OYO 90111 Happy Garden

The dorm wasn't luxurious, but I found it comfortable enough. The gardens have some cute, romantic corners for photos, and the view is superb. Kinabalu Park HQ is about a five-minute drive away. Food was ordinary, nothing special.

We had a good stay for a reasonable price, and I'd definitely come back. The homestay is peaceful, with fresh air and nicely kept landscaping, so it's a lovely spot to relax. Our room was clean, roomy, and well maintained. There's no air conditioning, just a ceiling fan, but the cool, breezy weather meant we didn't need it. The balcony scenery is incredible.

It gets really cold here, even around noon, and the cafe food was okay. My family isn't fussy about food, though. The place has a nice view and is inexpensive, with Wi-Fi, a water heater, a heated shower, and a hair dryer. There are lots of stairs, so it may not work for anyone with knee problems. Some spots, like hobiton house, need repairs. I enjoyed staying here.

We left a day early and went back to Kota Kinabalu because the room was so bad. The site looked run down, with dead plants apart from a few new murals, and the tents didn't look any better. In our private room, the sheets had hair and stains, smelled of body odor, and clearly hadn't been changed. The ceiling had water marks and black mold, and the room was very humid. The bathroom was similarly poor and somehow smelled of cigarette smoke from the room above. We had to ask staff for clean sheets and make the bed ourselves. The one advantage is the location, about a 20-minute walk down the main road to Kinabalu National Park. I'd avoid this place.