Spheredivers Scuba & Leisure

Rooms are Basic(more hostel level), the water bungalow was a bit shaking when waves came by from boats, careful of wooden walkway to the beach from “water bungalow” as planks are broken and the walkway is moving as you walk over it. Some times it is noisy with the 1 cylinder boats passing and generators running all night on the island(of course this is Asia and a small Island) Rental Dive equipment was not sufficient and very old (wetsuits, tank leaking, no fresh air, no info about last service), limited inventory e.g ordered fins for my wife we not available. No safety sausage available, bcd had no release valve string to pull. The next day a dive instructor diver guest had also to get other tanks from the neighbor dive shop. Dive sites are really nice and in good shape. Food was very simple and needed to be ordered 1-2 hours before. Breakfast is noodles, boiled egg and pancake. No coffee available. Management commmuniction was only via whatts app and delayed . Local staff did not speak english and the dive instructor was a freelance one who did not now about the equipment situation.

Feb 2026

We had to leave this hotel three nights earlier than planned due to multiple serious issues. The entire hotel is built on stilts over the water, many of which appear damaged. The structure is constantly moving and felt unsafe at times. The only walkway to the island is in very poor condition, with missing planks and unstable sections. Walking there — especially with luggage — felt dangerous. Access to the hotel is only possible by boat from Semporna, costing 90 MYR per person and cash only. The final price we were charged was around 15% higher than what was confirmed on Booking.com. We were also told that the hotel does not accept payments through Booking.com, despite the platform showing that part of the stay had already been paid. We were then required to pay via Wise to a different account, which felt unprofessional. The manager was not on site, only reachable remotely, and the staff could not help beyond telling us to contact him via Booking.com chat. On top of all this, the room had visible mold and a strong musty smell. Because of this, we were unable to sleep at night and had health concerns. Due to safety risks, hygiene issues, and misleading payment practices, we were forced to check out early. We strongly advise future guests to be very cautious before booking this property.

Dec 2025

I enjoyed the stay a lot. Nice island feeling. The owner is very funny and experienced. But they don’t handle the dive gear correctly. I did one day of diving and all the dive gear I got was dangerously faulty. If you’re an experienced diver you might be able to handle it, but otherwise it can kill you. On the first dive the BCD was leaking air, on the second dive the regulator hose bulged and exploded to be free flowing. On the third dive my first stage clogged up so I went totally out of air. You really have to check your gear there before going under water with it.

Aug 2025