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Located on a beautiful beach in secluded Mengkabar bay, we offer hilltop beachfront accommodation with dive centre and restaurant nestled in the surrounding jungle. We have new en-suite double rooms for a comfortable yet remote stay, and camping for those on a budget. Both have stunning views of the surrounding bay, Pandan Island and Mount Kinabalu in the distance. We offer PADI dive courses, fun dives, snorkelling, kayaking and jungle trekking. A perfect hideaway for travellers who would like to chill, relax and enjoy the lush, peaceful surrounding nature.
Our family of 5 stayed at BigFin for 2 nights recently towards the end of our trip to Sabah. We were very happy with our stay. Our only regret was that we couldn't stay longer :) Location of the resort is remote and idyllic. It is a small resort set on a beautiful beach, and is completely surrounded by nature. The rooms are on a small hill up from the beach. From outside our room we had a lovely view of the beach, the rolling rainforest hills, and Mt. Kinabalu in the distance. We spent our time walking and dipping in the water on the beach, did a little hiking, went out on kayaks and paddle boards, did some great snorkeling, and spent some time chilling in the hammocks. Really beautiful sunsets on the beach. If you go out snorkeling, remember to stop at the white platform. Food is included, and it was tasty. Dinner was rice, chicken, and two vegetables. Lunch was noodles and fried rice. Breakfast was eggs and toast or pancakes, which were very good. Beware of their home-made hot sauces :) The rooms and bathrooms were very clean, and the resort is well maintained. Each room has hammocks outside that are really inviting. No A/C, but the room fan was very comfortable at night. The room gets hot during the day, but that's when we were either out or chilling in the hammocks :) They run generators for power from 5-11pm. We enjoyed chatting with Awie, the chef and manager. The owner, Ella, was working hard with her staff, taking care of the place. All of the staff were very pleasant and friendly. It does take some effort to get there, but if you're looking for R&R in a beautiful beach and nature setting, I'd certainly recommend BigFin. Some logistical notes: 1. We had a rental car, and parking was provided at the boat pick up point. 2. There is no boat pier at the pick up or drop off point. You get on & off the boat in shallow beach water, so dress and pack accordingly. 3. The last stretch of road to get there is unpaved and narrow. We had no problem in our small rental car.
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Date of stay: August 2022
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Most of it has already been written in previous reviews, what a wonderful place away from the hustle and bustle. It takes a while to get there, but then you have something. A great place to relax in a hammock, drink a beer with a great sunset or go snorkeling/diving.
You can rent a paddleboard or kayak with a snorkel set. So you can discover for yourself. You can also go on an organized snorkeling or diving trip.
Everything has been thought of, enough hangers in the room for your clothes, mosquito net, even an umbrella at the front door in case the weather is bad. There are also hammocks on the (private) beach and beach mats in tubes. Well done, Bigfin.
The vibe is super chill, you can get your own drinks in the kitchen. Everyone is up for a chat, there is often music playing. Bigfin is a great place to relax, dive/snorkel, swim, hang out in a hammock, play games, eat, drink. As it should be on holiday.
Our advice is to come here for at least 3 nights. It pays off and it won't disappoint you!
Food is fine, even for vegetarians. Not haute cuisine.
Oh and they even sold Oreo cookies 😎. It is therefore not absolutely necessary to bring your own food and drinks
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Date of stay: October 2023Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Taxi via Bigfin is betrouwbaar en goed.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Charming resort and perfect place to get away and relax. Visited in Dec 2022 and hoped to do some diving, but it was the end of the rainy season and the weather did not cooperate. Nevertheless, we ended up having a great experience as Bigfin was a great place to chill out and relax.
Bungalows are set up on the hill overlooking the bay. Great view and location. Made good use of the pair of hammocks outside each bungalow. There is a nice bar/restaurant/deck area closer to the beach to relax and use the wifi, although the power was only on in the evenings. Maya the cat will gladly cuddle up if you pay her some attention, and even Rocky warmed up to us after some time.
Beach is not overly big, but you can explore further down the beach during low tide. Plenty of room to chill out if you get a sunny day. Although we could not manage any dives due to limited visibility, Maman and the dive staff were awesome and a pleasure to hang out with.
Not being able to dive could have ruined our stay, but we had a great time at Bigfin and there it is a great place to relax for 3-4 days regardless of the weather. Would definitely return!
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Date of stay: December 2022
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I’ve actually been here more than 5 times. Twice this year! It’s a really really great place to chill and unwind from the city. All of the staff are friendly and fun people, they make the trip even more enjoyable. The rooms are comfortable but you wouldn’t want to spend time in there during the day tho it’s just too hot. They run on solar power and generators for power supply (which is I think awesome) so no aircon or water heaters.
