Humidity in the room

The location of Timba Garden is strategic because in 15-20 minutes you can be in Semporna but your are out of the chaos of the city. The staff is always available a they offer free transport to the city centre. They also organize boat trips to the near islands. We were there for two nights after coming back from Pom Pom Island and it was a super cozy place. Don’t expect luxury, but Semporna is a very poor city and this place offers a little bit of relax. The room is quite humid and the air conditioning is not working very well but this is okay. The breakfast is good and it is cooked at the moment in the little kitchen they have, everyday it’s different. On request it is also possible to have a good dinner cooked from the chef, we tried it and it was delicious.

Stayed in August 2025

Some maintenance needed in the rooms but nothing major. It was very comfortable and with AC.

Beautiful space outside the city with a swimming pool. Also, there is a driver that takes you to semporna when you want to go and he is super friendly! The food was very nice as well as the staff working there.

Stayed in July 2025

location is a bit far from Semporna. Takes 20 minutes drive. No washing machine.

Wonderful staff, responsive and helpful. Quite and private, with a pool.

Stayed in July 2025

Far out of town Lots of insects

Staff really helpful and nice - helped with transfers Nice Indonesian food ! Comfortable bungalow

Stayed in July 2025

It would have been good to have a fridge in the room for water/drinks etc. There was extremely loud karaoke on Saturday night in the adjacent property so we didn’t sleep well that night - this is beyond the control of Timba garden but was annoying nonetheless.

The location outside of town was great although it is about 20mins away. The property has a driver who shuttled people into and back from town which worked well. The staff were really friendly and the food both at breakfast and in the evenings was great.

Stayed in July 2025

No fridge in our room. Minor detail

Best location- out of the town, but with free transport into it. Awesome staff, hard working and helpful

Stayed in July 2025

A lot of mosquitoes

Staff! Amazingly friendly Indonesian cook and her meal Transport from and to town

Stayed in July 2025

Nothing.

A quirky homestay a little outside sandakan but it was really peaceful. Free transport into sandakan but grab was also cheap if preferred. Nani was very good at running the show.

Stayed in June 2025

Completely aware this is not the fault of the Timba Gardens, however the property next door often does karaoke till late, as late as 11:45pm one night, which can make it difficult to sleep

Very convenient, free breakfast, fine pool, and free transfers to and from the town throughout the day was very useful. A nice sized room and a relaxing place to stay.

Stayed in May 2025

The host, Nani, is amazing! She cooked for us when we wanted. She did our laundry. She arranges everything you need. We really enjoyed our stay. It is also great that there’s a free transfer to the jetty, so it’s easy to visit the beautiful tropical islands. You can see monkeys and squirrels from the pool. The plants in the environment are amazing and give the place a paradise feeling.

Stayed in April 2025

For Malaysia this is really expensive but I guess that's just Semporna in general.

Very pretty little homestay with nice bungalows. I enjoyed my stay a lot. The transportation to town went smoothly and without any problems. I had dinner here and it was really good. Thank you 🙂

Stayed in December 2024

The free pick up and drop off service is great, but when there are a lot of guests, it may come to delays. Often it's not the driver's fault, just other guests not coming on time which disrupts the schedule. But just in case it's quite cheap to take a Grab to or from Semporna, it takes around 15-20 mins. Prepare cash if you want to use the services in the accommodation.

Lovely place surrounded by nature, but not too far from Semporna. We really liked the swimming pool. There's the possibility to book tours directly with the owner. He managed to squeeze us in for an island hopping tour the next day! The breakfast is very tasty, freshly made and served on the terrace. There's no shop around, but you can buy simple snacks and drinks at the reception.

Stayed in October 2024

We both struggled to charge our phones overnight and both had to go buy new charging cables after our 1 night stay. Maybe to do with electricity surges? Otherwise we liked everything

Such a beautiful little place outside the chaos of Semporna. Lovely little houses with lots of space. Pool available (which we didn't use). Beautiful little lights at night time. Owner made us the nicest butter chicken I've tasted for dinner when we arrived. Pick up from semporna included in stay - just sent text to driver. Checked out early but provided us transfer for island hopping and kept our bags. Able to get a shower when we came back and provided airport transport. Semporna is not a nice place to stay, so staying here, 20 mins outside of main centre? Surrounded by trees, was such a treat. Would highly recommend!!

Stayed in October 2024

Very large room with living room and in a nice quiet spot out of town and very easy to get a ride into town to get to the jetty etc

Stayed in September 2024

The location is a little bit out of town but it was perfect for us because we could come back to peace and quiet after a busy day of diving. It really is in the heart of nature so be prepared for some critters and noises at night!

The staff were extremely friendly and helpful, and more than happy to give us a ride into town whenever we needed. I loved that it was an eco resort and their minimalist, down to earth vibe in the heart of nature was exactly what we wanted!

Stayed in September 2024

Could have been better if in the family room bedroom there was no carpet.

Super helpful staff, they really went above and beyond with transfers to/from town. Varied breakfast and good location tucked away from the noisy, overcrowded Semporna.

Stayed in August 2024

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The Timba Garden bungalows are new, cozy and clean. The hotel is located ca. 20 minutes outside of the frenetic and crowded Semporna city center, which we considered a positive thing since the free Jetty Transport service is super flexible and worked great for us. Also the optional dinner option is really delicious and was definitely one of the best meals we enjoyed during our stay in Semporna. Overall we would highly recommend the Timba Garden!

Stayed in August 2024

Attentive staff, Nice breakfast, free city and jetty transport

Stayed in August 2024

Nothing

Very nice and comfortable apartment located in the quiet part of Semporna. The owners are very friendly and fulfilled all our needs. Also organized our trip around the islands together with transportation to the jetty. Perfect food from owner👍. Smal farewell gift was nice.

Stayed in July 2024

Noise from the busy road. They started to burn something next to the house and we got some of the smoke into the house.

Spacious house. Good fresh cooked dinner (although a little overpriced).

Stayed in July 2024

Its a nice green place with several well equipped small houses. The staff is very friendly and helpful. And we loved the food.

Stayed in May 2024

Every day the breakfast was different, but there was no choice - just you come for breakfast and get a surprise :) I like soups very much, but not for breakfast :) 1 time also I've got fish bun, but I am allergic to fish. I would recommend to arrange menu for breakfast, at least 2 choices or you can ask the guests after arrival what they like/ don't like or do they have any food allergies (we will avoid unpleasant situations). There is no restaurant in this area so you can just order "something" in the guest house (no menu) or delivery from the city by Grab.

The location out of the city was perfect. The guest house provide free transfer to the city and back, any time you can contact the driver. The room was clean and comfortable, good hairdryer, shower hot water with good pressure. The food was tasty. The staff was friendly and helpful, treating with the respect.

Stayed in May 2024

Be aware quite a distance from the downtown area. A good 20 monute drive .Especially in the traffic of early evening.

The room was clean and comfortable, and breakfast was provided and was adequate.. Will drive you to the downtown or the jetty in the morning. Csn arrange transport back to the airport if needed.

Stayed in April 2024

Away from Semporna main town, and in a nice secluded area.

Stayed in March 2024