Four Points by Sheraton, Sandakan, Malaysia [Master Thread]
 

Hotel had it's soft opening a month ago.

The FP is part of the new harbourfront development in downtown Sandakan which consists of a few rows of shops, a new central market, a shopping mall & the hotel. The hotel tower actually sits on top of the soon to be opened shopping mall. The ride from the airport to the hotel takes only slightly more than 20 mins under moderate traffic.

The approach & entrance to the hotel faces the sea and is quite impressive. On the ground floor is the concierge desk and a coffee bar Wrapped. Take the escalator up to the main lobby on the 1st floor where there is a lobby lounge facing the sea & a separate enclosed area functioning as the Club Lounge. The in-house pub Best Brew is also on the first floor. The main restaurant Eatery is on the 13th floor along with the infinity swimming pool and ballrooms.

The guest rooms starts from the 14th floor hence almost every room is guaranteed with a panoramic view of the sea. Rooms are functional & comfortable but not luxurious. The bathrooms do not come with a bathtub except in the larger executive deluxe rooms. There will be club floors & a few suites when the hotel is fully operational but for now with only 4 floors open the executive deluxe (which is similar to a jr suite in some hotels) are the largest rooms and there is only one on each floor.

Service is very attentive especially for platinum guests, I was addressed or greeted by name by nearly every associate most of whom I have never met before ! The restaurant supervisor even remembered what I ate each morning and offered to deliver them to my table. When I changed room, my preferred pillows were already in my new room and 2 bottles of drinking water were already in the fridge (housekeeping noticed my preference for cold drinking water in my first room).

Buffet breakfast at The Eatery is adequate but not as elaborate as some other higher end properties in the region, it's comparable to say the FP Bangkok. There is also an outdoor section next to the pool area. Being on the 13th floor, the view is breathtaking.

They do a simple evening cocktail in the Club Lounge; with one or two hot items, some sandwiches and cakes. Beer & wine are also available. Not the best evening cocktail, but the effort is appreciated. Even though the lounge is located only on the first floor, you get an unobstructed view of the sea and in the evening its a nice place for people watching since the driveway/promenade directly below seems to be a popular hangout spot for locals and tourists.

For off site dining, there are several local eateries (including a KFC) along the promenade facing the sea, and I believe there will be more choices when the new mall opens.

While I wish they have built a more upscale hotel like a Westin or Sheraton at this location, the Four Points Sandakan is a nice addition to the Starwood family in this remote corner of South East Asia !

Thanks for the report.... seems no other fter made it there yet :)

Breakfast included for Plat or available as amenity ?

The reviews on SPG.COM are pretty bad :(. I was thinking of going but...

It has a pretty good average score. ... booked flights for 2014 already as mh is on sale.... infinity pool looks nice... also sabah hotel is on sale for 9 myr .... will report early next year ;-)

property is not responding via facebook / email :td:

I've stayed at this hotel recently and I am impressed. There's an amazing infinity pool on the 13th floor which overlooks the harbor/waterfront area. Most rooms have amazing views since they start from the 14th floor and up. Lobby is *very* stylish for a Four Points - much more stylish than most Sheratons I've been to.

The location can't be beaten - you are right in the middle of Sandakan's city center and you can walk to anywhere in the city. Sandakan's Central Market is right across the street where you can buy locally grown fruits and vegetables (fishes and meat too if you want) at local prices. :) Plenty of local restaurants within 5-10 minutes walk.

Rooms are modern and clean. As a platinum, I was upgraded to an Executive Deluxe King (oddly enough, they don't offer suite upgrades at this property, even when using Free Suite Nights when spg.com shows standard suites available). I enquired about suite upgrades at check-in and was shown to a corner room that was smaller than my Executive Deluxe. Wifi was also *extremely* slow - just a note to anyone who relies heavily on wifi.

Platinum amenity was 250 points in addition to complimentary breakfast. Breakfast was OK - food was a little bland for my taste, but the freshly squeezed and made-to-order fruit juices made it up.

Service was awesome - staff recognized and greeted me by name for my entire stay. Overall, a great value and would stay here again if I am in Sandakan and I can't believe this is a Category 1 hotel!

Thank you for the review. Booked 6 nights there for early next year.
Can you recommend anything to do / see / eat in SDK ? Turtle Island is off the list because of season I guess....

6 nights is a lot, even as a base to hop to wildlife sanctuaries close by.

Eat:
- Sandakan Fishing Association (about 6-8 minutes walk from the hotel) - typical Sandakan/Malaysian Chinese Food. Google Map it. It's a hole in the wall and they only have 4-5 tables. Pretty much you have to make reservations a day in advance since they only buy/cook as much as they expect the next day without any leftovers. They cook their own way - so pretty much it's home cooked.
- Sim-Sim 88 Restaurant (about 10 minutes taxi ride away, expect cab fare to be around RM 15-20 each way). Authentic, local restaurant. It's by the bay/water. Restaurant is built on stilts in a fishing village. Fish/seafood is very fresh (still swimming before it was cooked).

Do/See:
- Sepilok Orang Utan Sanctuary
- Kinabatangan Jungle/Safari River Cruise (I'd recommend spending 1-2 nights there - it's 3-4 hours drive from Sandakan). They have really nice lodges there from backpackers to luxury. The drive from Sandakan to Sukau (where the lodges are) is an eye-sore with oil palm plantations as far as the eyes can see! :(
- Labuk Bay Proboscis Monkey Sanctuary (didn't visit and heard it's a "zoo", not a sanctuary). You get to see Proboscis Monkeys at the Kinabatangan River cruise anyway.

Further out:
- Tabin Wildlife Reserve
- Danum Valley Wildlife Reserve

Wildlife watching has its seasons too. I was lucky enough to spot a wild orang utan during my river cruise (apparently pretty rare) and tons of hornbills. Missed the pygmy elephants by a day. Don't expect to see the rhinoceros (less than 20 left in the wild), elephants are hard to come by too.

Thank you one more time :) !!!

Four Points by Sheraton, Sandakan, Malaysia [Master Thread]
 

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Four Points by Sheraton, Sandakan, Malaysia [Master Thread]
 

http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/a/706656784

Four Points by Sheraton, Sandakan, Malaysia [Master Thread]
 

checked in today full review will follow later. First impression is very good.

Four Points by Sheraton, Sandakan, Malaysia [Master Thread]
 

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Promised a review but will keep it short as I agree with Mario33 and nov11 views. Lounge snacks aren't good and basically the same every day. They have 5 cocktails / tiger beer and wines during happy hour on the menu. Cocktails were great. Best brews bar is very nice with live music every evening except Sunday. They have a bbq on the best brews terrace on weekends.
Breakfast was good, especially the bread and rolls were of much better quality than at the Méridien Kk. Didn't like the location of premium deluxe rooms, too far from lifts. If u call a taxi from the hotel you will pay around 30% more.

There was a 11hour blackout during our stay ( all over Sabah) Hotel had generators to operate lifts and some lights on floors and one light in each guestroom. They placed candles all over the lobby ans best brews. Very romantic setting :)

We can also recommend SimSim Restaurant 88 (thx nov11) but expect to wait long if u go there during peak time (7:30-9)

Great stay, great value. Would return again for another 4 days. Sandakan locals very friendly !!!


Edit: internet on phone was better than wifi @hotel.

More recent?
 

Still no ug to suite for platinum?
Is it possible/reasonable to do river cruise in one day rather than 2 or 3 day? Tours seem very expensive for,the multiple,day eps. For a single person!

Also updates on local food much appreciated.
Anyone from the US using the free international Tmobile data here?