Kinabalu Mountain View Room
from $262
Shangri La's Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa
5.0 out of 5.0
87% based on 3686 reviews
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating
Recent guest reviews
Hotel was easily assessable from Airport and to the city. Could not fault staff efficiency and friendliness. Rooms were spacious and clean and well appointed. View was spectacular from Balcony. Sunsets were a bones from this property
Our family of 3 generations, 6 adults and 3 children 7 years, 5 years and 21 months old have just returned from a wonderfully memorable 7 night stay at the Shangri-La Tanjung Aru. My wife and I have stayed on numerous occasions and always wanted to bring our grandchildren to this beautiful and family friendly resort. We arranged transport through the hotel and were picked up in a Nissan Urvan which fitted us all in with our luggage and cost MYR 79 which is much better value than the 3 taxis we would otherwise have required. We were met at the airport by the Shangri-La representative and seamlessly escorted to our waiting vehicle. On arrival at the hotel we were thrilled and humbled to be so warmly welcomed by general manager Gavin Weightman, Resident Manager Allen Khoo and the amazing Guest services manager Linda Apuk. From the moment we stepped up into the foyer we were treated not just as return guests but more like returning family. We were fortunate to be allocated our requested Club Mountain View room on the 7th (top) floor of the Kinabalu Wing and pleasantly surprised that our family were in the two rooms next to us. Our 7 and 5 year old grandchildren were more than comfortable on their shared double fold out bed sharing a king room with their parents. The Kinabalu Club was as ever fantastic. Buffet breakfast with great choice and quality and the option of having eggs and omelettes cooked to your liking, fresh waffles and pancakes made and delicious wanton noodle soup from the outdoor kitchen on the verandah. Non-alcoholic beverages throughout the day and of course evening canapés and beer, wine and spirits 4.30 to 6.30pm for families and 6.30 to 8.30pm adults only. It is the staff that make the Kinabalu Club so enjoyable. Linda and Johnny run a tight ship but with great morale and teamwork. Special mention to Fennedy whose smile, friendliness, sense of humour and attention were greatly appreciated by our whole family. Also I want to make special mention of Claire who is just as lovely as her (slightly) older sister Halivea who previously we met in the Club. Claire instead of rushing for the door at the end of her long shift took the time to interact with our 21 month old grand-daughter. This is what I mean by feeling that we are part of a family when we stay at Shangri-La Tanjung Aru. We spent a few evenings at the beautiful Sunset Bar and while the view is unbeatable at sunset, it is very crowded. To us the Sunset Bar became a real gem after the sun had set and the crowds had disappeared. That's when we received special attention from the bar staff. In particular Yusuf and Boyd were brilliant making us some unbelievably delicious cocktails and being so warm, funny and entertaining. These two are a real credit to the food and beverage team. The pool and waterslides were as we knew they would be such a wonderful highlight for our grandchildren. No problems getting pool beds despite the hotel having high occupancy. 4 buckets of water balloons per room per day added to the fun at the water balloon-fight station and all 3 generations enjoyed the tipping bucket. It was nice to resume our friendship with Andrew Yong who is so diligent but so friendly in his job around the pool area. Our grandchildren loved the Kid's Club. The staff are so caring, know all the children by name and we had full confidence in the way they took care of our young family members. The party was a real hit and the evergreen Rohan is so entertaining for young and old. He is just an all round superb human being and he obviously loves his job. STAR Marina is very well organised. We had tremendous fun on their jet-skis and enjoyed a quick trip to Sapi island for snorkelling on our last day. Two members of our family had birthdays during our stay and were both presented with a cake each and a rousing rendition of Happy Birthday from the Club staff led by Linda on the guitar. Is there anything that Linda cannot do? It's always sad when such a fantastic holiday ends but the send off from Linda, Augustine and many other staff members singing to us as we climbed into our van was very emotional. They really know how to make you feel special. We were met by a hotel representative at the airport who helped us and stayed with us as we passed through security and for the whole check-in process. I am sorry I didn't make note of his name but rest assured the wonderful hospitality of Shangri-La Tanjung Aru continues even after you have left the hotel. Many thanks to everyone at Shangri-La Tanjung Aru. Our whole family agrees that it is the best family holiday we have ever had. My wife and I will be back but I can't imagine our family letting us come without them.
