Ranau District Vacations & Trips from $1,438

While the setting is undeniably beautiful and the staff are mostly genuinely friendly, the experience itself was surprisingly uneven and not at all 5-stars. The food setup itself is super confusing. Many of the restaurants were closed and only one open each night, which caters to the all-inclusive guests. So if you’re a la carte, you’ve got to sit amongst a buffet and wait 40 minutes for every meal. And because of the location you don't really have a choice but to eat there. We often had to ask for things more than once before they appeared. The wine we ordered one night was also off, and dinner often arrived cold because it took so long. The staff were really kind and polite throughout, but it always felt like the service was running a few steps behind. Happy hour was a bit of a letdown too, with like 5 drinks which were all pretty terrible – a Carlsberg can?! Come on… The check-in also felt disorganised, with no greeting or sense of welcome. It wasn’t rude, just oddly flat for a place that trades on hospitality. When we checked in we even found blood on the sheets. So not a great start. The people working there were mostly lovely, but the whole place seems to be struggling with timing, communication and organisation. It’s not 5-star really and if you're not doing all-inclusive I wouldn't bother.

Fantastic staff made our stay memorable. All were friendly, courteous, helpful and went the extra mile. Would definitely return