria, the beach resort at Tuaran north of Kota Kinabalu. Both appear in OKYTO’s coverage of Borneo.
Rooms & Suites
The accommodation comes in four categories, which differ chiefly by position on the hill. Bayu Villas sit in the forest, Canopy Villas at the edge of the mangrove, and Kinabalu Villas higher up, where the view reaches Mount Kinabalu. The Suria Suite is a two-storey hillside house.
Each villa is arranged in three parts, a bedroom, a study and a dressing and bathing area with a large tub, and has a private balcony facing the shore. Finishes are dark timber, polished marble, wooden blinds and frosted glass.
Dining
Feast Village, beside the lap pool, is the main restaurant, with Asian and Western cooking stations at breakfast and dinner and an à la carte lunch. Fisherman’s Cove, on a rooftop, is the seafood restaurant, working with local ingredients and sustainable fishing; its signature is the Gayan Bouillabaisse, a Provençal idea made with Borneo produce. Omakase is a two-storey Japanese restaurant on the hillside, offering teppanyaki, shabu-shabu and nabe.
The Pool Bar and Lounge looks over the infinity pool for light lunches and drinks at sunset. At Tavajun Bay, the resort’s private beach five minutes away by boat, lunch is a single dish that changes daily, cooked over charcoal. Private dinners draw on Sabah’s cultures, among them a beach barbecue in the Bajau Laut tradition and a tiered tiffin of Straits dishes.
Wellness & Spa
Spa Village Gaya Island is set among the mangroves and bases its treatments on the healing traditions of the region, using local ingredients. The resort has an infinity pool with floating cabanas and a lap pool, and a library.
Much of the rest happens outdoors: snorkelling in the marine park, guided nature walks, stargazing through the resort’s telescopes and boat trips to Tavajun Bay.
Location
Gaya Island lies in the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, just off Kota Kinabalu. Guests leave from the resort’s Gaya Lounge at Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal, about ten minutes from the city centre, and cross by speedboat. Kota Kinabalu International Airport is roughly 20 minutes by road from the jetty, with flights of about two and a half hours from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
The city is close enough for a meal ashore; Yee Fung Laksa on Jalan Gaya and Welcome Seafood Restaurant in Asia City are both in OKYTO’s Kota Kinabalu listings.
- Address
- Malohom Bay, Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, 88000 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
- Website
- Official website