When you a stay at Gayana Marine Resort in Gaya Island, you'll be on the boardwalk, within a 5-minute walk of Sapi Island and Mamutik Island. This 5-star resort is 1.7 mi (2.8 km) from Suria Sabah Shopping Mall and 1.8 mi (2.9 km) from Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal.
Pamper yourself with a visit to the spa, which offers massages, body treatments, and facials. This resort also features complimentary wireless Internet access, concierge services, and babysitting (surcharge).
Enjoy Fusion cuisine at Macac, one of the resort's 2 restaurants, or stay in and take advantage of the 24-hour room service. Snacks are also available at the coffee shop/cafe. Mingle with other guests at the complimentary reception, held daily. Relax with your favorite drink at the bar/lounge or the poolside bar.
Featured amenities include limo/town car service, complimentary newspapers in the lobby, and dry cleaning/laundry services. A ferry terminal shuttle is provided at no charge.
Make yourself at home in one of the 52 air-conditioned rooms featuring refrigerators and DVD players. Your bed comes with down comforters and Frette Italian sheets. Rooms have private furnished balconies or patios. 32-inch LCD televisions are provided, with premium TV channels available. Bathrooms have designer toiletries and hair dryers.
"Just got back home yesterday, and I'm determined to write a thorough review for this hotel. My kids also encouraged me to review it, because it truly deserves it. We booked four ocean villas for two nights, and I initially thought our chances of encountering issues would be higher with such a large booking. But we didn't run into any problems at all! In fact, I even regretted not booking more nights, mainly because I was put off by too many negative reviews on Ctrip.
1. **Service:** If you're comfortable communicating in English, the hotel service is absolutely fantastic. Most of the staff speak excellent English and were diligent in explaining activities, facilities, schedules, and programs. They showed us where everything was in the room and proactively informed us about the cost if we broke any of the toiletries bottles. The higher cost for broken bottles is because the contents are genuinely expensive – they're pure plant essential oil toiletries. As someone who regularly uses essential oils, I know they shouldn't be stored in plastic. Plus, these toiletries left our hair and skin feeling moisturized, not dry. I found them to be very effective. If you're worried about breaking them, just place them on the floor.
2. **Seawater:** The seawater is quite clear. While it's not a 'jelly blue,' the clarity is definitely good. We did experience a heavy downpour one day, and the water became a bit murky the next, but it was still perfectly acceptable. The photo of the large sea turtle looks a bit blurry because it was taken with a waterproof phone case, but the water itself was actually very clear. That was taken from under our water villa. The manta ray was photographed near the stairs of our water villa room.
3. **No Outside Food Policy:** They don't allow outside food in the rooms because it attracts ants and monkeys. The front desk has a dedicated area for storing snacks. We didn't bring any snacks into our room and always closed the door promptly, so we didn't have any bugs or insects. A crucial point: absolutely do not feed the monkeys!
4. **Meals:** We had all our meals at the hotel restaurant, and the food was truly delicious. A main meal costs around 90+ MYR per person (about 160 CNY). We felt the food was excellent, with a good variety of dishes and drinks beyond just the main courses. The kids' portions were a bit small; our four children ordered 7 kids' meals, and eventually, we just ordered them regular adult meals instead.
5. **Hot Water:** Regarding previous reviews mentioning no hot water, one of our rooms indeed had this issue. We called the front desk, and it turned out there's a 'water heater' button on the wall. Hot water was available within 15 minutes. So, don't hesitate to ask! Don't be shy; good service often requires you to speak up.
6. **Free Rentals:** Paddleboards, small boats, fins, and masks are all available for free rental.
7. **Marine Life:** In the ocean, we spotted baby sharks, baby manta rays, triggerfish, archerfish (the ones that shoot water), porcupinefish, and even a large sea turtle (which is rare, but we got lucky!).
8. **Welcome/Farewell:** We received a welcome ceremony and a welcome drink upon arrival. Upon departure, we sometimes had the whole staff waving goodbye to us.
9. **Guest Demographics:** There were a lot of European and American guests at the hotel, some Koreans, but not many Chinese guests. I wonder if this is due to the excessive negative reviews on Ctrip.
10. **Cleanliness:** The hygiene was excellent, and the rooms were very clean. Each room came with life vests, so you could go snorkeling anytime.
That pretty much covers it. I believe if your English communication is good, feel free to chat with the front desk and restaurant staff; they are very engaging. At 8 AM, the hotel organizes a free jungle trek. It was a bit tiring, and we didn't see much – just hiking uphill.
For reference, my experience this trip, and with these four rooms, was genuinely excellent. Having been to places like the Maldives, Bali, and Koh Lipe... I think this hotel offers great value for money, and I would definitely come back. Hotels at this price point on Koh Lipe before were significantly worse."