Turtle Tomb
Also known as: Turtle Cavern
Best time to dive
January to December; April to December
What you might see
- DolphinLikely
- Sea turtleLikely
Sightings are seasonal probabilities, not promises - even in peak season nature does its own thing.
Certification & difficulty
Technical
Snorkelling
Not a snorkel site - No - wall/cave entrance is too deep for snorkeling
Safety notes
Overhead cave environment - disorientation, silt-outs, and entrapment risk for untrained divers; the cave is littered with turtle (and reported dolphin) skeletons from animals that could not find their way out and drowned; entry beyond the cavern light zone requires cave-diving equipment/training and should only be attempted with an experienced local guide
Permits & fees
Requires a Sabah Parks SIPADAN PERMIT - daily cap reported at ~176 permits, allocated to licensed resorts on rotation; diving fee RM250 (Malaysian)/RM350 (foreign) per diver per day; counts as one of the max 2 dives/day at Sipadan
Permits and operators change - confirm before booking.
Location
Nearest hub: Semporna
This profile is desk research, compiled from public sources - not a first-hand dive report. Coordinates are approximate.