We stayed in the Club Seaview Rooms which gave us access to the club lounge. This offered its own small breakfast buffet, tea, coffee and soft drinks all day and alcoholic drinks and food between 4 and 8pm. The room seemed very small for a club room however the club access was worth the extra cost.The club staff were very friendly and helpful. The pools and beach were really nice. The main buffet breakfast was so huge, with a good variety of food. The spa is amazing, one of the best massages we have ever had.The hotel was convenient to both Kota Kinabalu and the airport. Taxis were a set price of 30RM for a van for 6 people to both town or the airport. A small negative was that it took the staff hours to bring up our extra bed, which wasn't in our room when we checked in.
Positives:- Room was clean and comfortable. Staff were amazingly helpful and friendly. Lots of outside space with plenty to do for all the family. Plenty of different food to choose from. Buffet breakfast was excellent with plenty of choice. Negatives:- Prices were 5* plus for food and drink...however there were plenty of 'Happy Hour' offers to be had if you looked around for the timings of these offers.
We have been a little disappointed here after staying at the Rasa Ria which was really wonderful. The breakfast area here is not big enough for the number of guests so it feels really packed and a bit of a scrum. The queues for the freshly prepared food like omelettes put you off going. The queue to get in was very long this morning and as a family of five we had to wait extra time as there are not many big tables.There are only three coffee machines which is woefully inadequate for the number of guests. The service has been good, but doesn't make up for the fact that it is crying out for a second breakfast area. The rooms are nicely kept and maintained and we had a problem with our hot water which was sorted out very quickly. It is quite nice here but we are a bit disappointed having spent quite a lot of money to stay here.
Nice hotel, all you can expected from Shangri-la. Good breakfast, Nice restaurant, you will pay hotel price. Good pool area with many activities to spend your time, Out door chess, mini golf, slides, kids pool, adult pool, beach, etc. Only one downside is the hotel is popular for local to come by for nice view of sunset. I feel like staying in public park in the evening. Over crowded.
Me and my family booked our dream holiday on Borneo on this lovely resort. We had High expetations due to the price and photos. When we arrived we were blown away by the kindness that met us in the lobby. We thought that this resort would be perfect.. Sadly it wasn't.... The next morning we visited the breakfast buffet. Kids running around everywhere, people were yelling and caos. Well "hell on earth" for us when we expect relaxation and luxury on a 5 Star beach resort! We complained about it and the restaurant manager agreed to serve breakfast at our rooms every morning. We should order what we wanted the day before on a note and put it on the doorknob outside. Unfortunately we should every day remind the staff that we needed a new "breakfast note", and when we kindly asked for it they forgot..... When we finally got the breakfast to our rooms eggs were cold, the fruit was brown, the pancakes were dry and every Goddamn time something was missing!!!... The service on the restaurants were SO BAD!! There were always minimum 5-10 things on the menu that were "sold out", it took forever to place an order, and even longer to get the drinks.. We experience a lot of times that we couldn't eat together because they forgot something we ordered or because the steak was totally "ruined well-done". Again I will remind you, that this is a 5 Star resort and they even promote that they have a Michelin-chef... The only thing on this resort that live up to the expetations is the beautiful surroundings, the hotelrooms and the healthclub. We will never ever go there again - so disapointed that we wasted so much money on something that is DEFINETLY NOT worth it.... :-(
Never have I ever experienced such a bad service at a 5 star hotel! My family and I looked forward to stay at the Tanjung Aru resort because of the nice reviews and beautiful pictures. On the first day we went to the breakfast buffet, and it was a total nightmare! Kids were running around and screaming as if it was a playground, and the staff was rude and didn't do anything about it. There were no empty tables except from one in the "kids area". We ended up leaving hungry. We complained about this and the manager agreed to serve the breakfast in our rooms, which was a really nice service if the food had been warm and fresh every day, which it wasn't! The pool area is nice, but their "beach" is very poor and doesn't add up to the amazing pictures on their website. Every time we ordered food from one of their restaurants, we got the message "sorry, this is not available at the moment", and at least 5-10 things were missing from the menu cart every time - and this didn't just happen once at one restaurant! It happened everyday in both the TATU buffet, Coco Joe's and the Italian Peppino restaurant. We weren't even able to order a Diet Coke until the last day, and we stayed here for 9 days! Furthermore, every time we decided to give the restaurants another chance we were disappointed again. Drinks arrived after 20 minutes, food arrived at different times so we weren't able to eat together as a family, steak was totally burnt and ruined, one of us got sick from eating TATU's seafood and I could go on forever! The only things that are 5 star about this hotel are the stunning surroundings and the nice rooms. I would definitely not recommend this resort to anyone else. It is not worth the money!
