- Address: Malaysia, Semporna
Looking at the map of Malaysia , you can see that Sipadan is located near the small port city of Semporna. The island is of oceanic origin. Its dimensions are small, slightly more than 12 hectares, which allows you to explore Sipadan literally in half an hour. On the island you will not find hotels , restaurants, shops, but every year thousands of tourists come here.
A few words about the history of the island
For a long time, the island of Sipadan was a disputed territory. He was claimed by Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia. Only in 2002, the International Court of Justice decided to transfer the Sipadan to the Malaysian side.
Diving
Tourists arriving on the island, expect beautiful sandy beaches, exotic rain forests, a rich diversity of flora and fauna. But the main asset of Sipadan is an excellent diving .
The popularity of the island among divers greatly increased after the expedition to its shores by the legendary traveler Jacques Yves Cousteau. According to the researcher, the island of Sipadan in Malaysia is one of the best places for diving on the planet. Smelchaks expect more than a dozen places for diving, here they can admire the age-old coral reefs, see flocks of barracudas and nimble tunas, hammerfishes hovering in the purest water of sea turtles.
Features of visiting the island
Sipadan is a reserve, besides small, because the number of divers, simultaneously arriving on the island, is limited to 120 participants. Explore the depths and coral reefs can be from 08:00 to 15:00, with the necessary availability of authorization documents. The trip for one day will cost you about $ 11. This amount does not include rental of equipment and services of guides. Be sure to grab the photo equipment to make colorful photos of Sipadan.
The best time to visit the island of Sipadan is the period from April to December.
How to get to Sipadan?
Fans of thrill await a difficult path, which includes different cities and a repeated change of modes of transport . The approximate route to the island is as follows:
- Flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tawau (journey time - 50 min.).
- A trip by car from Tawau to the port of Semporna, the nearest to the island of Sipadan. Duration - 1 hour.
- Walk on a speedboat from Semporna to Sipadan, which will take half an hour.