You should be on the hammock enjoying the view, on the beach, snorkelling or kayaking. Food is also always delicious thanks to the chef (Awi). Because it’s just an hour away from where I live, my friends and I are always planning our next trip to Bigfin. Truely never gets boring even if we go 3 times a year😂😂. Btw I’d recommend staying at least 2 nights to really soak it up and enjoy your time there.
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Date of stay: November 2021Trip type: Travelled with friends
Room Tip:Parking is RM10 per night at the time of my last visit. Phone signal might not be good so bring...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Beach Resort is great value in fantastic location away from Planet Human and back in Nature. Nice clean and quiet stand-alone Chalets perched in a row on the hill get the breeze and views. Just below chalets is central kitchen/dining area where all 3 meals provided within the accommodation costs. Food is reasonably bland to fit all tastes but there is plenty of it. One reason to come here is for the diving away from Kota Kinabalu but the reefs at the resort are getting fished over because not in a National Park and so suffering a bit of net drag damage and not many sharks or turtles around (less that i saw on my dives at Kota Kinabalu). Still worth a few dives to see the similarities and differences.
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Date of stay: July 2023
Value
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Service
Trip type: Travelled solo
Room Tip:resort can organise taxi drop offs to/from kota kinabalu to the pick-up point just a few minutes...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Bigfin Beach Resort was one of the best holidays we have ever had! The rooms are basic, but very clean and comfortable, all meals are included and Awie dishes up delicious, simple meals every time. Whether you want to dive, relax or try some kayaking this is a great place. Steph, our dive instructor was brilliant! Safety first, always, she focused on building our confidence from the very start. Alison completed the Introduction to Scuba course and I went on to pass my Open Water Diver course! Loved it so much, we are returning at the end of March!
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I spent 3 nights at Big Fin Divers Resort at the end of my 4 weeks in Borneo. I took ages deciding on where to stay as it was important to me. I chose well & was extremely happy with my stay. It was definitely 'away from it all'. You could only reach the resort by boat. There was wifi in the restaurant area so that was good enough for my needs. They arranged a taxi transfer for me from KK airport to the resort & back again afterwards. All meals were provided & were very good. I had explained that I had dietary problems (gluten free & vegetarian) & the chef was very good. Electricity was basic & so was water (cold showers) but all was OK for me. The cabins were at the top of some very steep steps. Luckily, I got one of the staff members to carry my bag up & down for me. I did a snorkelling trip - coral & fishes were fairly good at 2 of the 3 stops that the boat made. I was a bit worried about stingers (box jellyfish) & made sure that I was pretty covered up & all was OK. I went kayaking on 1 of the days & enjoyed it. I could see quite a bit of coral & starfish etc from the kayak. The tide was low in the mornings & there was a lot of seaweed washed ashore. I was able to go swimming on one of the days though. The diving was popular (I don't dive) & people seemed very happy with their dives. Some lovely walks along the beach. Very peaceful. I loved my hammock on the verandah. I found it strange that the cleaner didn't 'make up' the rooms each day. A fresh towel & extra loo roll would have been appreciated. (I ended up robbing the napkins from the restaurant to use as loo roll!). Happy to recommend.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Very nice, well-kept little complex on a beautiful, quiet beach with great sunsets. The food was excellent and very varied and the staff was extremely friendly. Everything was very clean. Perfect for relaxing days! You can also go diving, snorkeling and canoeing.
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Date of stay: February 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:Die Anreise war total easy und vom Bigfin bestens organisiert. Driver von KK bis zum Peer und...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lovely place to go to when you want to truly relax. The chef cooks with a passion for food which you can clearly taste on your plate. Clean little houses with a stunning view on the sea and mount Kinabalu. There are hammocks everywhere which is awesome! We stayed 3 nights but more would have been nice as well 😉
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Date of stay: April 2019Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from EllaM1062, Manager at Bigfin Beach Resort
Responded 9 Apr 2019
Thank you for taking the time to review us! We are very happy that you enjoyed your stay with us :)
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Having stayed at Mañana Borneo in the past and loved it, I was much dismayed to discover it had closed down.
As a short notice substitute I booked a stay at Bigfin. As a non-diver wasn’t too sure what to expect. I needn’t have been concerned - I was made extremely welcome by all staff and other guests, and as for the accommodation, the rooms are fantastic! They are absolutely amazing.
The food was also excellent, and the beers nice and chilled. Combine this with amazing sunsets and views of Mount Kinabalu and you know you’re on to a winner.
My transfers were arranged by Awi, taking all the stress out of it.
Thanks Bigfin, I think I may have to come back next year and do the PADI course :)
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Date of stay: April 2019Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from EllaM1062, Manager at Bigfin Beach Resort
Responded 9 Apr 2019
Thanks for the great review, hope to see you again soon, diving next time! :)
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
There are more places to choose from in the Kota Belud area.
PRICE RANGE
HK$715 - HK$832 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
MalaysiaSabahKota Belud DistrictKota Belud
NUMBER OF ROOMS
4
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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