Kota Kinabalu hotels & places to stay

My friend and I stayed here on our way in to diving and trekking round Sabah, Borneo. We loved it so much we decided to stay here on our way back out of Kota Kinabalu! It's a hostel so the rooms are simple and not decorated much, but what we loved so much about this place was everything was so clean! The rooms, the beds, the common room, the bathrooms and showers!! All clean, all the time! Most hostels I've stayed at can never keep everything so clean, but Akinabalu does it! The staff are also really friendly and welcoming and offer their help with most anything we needed including booking buses and taxis, and such. The breakfast is not really a breakfast at all, so we usually walked down the street to "Fung-ip cafe." There are a bunch of other restaurants on the same strip and everything except beer is quite cheap. Would love to stay at this place again if I make it back to KK!

Top 3 Things I enjoyed the most at my stay: 1. The location is an excellent spot to everything. Everything is "walkable" from the place. You can go to the Suriah Sabah Mall for some shopping, grocery shopping at KK Plaza, Adventure at Jesselton Point, or take a bus at the Padang Merdeka. It is the center of all the city tour you need to do when going to Kota Kinabalu. 2. My stay is really cheap and shows an excellent value for money. You get to enjoy the basic necessities to enjoy your stay without overspending 3. You get to meet a lot of foreign travelers as it is one of the most common place to stay for a backpacker. You can be assured of the safety of the place as it has CCTV and their staff is always present in the location. Some improvements needs to be made regarding the storage for your bag as the lock seems pretty cheeky, good thing I have my own lock for my bag as a precaution. Likewise, smiling and learning the English language for the staff is needed :D

You've made us feel at home here in SKYPOD! It wouldn't be so much fun without your great help. Thank you for taking care of us throughout our stays here in Kota Kinabalu. We're very glad to have met such an amazing people and staffs here in SKYPOD, and now we becoming FRIENDS! We can't thank you enough for what you've done for us, thank you for all the love, laugh, smile and jokes that we've shared for the past 6 days. SKYPOD is a wonderful stay in a fabulous city! We gladly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a cozy haven in Kota Kinabalu, SKYPOD is the one!! We definitely will be back again

I initially booked for a service apartment in Likas area but cancelled it for Hood Borneo instead. I took the private room which ia good for 2 people (but still big enough for 2) with a huge restroom as well. Conveniently located at heart of the city (Jalan Pantai) just parallel to Jalan Gaya. Just a few meters away from the bus stop for buses coming from KK. Hotel staff were nice esp Faris. I would come back here and recommend the place to friends and relatives.

This is one of the best hostels I've stayed in three months backpacking through South East Asia. The bed is comfortable, and they provide curtains which gives you more privacy. The staff is really kind and they give you a real breakfast: Milk, cereals, juice, cake, pancake, peanut butter, jam, noodles, even sausages! And the shower was even better than mine at home! If you smoke don't worry there is a smoking area for you

For a backpacker hotel, Sakot is more than what we expected. Almost everything you need are provided. The staff are all very friendly and nice. The location is very good, most of the malls and tourist attraction of the city can be reached by walking. We even walked to Jesselton for our island-hopping activity. For a stay in Kota Kinabalu city center, I will always go back to Sakot.

CONS: no outside drying -caused moisture buildup inside windowless men toilet, no toilet seats in 2 sitting toilet bowls -caused me to step on the bowl posed accident risk, travellers round the world come here with different jetlag time and management should put kitchen/TV curfew on noisy gathering after 11 pm (Malaysia time) -caused me a sleepless night, needs more tourism brochures, the stairway isn't lit posed accident risk - light should be turned ON at all times, top step of the stair not flushing with the floor posed accident risk - to put yellow florescent paint andwarning on uneven step, no free breakfast at least hot coffee even though there are plenty of great variety of Chinese, Malays, India, western style Pizza Hut KFC etc PROS: Clean generally, TV good Astro channels, good Gaya Street view, great location - not too near bars with loud music, great friendly staff- but putting more smiling faces would cheer the world, laundry coin shop across hiway Kudos Sensi Hostel

It is a good place to stay for backpacker and those who want budget traveling. The hotel is located at center of the town of Kota Kinabalu.The staff of the hotel quite nice and service my friend and i with a smile most of the time, simply say quite friendly.Eventhough the room of the hotel quite small but it is convenient for both of us to sleep.We also can online with free of charge at the hotel.And i am quite pleased by the staff when they work very efficient on cleaning the floor that where my friend vomit after drunk.Thank you again here to the staff of the hotel on that night cause helping us clean the floor without complaining.What a wonderful stay and holiday to both of us.

I had booked a single room and got a really spacious room for the price. Clean toilets and showers with hot water. a small hostel so not too many people in the place. My room had a cupboard and 2 multipurpose plugs so no hassle in charging electronics.Bedding and towel provided.... The common area is well designed and brightly lit with full glass walls so it feels cafe like. The pantry has a microwave, fridge, toaster, electric kettle, utensils....so everything if you want to cook a meal for yourself! Breakfast is the usual hostel fare of bread, peanut butter, jam, and butter but its all fresh and constantly topped up. Laundry services are available too for cheap. Plus its located right opposite a McDonald's if you are craving fast food at midnight! The staff are super friendly and helpful so no problems there. My only grouse is that the air con is at one setting and can't be changed from within the room and it was too cold for me at night. Otherwise I would mind staying here for a long term too...very surprised at the value I received for the amount I paid.

