5-Star Hotels in Sabah, Malaysia

Extremely satisfied! The lovely lady at the front desk upgraded our room, and her service was fantastic – she even spoke Chinese and answered all our questions. Every time we took a taxi in, they'd check our booking information, which made us feel very safe. The breakfast buffet was also very rich and diverse, and the kids had a great time. The lifeguard at the pool was also very responsible, which gave us peace of mind. The sunset was also beautiful, with few people around, so it wasn't crowded. Highly recommend!

The water in the hotel's area is heavily polluted; it's so dirty that snorkeling is completely out of the question! The front desk staff were very perfunctory with guest requests and didn't follow through on promises. In the morning, we requested a private boat tour for island hopping and snorkeling. We discussed the time and itinerary with the dive center staff and finalized the price with the front desk. We even altered our subsequent travel plans for this. However, by 4 PM, we still hadn't received confirmation. When we called the front desk, they told us they couldn't arrange it. We asked several people, and got different explanations: first they said there were no boats, then that other guests had already been arranged for island hopping, and then that there would be a storm the next day (which turned out to be perfectly calm). I suggest the hotel improve its island hopping service. For those looking to dive, definitely don't consider this hotel! Also, the beach is incredibly tiny, barely palm-sized!

Getting there: You need to take the hotel's special speedboat from Megaton Jetty, which takes 10 minutes to reach the hotel's pier. This is charged per person. The hotel has a Southeast Asian resort vibe, with wooden structures that show their age. There are many monkeys 🐒 in the trees outside the room, as well as lizards of all sizes and hornbills. The sand isn't very fine, and the beach isn't large; it's not really big enough for a good walk. There are no other businesses, just the hotel's three restaurants. There are also corals 🪸 not far from the shore. Cleanliness: Average. Ambiance: If you're not too particular about room cleanliness, everything else is pretty good, but I personally care a lot about it. Service: Our luggage was taken directly to our room. When we were leaving, we had to depart at 6 AM, and they prepared breakfast for us – two large bags with fruit, bread, coffee, and milk. We mentioned that the shrimp was delicious but found some other dishes hard to get used to, so the chef specially prepared a delicious plate of shrimp just for us and brought it to our table.

This time I brought my family and we encountered heavy rain (luckily, we still enjoyed the most beautiful sunset in the evening). There was a 'fiasco' on the beach (the hotel's quick and professional handling made us feel even more at ease to relax and play), and a 'four-legged intruder' in the pool (the hotel swiftly caught and relocated it). We saw little squirrels, stepped on live clams, admired the full moon on the 16th, and celebrated my father's birthday, which was all arranged by the hotel. RAINA's thoughtful advice about the road construction saved us from missing our flight, and so much more. If you're coming to Kota Kinabalu for a sunset holiday and have the budget, come to Shangri-La Rasa Ria. And if you ever meet RAINA again, just hand all your troubles over to her! ☺

We were with the family at the hotel. A very beautiful and pleasant place. The hotel is small, there were no crowds of people. It is focused on family or romantic holidays. Entertainment includes a sunset cruise, a trip to the neighboring islands of Mataking and Timba-Timba, karaoke and billiards. Every other day, they release small turtles into the sea, which hatch right here, in a fenced area. The island has a house reef with a beautiful coral garden, fish and at least one turtle). They give out masks for snorkeling. There is a possibility of diving. The food is quite varied, mainly Malaysian and Chinese, a lot of seafood. They cook shrimp especially deliciously. The rooms are clean and comfortable. The staff is friendly

Walking distance to restaurants and shopping mall. The wet market just accross the street.I chose a sea view room and enjoyed my stay. Will book if I visit Kota Kinabalu again, for the good service & breakfast with good variety. Never use the gym but saw it has all the basic equipment & weights

The room hygiene was pretty good. The environment was mostly fine, quite suitable for taking photos and checking in. There weren't many people watching the sunset in the afternoon, so overall it was good. As for service, it was okay after check-in, and they offered luggage storage. However, the hotel's policy of a unified check-in time at 3:00 PM, with no early check-in allowed, feels a bit inhumane. Are all rooms only cleaned by 3:00 PM? Shouldn't guests be notified for check-in as soon as a room is ready? We even had to queue for breakfast in the morning. I was aware that the facilities were old beforehand, so that was acceptable. You can snorkel at the hotel, and there are quite a lot of fish. Also, you can see sea urchins by the beach next to one of the swimming pools.

A fantastic stay and a perfect resort and team. Only issues are 1) plastic from sea, nothing they can do about it but it affects enjoyment, 2) we had a minor issue with housekeeping not coming and then coming when it was dark and letting a lots of bugs in the room (we had been careful to avoid that). Honestly amazing value and a great time though!

How do I put it? It wasn't particularly outstanding. I was originally torn between the Hyatt Centric and The Magellan Sutera, but once I arrived, I realized the Marriott is essentially in the middle ground between the two, both in terms of location and hotel type. The Hyatt Centric is downtown with numerous eateries right downstairs, while The Magellan Sutera is more of a secluded beach resort. The Marriott is in between, so it doesn't quite excel at either. It's true that there are motorcycles revving down the street if you have a city view, but it didn't really affect my sleep. It's also under the flight path, but there weren't many planes at night. To the south, there's a Bataras supermarket, and their pomelos are highly recommended this season. Further south is Imago. The area directly downstairs from the hotel itself is a bit desolate. The infinity pool on the 8th floor is decent, but there are no changing rooms.

Seriously, just book it with your eyes closed! The environment, facilities, and service are all top-notch. The scenery is beautiful, and you can use both their pool and the Magellan's pool, so you get double the fun. The room was huge, and they proactively offered an extra bed, which was wonderful. There's a small private bay with a beach where you can snorkel. The water quality isn't great, but there are fish, which was quite interesting. You don't need to go to Tanjung Aru to watch the sunset, where it's incredibly crowded; this hotel offers a stunning sunset view. I watched it for three consecutive nights and was absolutely amazed.