Pandan GoldCoast Holiday Villa — Hotel in Borneo

When I travel to the outskirts of Kuching, especially when it is 2 hours away, next to world renowned national parks, I don't expect a luxurious 5* resort but rather looking forward to experience what nature has to offer. Pandan GoldCoast Holiday Villa provided just what I need, cosy room, very comfortable bed, so I can wake up all energetic to hike in Gunung Gading National Park (only 10 min drive, 10km from the resort), the beautiful Wind Caves (1 hr drive, 70km from the resort), and we also chartered a boat for fishing trips! Talang-Talang Island is approximately 10km away, we can see the island, but we did not land. There are no turtles laying eggs in the afternoon, so fishing sounds more interesting haha!||||The staffs in the resort do not speak much English; they speak Chinese, Malay, and some Chinese dialects. We are quite independent travellers, so it is not and issue.||||We have visited several times, and found that the best time to visit is between May to August which is the dry season, when the sea is crystal clear and turquois blue in colour. Some of my friends who visited during the raining season missed the opportunity to go to the sea as it is too dangerous. There were more sand flies, bugs, dirty sea water caused by mud washed down from nearby river, and huge waves conquer the beaches…||||Renting a car with GPS is highly recommended, because public transport is inconvenient in Kuching and almost unreachable in the outskirts. If you plan to visit the national parks, a 4-wheel drive is advisable. We only had a sedan, so the rest is on our feet! ||||The nearest town to Pandan GoldCoast Holliday Villa where we found food is called the Lundu Town (12 min drive, 12km away from the resort). That is also probably the only place you can find some necessities in case you forget to bring from home. We were told that if we were there early, we could see the natives selling all kinds of wild vegetables. We were there at 7am and that is considered late… We only get to see some of the leftovers… As a consolation, right before leaving the resort, we saw fishermen returning from sea with their catch! Fresh fishes on “auction” before they are transported to the market for sell!!!||||Do note that the town sort of closes after 2pm. Only a few grocery shops remain open. It gets hard to find dinner without a car. There are a few good home based restaurants around, do yourself a favour by consulting the locals in the morning, so you don’t get starved at night ^-^ Enjoy...

Booked online and lucky to get another walk in family room which have our own private balcony and facing the sea. Awesome view of course.||The location is easily access as it's quite a known place in town. You won't get lost. Just follow the GPS and its lead you direct to the door step.||Btw, they accept cash only upon check in. The family room is adjoining room that we booked is on the 1st floor. The beds: comfy with comforter..||There's AC and fan in the room. TV got 3 local channels only (since we came for beach n sea) who cares bout TV. The internet line is okay. Rooms amenities: towels, bottled drinking water, shower cream+shampoo in the bathroom. That's all, so do bring your own toiletries.||Refrigerator is there and no cooking allowed.||The cafe is " serve no pork" which do serve nice homey local food with some burgers and fries. Do try " nasi goreng kampung" for authentic kampung's feeling.||The beach is clean, you'll enjoy it for yourself only..long walking on stretches beach did goodness to your body and tummy..however swimming is on your own risk.||They do offers few trips to fills your days.||The rest..go and creates your...

The road toward this 'villa' is dead end. Basically you drive till the end of Lundu. I put high expectations toward this trip and made a day trip there. Basically upon reaching, you will see a monkey in cage, and 3 porcupines, then a crow.. Walked few feet will see some turtles in the man made pool. That's it. Basically the main attraction is the marine turtles. There are also 2 'swimming pools' which are slightly bigger than the one the turtles are in. Despite the luxury name 'Pandan GoldCoast Holiday Villa', the place is terrible and poorly managed. Or should i say no maintenance. Sorry to say it should be named as 'Kampung Homestay'. This is no place for a holiday. At that rate, please go else where nearby with many other facilities. For staffing, I dont know who are the staffs as they looked like family run business with no one entertaining us at all. RM 250 per night? Ahahaha...I wont even consider staying overnight at RM...