We stayed for 5 nights in the beginning of July at a Club Mountain View room and were charmed by the lovely and warm service. Although not all baby items requested beforehand were available, we loved the kids' station and play area at the coffee house, tea-time and the more relaxed breakfast at the club lounge. My 5 year old and 1 year old enjoyed the small beach area, playing in the sand and floating on the hot pink bean bags. And the water slides and huge baby pool were a favourite. Too bad they stopped the free popsicles, which would have been very welcome. The resort was full, but we never had a problem getting a deckchair or place to sit down. Fantastic sunset and sunrise when we got there and they could go to the kids club or watch tv or play board games when it rained. Easy enough to get a ride-hail service to the town 15 minutes away if one wanted to eat out. My massage at the spa was very relaxing and one of the best I've had. Hope to be back soon - we didn't get a chance to try the water balloon station!
Family of four stayed here and it didn't disappoint. We were all fine in the 1 room to keep costs down. They provided one fold up bed and one child slept in the middle of our enormous King Size bed. The staff at this resort are very good - nothing is too much for them. This is our 4th visit here mainly because we love the view from the infinity pool. We just sit back, relax and enjoy the view. There is plenty to keep kids entertained. Kids Club is great. Food is a bit expensive for a family but if you have under 6's, then look into the Family Fun package. It is worth it. A taxi ride into town is about 10 minutes and costs about A$10 one way. The waterfront is great to eat at in town. Mai Yai next to the Loft Bar at the waterfront has great Thai food. It gets busy on Friday nights. The islands are great to visit - see if you can charter a boat instead of landing on the islands - gets busy. Make sure you go on a calm day. This is a fantastic resort but doesn't come cheap but well worth the money. We have never been sick here unlike visits to Thailand and Indonesia. The resort is very clean and the gardens are immaculate. It is very safe for kids to wander around this whole resort - there are security cameras everywhere and they attend to the cameras daily. The Tanjung Wing has recently been renovated and are very nice modern rooms. The Kinabalu Wing is a bit more traditional/older style. Kota Kinabalu is a great change to Bali - a lot cleaner, the people don't haggle you and it smells a lot nicer. It is a bit more developed and the people are fantastic. A great holiday.
Hotel highlights
- Free WiFi in rooms and public areas
- Free parking
- Onsite dining
- Spa
Located in Tanjung Aru within a 15-minute walk of Tanjung Aru Perdana Park, Shangri La's Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa is within a few miles (5 km) of Sabah State Mosque. This 5-star resort has 492 rooms and welcomes guests with 4 restaurants, a full-service spa, and an outdoor pool. It's on the beach and also near Sabah State Museum and Sutera Harbour.
Dining
Relish the international cuisine at Cafe' TATU, one of 4 onsite restaurants. Savor a meal from the comfort of your room with 24-hour room service. Buffet breakfast is offered for a fee each morning from 6:30 AM to 10:30 AM.
Rooms
Shangri La's Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa's 492 air-conditioned rooms provide balconies, minibars, and coffee makers. LCD TVs come with cable channels, and guests can stay connected with free WiFi. Bathrooms offer hair dryers, free toiletries, and bathrobes. Free newspapers, free bottled water, and safes are also available.
Property features
Guests of Shangri La's Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa enjoy a full-service spa, an outdoor pool, and a children's pool. Onsite parking is available, both free self and paid valet parking (MYR 10 per day)—also useful is limo/town car service. The 24-hour front desk has multilingual staff ready to assist with dry cleaning/laundry, concierge services, and luggage storage. Other amenities at this beach resort include a fitness center, a sauna, and outdoor tennis courts.
Reviews from Trip Advisor
87% of guests recommend this hotel
Total of 3686 reviews
