In a recent trip right after the Asian Bird Fair 2023 in Kota Kinabalu, our team headed to Mantanani Island to see the endemic Mantanani Scoops Owl there; here is our JSK Mantanani Resort review for birdwatching for anyone wondering what kind of accommodations are available.

Again, to see the Mantanani Scops-Owl, you must spend a night on the island as it only comes out at night. So, the best option would be to do a 2d/1n or 3d/2n trip to this part of Sabah, and chances of spotting the Mantanani Scops-Owl is quite high, even staying here.

JSK Mantanani Resort Review for Birdwatching

For me, it has been almost nine years since I last visited this beautiful tropical island off the coast of Kudat in Sabah, and to get here takes about three hours in total from Kota Kinabalu, which includes the drive and boat trip.

Birdwatchers and photographers have options to get here, and usually, you do not require a bird guide, as the locals in the resort or village can show you where the owls are. However, as we already know of several homestays available, we wanted to experience a resort stay; hence, we selected JSK Mantanani Resort.

The resort is relatively new, which opened in 2021 right after the pandemic lockdowns and is situated in the east section of Pulau Mantanani Besar Island, where there are o immediate neighbours for quite a distance. This means privacy at its best.

The boats to the resort depart from the mainland and from the JSK Jetty and office, so visitors need to get here before 9.00 AM in the morning. I recommend arriving at 8.30 AM so you can park your car, settle down, have breakfast, and prepare for the transfer.

The journey takes about 40 minutes one way in their covered triple-engine boats, which is quite smooth compared to other smaller boats. Even though the sea was a little windy, the boat sailed through the waves without any issues.

Arriving at the resort jetty, the welcoming and smiling staff are there to greet you, take your luggage and hand you the keys to your rooms. Of course, a nice cold welcome drink was also the first thing we received. I would recommend the management change the Sarsi carbonated drink to maybe a cold fresh juice drink, which is more used by many resorts worldwide.

Rooms at JSK Mantanani Resort

They currently have two types of rooms available, and possibly, when phase 2 is completed, sea-view bungalow units will be available. When I was here in mid-October, I stayed at the garden chalets or the deluxe rooms, which are spacious, simple and located just behind the main building. It was rather convenient, too.

Each of these deluxe rooms comes with a twin or queen-sized bed, air conditioning, basic amenities, hot shower, but there are no televisions in any of the rooms as they want you to go out and enjoy the island.

They also have some beautiful beachfront and sea view villas, which are newly constructed with an amazing total of over 40 units. These are suitable for couples who are on their honeymoon, wedding, birthday or any other special treat. The chalets are wooden-design and with queen beds facing the azure blue sea.

Facilities at JSK Mantanani Resort

Facilities are kept simple with a stand-alone care cum bar that offers two vending machines for food and drinks, scuba diving, snorkelling, sunset walks and even special excursions to the local Mantanani village. I hope that the management also considers offering a bird walk around the island after our experience here.

You will not find the other five-star facilities like a swimming pool, spa, gym and so on, as this is just a 3 to 4-star island resort with an objective for overnight trips or even for diving. You can check out our scuba diving at Mantanani Island trip report as Ashraf, our team member, went for one check dive when we were here.

Food and Beverage at the Resort

Overall, it’s simple and decent, and there is room for improvement here. If the target market is the middle budget types of travellers, then the food is around that area, but if the management wants to attract a higher yield market who stay longer, then they need to improve the number and quality of the dishes.

I’ve been travelling and doing a lot of resort reviews over the last 10 years and have experienced most of the 3, 4 and 5-star restaurants at hotels and resorts; therefore, food is quite crucial when staying at these places.

For example, the core of the meals is mostly rice, which is important in a meal; therefore, I suggest that JSK invest and use better quality rice to suit the dishes. We all know that the cheaper the rice, the cost can be lower, but the food does not taste well with lower quality rice.

Birdwatching Around Mantanani Island

As JSK is located in the middle of the island, it serves as a perfect location for birdwatchers to move around to spot birds. From October to March, this is the migratory season for birds; therefore, when you are at the resort, look up in the sky and see the amazing Frigatebirds like planes hovering over the island.

We got a boat to visit some of the smaller islands around the main island, namely Pulau Mantanani Kecil and Pulau Lungisan, to try and spot some of the seabirds that may be around here, and we did see some.

At night, we went out looking for the rare and endemic Mantanani Scops-Owl, which can only be seen here in Pulau Mantanani for the whole of Sabah and Malaysia. This unique owl was quite common until the local village people and even our boat captain and dive master knew about it.

Walking around the island trails to the village and through some of the smaller paths, we eventually stopped and heard the owl call. Returning the calls, we waited patiently for about 15 minutes before the owl came, and not one, not two, but three Mantanani Scops-Owl showed up slightly above eye level.

This was my first time seeing the Mantanani Scops-Owl and thus termed in birdwatcher’s language as a lifer, meaning seeing this bird for the first time in my life. Overall, it was truly an amazing experience, considering that I also spotted the rare Metallic Pigeon, a Chestnut-cheeked Starling and many other birds here.

JSK Mantanani Island Resort Information
Location: East side of Mantanani Besar Island
Booking and Website: JSK Mantanani Island Resort

Conclusion

I have to say that the JSK Mantanani Island Resort is quite well done for general tourism, especially for the two day one night trips. And, over time, they should be catering to new markets that will come into Sabah apart from the Chinese market.

Also, I hope the management offers more activities in their program, especially going night birding and seeing the famous Mantanani Scops-Owl near the village area. With that, I conclude this JSK Mantanani Resort review for Birdwatching and hope that borders reading this will consider this accommodation.