Manukan Island () is the second largest island in the

Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park The Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park () comprises a group of five islands located between 3 and 8 km off Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia. The park is spread over 4,929 hectares, two-thirds of which cover the sea. Before the Ice age, it fo ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

's first marine national park. It is located in the

East Malaysia East Malaysia (), or the Borneo States, also known as Malaysian Borneo, is the part of Malaysia on and near the island of Borneo, the world's third-largest island. East Malaysia comprises the states of Sabah, Sarawak, and the Federal Territory ...

n state of

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

, just off the coast of

Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu (; formerly known as Jesselton), colloquially referred to as KK, is the state capital of Sabah, Malaysia. It is also the capital of the Kota Kinabalu District as well as the West Coast Division of Sabah. The city is located on the ...

and is easily accessible by boat. Manukan is the most popular island with Kota Kinabalu residents. Manukan has some good stretches of beaches on the southern coastline. The best beach is on the eastern tip of the island. Offshore of Manukan are

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in group ...

s, which is ideal for snorkelling, diving and swimming. Out of the five islands making up Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park, Manukan features the most developed tourist facilities that includes 20 units of chalets, a clubhouse, and few restaurants and a diving centre. Recreation facilities include a swimming pool, football field, Volleyball and Sepak Takraw courts. Infrastructural facilities include support-water, electricity,

desalination Desalination is a process that removes mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination is the removal of salts and minerals from a substance. One example is Soil salinity control, soil desalination. This is important for agric ...

plant,

sewerage Sewerage (or sewage system) is the infrastructure that conveys sewage or surface runoff ( stormwater, meltwater, rainwater) using sewers. It encompasses components such as receiving drains, manholes, pumping stations, storm overflows, and scr ...

system, and even a solar public telephone. It is covered in dense vegetation and has hiking trails. Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal in downtown Kota Kinabalu is the ferry terminal for those heading to the islands in Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park. This ferry terminal is also the departure point for patrons staying at the Manukan Island Resort.

History

Before the Ice Age, the island formed part of the Crocker Range mass of sandstone and sedimentary rock on the mainland. However, about one million years ago, the melting ice brought about changes in the sea level and parts of the mainland were cut off by the sea to form the islands of Gaya Island, Sapi, Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug. Evidence of this can be seen from the exposed sandstone of the coastline forming the cliffs, caves, honeycombs and deep crevices. Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal in downtown Kota Kinabalu is the ferry terminal for those heading to the islands in Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park (Gaya Island, Sapi Island, Manukan Island, Mamutik Island and Sulug Island). This ferry terminal is also the departure point for patrons staying at either Manukan Island Resort or Gayana Resort. In 1974, the major part of

Gaya Gaya may refer to: Geography Czech Republic *Kyjov, a town called Gaya in German and Latin Guinea * Gaya or Gayah, a town India *Gaya, India, a city in Bihar **Gaya Airport *Bodh Gaya, a town in Bihar near Gaya *Gaya district, Bihar Niger *G ...

and Sapi islands was gazetted as Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park, covering an area of . In 1979, the park was increased to with the inclusion of the three nearby islands of Manukan, Mamutik and Sulug islands.

Transportation

The main public transportation to the island is by speedboat from Kota Kinabalu to the island jetty for about 20 minutes. Speedboats leave from Kota Kinabalu Ferry terminal (Jesselton Point Ferry Terminal) and services run from 8.30am to 4.15pm.

Accommodation

The main resort in the island, Manukan Island Resort provide accommodation on the island. The Resort offers two restaurants which include Perahu restaurant, offering a local and international choices; and the Resort's restaurant which serves breakfast and becomes a grill for lunch.

References

External links

Manukan Islands on Sabah Parks

Manukan Island Resort

{{Islands of Sabah Islands of Sabah

History

Transportation

Accommodation

See also

References

External links