Trial Dive with Borneo Divers Sabah in Mamutik Island, Kota Kinabalu



Weeks ago ,
 a couple of us bloggers and Instagrammers were invited by Borneo Divers Sabah to Mamutik Island for a trial dive.
Super excited and very VERY nervous because as some of you may know, I am not the biggest fan when it comes to the sea.
I like going to the islands but not for the water part. I enjoy being on land, on the beach, soaking up the rays and playing a game of Ultimate Frisbee
and getting tanned while I'm at it. 

An opportunity came and of course I wouldn't turn down the offer.
I have heard many things about Borneo Divers Sabah and not only that, my late dad used to be a diver with them.
I always hear him talk bout deep sea diving, night dives, leisure dives and many more. 

So, being me, I would always want to try everything so I decided to give it a go.
Many people have invited for a dive but I was just not mentally prepared for it but this time, I am ready.
I needed to cross this out of my bucket list so here I am, with everyone , diving!

Meitzeu, Alex , Charlotte and I decided to meet up for breakfast at Tanjung Aru before our trip.
Its been a while since I had the Kon Lou Mee at this place. Packed as always.

A trio photo is a must!


So, we were told to gather up in Star Marina Jetty in Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa.
6 of us bloggers and Instagrammers were selected to participate in the trial dive activity for the weekend.


We had to register ourselves at 9am before heading off to Mamutik Island.
It takes 10-15 minutes by boat to the island and thank God weather was awesome!


We had to pay for the conservation fee upon arrival on the island.

After settling the conservation fee and other registration paperwork, we're off to explore Borneo Divers Sabah building and around the island.
We had a table prepared for us by our host, Charlene. Very friendly and sweet lady and she brought us on a small tour
around the island and everywhere else.


This is Philip. He's the Sales and Marketing executive based in Mamutik Island.
He was the one in charge of our diving activity for that day and also for us drowning.
(I'm kidding.)

Just to let you guys know that we are doing a trial dive which is run by Borneo Divers Sabah and NOT DSD
(aka Discover Scuba Diving). Its two completely different thing.
For DSD, you are required to take a proper class and go through an orientation while as for the Trial Dive,
its a much shorter course which only involves a quick and simple briefing on safety and diving.

We were asked to suit up, fin up and get ready for a short briefing before proceeding with the activity.
Now, at this point I was SUPER excited. Like so excited that I was sweating a lot.
Can't believe this was happening to me!

Group photo of us in our wet suits and to be honest, THE SUITS MAKE ME LOOK PUFFY!
Very comfy but so thick that it made me feel like I had extra fats everywhere but it's all good.

Philip facepalming us because we were noobs showing us some sign languages to use while diving.
This facepalm sign is basically when u feel your mask is flooded, inhale through the regulator,
and exhale through your nose while pressing your mask on the forehead area to push the water out.
(Sound so pro right! Alright, Im gonna stop now)

Also, we learnt how to communicate when there is a problem or if everything was okay.
One thing I found out from this activity, if you cant swim...thats the best.
Why? Because for a person who knows how to swim (like yours truly),
I find it VERY hard to sink and dive because you tend to paddle with your feet a lot which causes you to float.
So, for those who can't swim, this will be good for you because it will be easier for you to sink and slowly swim underwater
and not worrying bout floating too much.

Here I am with my dive buddy, Lucas!
Another thing to keep in mind, when going diving, you must ALWAYS have a dive buddy/partner.
This is for safety purposes in case something happens to you or someone else and they need help so do keep that in mind as well.

The funniest thing about gearing up, we had to carry our tank and I thought it was light.
IT WAS HEAVY! I almost toppled backwards but it was all good.

LOOK HOW CLEAR THE WATER IS!!!

Here we are getting briefed on how to clean our mask and also put on our fins.
At least with the sea water, the tank don't feel so heavy and it was a lot easier to stand straight.
Took me quite a while to submerge my head as I was pretty scared.

Just so you know, I am not a fan of the sea.
Not a fan of being underwater but I will still give this a chance.
I always wanted to try diving but just too scared to try it out alone so having this opportunity to try it with my friends,
I feel a lot safer.



Proof of me being underwater!
Such a fun and exciting experience for me and I would definitely be back for another go if another opportunity does come up.
I highly recommend this for beginners!

The depth of the dive was around 8-10 meters so its pretty safe for those who are new and scared to dive like me.
I seriously didn't feel that we went that deep but I know my ears were about to pop a lot so I guess we were quite deep.

After our trial dive, we head back for lunch. Our lunch was a lunch buffet.
Charlene brought us around for another quick tour as soon as we finished our lunch.
She brought us to see the new dormitory that was built to accommodate 14 pax at the moment but the upcoming ones will be
able to accommodate up to 80 pax.

Here we have the very first Borneo Divers Sabah shack which was also their class and office.
Such a cool shack! I'm very happy that they didn't have to cramp up in such a small place now to run their courses
and also storing up their gears and equipments.

We were given a chance to kayak as part of our day trip activity and WHO WOULD SAY NO TO KAYAKING!
Let's go!

FYI , it cost RM70 to kayak for 30 minutes.
The best part about kayaking on Mamutik island is that the waters are really REALLY clear.
The kayak that we used were see through as well!
SO PRETTY!

Here I am with my partner Duncan. Funny thing happened.
We were trying to paddle forward but we ended up getting twirled around on the water because of the wind and waves. 
It took us 5 minutes to get out of that mess and when we were out, heading towards our friends, we ended up twirling around again. 
So at the end of the day, we ended up trying to get our of the twirling situation rather than a peaceful kayak around . 
Now Duncan calls me his twirling buddy. 

We went trekking around the island to find a nice spot to take some photos.
Had so much fun but sadly we had to leave really soon because a storm was heading towards to island.


Love this panaromic shot that Charlene took for us!
Hardly get to spend time on the islands with my friends so I am very thankful for the short and beautiful weather!

Group photo from L-R :
Ken, Charlotte, Meitzeu, Me, Lukas and Duncan.

We decided to leave by 3pm as you can see the clouds behind us, weather turned gloomy within 30minutes.
As soon as we touch down at Star Marina Jetty, It started drizzling.
So , that's the end of our day trip as some of us headed off to INCH Coffee for a quick bite cause' I was starving!


During our coffee session , it started pouring outside.
When I say pour, it literally poured and flooded everywhere and I almost couldn't get home.
And that ends our awesome day!

So here are the details for the Trial Dive rates and Day Trip Package :

Day Trip
Adult : Rm150 per pax
Child : Rm105 per pax (3-11 years old)
Validity : 1st April 2017 - 31st March 2018

Includes :
- Return boat transfer from Star Marina Jetty, Tanjung Aru
- Jetty fee
- Welcoming drink
- Buffet Lunch
- Free usage of mask, snorkel & life jacket.
- Free usage of toilet and shower facility

Excludes : 
- Sabah Park Conservation Fee
- 6% GST
- Kayak
- Trial Dive

Trial Dive Rates
Price : Rm280 per pax
(E.g : Day trip package ( Rm150) + Trial Dive (Rm280) = Rm 330)

Would like to thank Borneo Divers Sabah for the opportunity to spend the day at Mamutik Island with everyone 
and also giving the trial dive a go. Definitely a wonderful experience for everyone of us especially me! 

(Photo credits to KenCharlotteMeitzeu, Charlene and Duncan.)

For more info on Borneo Divers Sabah, click here!

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