This hotel is located at a great location. It is clean and the staff are friendly. Breakfast (bread, coffee/tea, fruits, cereal and even Malaysia roti canai) is provided. What I did during breakfast was sipping a cup of coffee at the balcony while enjoying the morning breeze and looking at sights of the morning crowd. Great feeling. The room is a little bit small and hey with its design and price, I would say it is worth it.

the borneo gaya lodge is situated in the heart of kota kinabalu city. they have very friendly and honest staffs. we left our camera last march and just got them last weekend but they still gave it back. when you go down borneo gaya lodge, there are a lot of malay food nearby. these is also the street where they have sunday market and it is very nice to see different stuffs.

Just Found Out need to check in at old building , after climb to 2nd floor. Reception check in me at Old building which I paid for New wing. They told me fulled and moved me to old wing, but I paid more for new Wing. End up need me to wait only 15 min and check me in new wing? what a silly reason ? Stayed here for 2 night but found out expired bread roll on fridge , mountain rubbish inside dustbin , no toilet roll in public toilet and also "hair pin" on bathroom floor laying for 3 days. No housekeeping?

it was fun to stay in capsule. I like that purple lights, the mirror. USB charger. Have ventilation. Air con outside, was a little cold, can't ask to change, cause other 3 people in room with no room, maybe hot. Can't turn off all lights, even without card charger is working. And one blue button is on. So I tried to stick something to cover it at least a bit. The bedding seems clean. Not so new. I didn't get my pillow case. Then I asked 3 times for it, and to rent a towel. Last time they said to wait for 16:00. So I didn't want keep asking, used my shirt to cover my pillow. And didn't wait for towel, went to shower right away at last. It's very noisy, thr walls seems thin, and no doors. After 20:00 I hear how staff talk to each other quite loud. The have sign to be quite after 22:00, but I still hear some guests arriving, earplugs a must. When I booked it was 14:00 for check in, but at reception said maybe until 15:00. But they let me leave my bags, and wait in the lobby, there 2 sofa. Thanks for Kyrah, she checked me in before 14:00. But I waste my time thinking about it could take longer, and also waiting for towel. I guess best is ask to let take a shower and leave bags, and just go explore the city, without waiting for check in. Also they let me take a shower after check out. Was very helpful. I want to say thank you, for Kyrah, she helped me to call a cab, even went out to find car. Thanks for your kindness. Capsule inside, not that small, I don't feel pressure. They have lockers, but mine lock was broken, they say we will fix, when I ask when, they say someday. Shower is not that dirty, not that clean. Kinda ok. Have only soaps that's all. I couldn't bare to drink the water they provide, so I bought bottled. Toasts, peanut butter, and weird jam for breakfast. And coffee. I suggest stay here for capsule experience, but space theme only capsule and shower stall inside. So. And for good location, and for option to leave bags or take shower before or after c

Being a spa they did some spa things like have mattresses on the floor and have chiming music with dimmed lights but I kind of liked that it was different and it was open late as I had a late flight in. The toilet was ok but a bit disappointing and there wasn't a bus stop close enough for me and the road access was only from one direction so it was in a cul de sac. The TV room was good and there was water and tea or something to drink. I did have trouble finding an electric socket which worked which was a pain as I'd just been travelling all day.

First impressions are everything and not only was the lodge clean, modern, new and comfy looking but the owners are also so friendly. They couldn't have made me feel anymore comfortable if they tried. They made a point of listening and then later asking me how my day trip went, unlike other hostels where I was just greeted. The other members of staff were also very friendly. The location in central to practically everything. Wifi was strong which is a first for Malaysia for me. The communal area is 24 hours with films on the TV. Another highlight for me was that breakfast which is included in the price did not have a cut off time, this is a pro as if I was to get up late I would normally miss it. Aircon in the room was a bonus also, slept like a baby, especially with all new beds which were too comfy ha..hence the late get up. The only downfall for me is I didn't stay long enough!!!

The hotel is about 5 km. from the centre of Kota Kinabalu. The hotel is very close to the pick-up point for mini-buses into K.K. (about 50 meters) and it costs 2 ringgit one-way. For a wireless internet connection it is better to be on the 1st floor than the 2nd floor. My room with a double-bed (a "queen") has a good bathroom, good air-conditioning, good wireless connection, comfortable bed. There is a TV but I have not tried it. Room cost about 11 Euros per night booking on the internet; it would have cost about 14 Euros per night paying directly at reception. Nice friendly hotel-staff.

Affordable price, walking distance to main attractive places in Kota Kinabalu city, just 15 minutes drive to Kota Kinabalu International Airport, easy to travel by using uber apps, friendly and helpful receptionists, has 24 hours convenient shop at the ground floor just beside the hotel. Aircond has no remote, TV too obsolete and channels were not clear, no slipper provided, plug point to far from bed. Highly recommended for the solo traveller. 5/6 stars.