Malaysia
Semporna, on the southeastern tip of Sabah, Malaysia, is the gateway town for diving trips to the world-famous islands of Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai.
Semporna is a coastal town on the Semporna Peninsula in Sabah, Malaysia, on Darvel Bay, and serves as the main departure point by speedboat for dive trips to the nearby islands of Sipadan, Mabul and Kapalai. Sipadan, Malaysia's only oceanic island, rises about 600 metres from the seabed and is protected as Sipadan Island Park, a marine park managed by Sabah Parks with a limited daily number of diver permits. Mabul and Kapalai sit on shallower reef and sandbank formations closer to the continental shelf and are known for muck diving and macro life such as frogfish and cephalopods. The wider Semporna area also includes the separately protected Tun Sakaran Marine Park, an eight-island marine park at the entrance to Darvel Bay managed by Sabah Parks.