J Residence

The kitchen had enough utensils and plates, but no oil, salt, or pepper, so you’ll need to bring your own. Town is a good 7km drive away. The one possible upside is staying here for just one night before a Mt. K hike. For a longer stay, I was glad to check out and head back to town. We were in the 3BR villa. The Wi-Fi was extremely poor, the shower pressure was extremely low, and the heater was old. There were no clothes hooks or hangers, and the lighting was so dim that reading wasn’t good for your eyes. I wouldn’t recommend it. I don’t know how this place got a 3 star rating. My only guess is that you’re expected not to shower and to just “ooh enjoy the nature”.

The garden views are lovely, and the location is great. But the Google listing calls this a “3 star hotel,” which simply isn’t true. It’s extremely basic, with no laundry or proper place to hang clothes, even though they can get very wet and muddy. I didn’t want to leave bags on the floor because there were cockroaches and other insects in the room. That may be expected in this location, but shelves, hangers, or hooks would help. Our “deluxe twin” was tucked into a corner behind trees, with a very small balcony and an opaque window. The view and balcony space were very different from those in other rooms that looked out over the valley and had real windows. The room was freezing and smelled strongly of damp and mould. The smell had got into the bedding and pillows, and I had to ask for them to be replaced because they smelled so bad. A hot shower helped me warm up, though the water pressure was poor. There’s no food, drink, or shop on site. There are a few okay places 10-20 minutes away on foot, but the walk follows a busy main road with no pavement or lighting at night.

My self-contained hut had a queen bed and was 600m from Kinabalu Park Headquarters. It was clean and tidy, with a beautiful view. There’s no air-conditioning, but on a rainy day in November it was cool enough.

Just outside the national park, our room had a good view, depending on which room you get. The bed was fine, and the room, toilet, and shower were clean. Water pressure could have been better, but it was warm enough. The bathroom itself is open, with a gap, so a few bugs got in and it might feel chilly depending on the season.