Mulu Marriott Review 2024 – Everything you need to Know!

The Gunung Mulu National Park is a UNESCO heritage site that is a must-see for any outdoor enthusiast visiting Borneo. However, accommodation in this remote part of the country is limited to that provided by the national park, local homestays and the Mulu Marriott Resort. If your planning a visit and want to know everything from the sheets to the jungle surrounds you’ll find all the information in this Mulu Marriott review.

Situated in the Miri division of Sarawak, Mulu is surrounded by Borneo’s tropical rainforest. The Mulu Caves are the parks major attraction and trust me; they do not disappoint. Surrounded by a lush green oasis of exotic plants and animals, this is a unique ecosystem that you can explore through the numerous walking trails.

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On my recent visit to the area, I spent three nights at the Mulu Marriott, which is considerably more expensive than the alternatives, so was it worth it? Keep reading to discover all in this comprehensive Mulu Marriott Review.



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Arrival

There’s only one way to get to Mulu, and that’s by air. The Mulu Marriott hotel offers its customers free transport to and from the airport so there’s no need to worry about transfers.

I’ve got to admit that the open-air truck was not quite what I had envisaged when I arrived, but it was prompt.

An image of Marriott Mulu Nationalpark transfer bus

The journey is only a couple of km, and the quirky, retro truck provided a fun and quick ride to the resort. Its spray painted jungle design is befitting of the area, and the basic approach does have instant appeal.

Check-in

The resort manager was there to welcome us on arrival and present everyone with a refreshing mocktail of fruit juice. Although the Miri Marriott specifies check-in as 2 pm, my room was ready on arrival at midday, which was handy.

The reception area is spacious, and there’s plenty of seating should you need to wait for a check-in desk to become available.

An image of the reception area at the Marriott Mulu national park, Borneo hotel

Like most hotels of this standard, the receptionist took a deposit which the hotel held on my credit card until I departed. It was a little hefty at 1000 ringgit and slightly annoying as I was intending paying cash for my visit.

After the formalities, a porter directed me to my room, and my luggage soon followed.

Mulu Marriott -Review of Rooms

The layout of the resort is spacious, and the wooden walkways enhance the spectacular scenery that surrounds the resort.

Rooms are in the style of private chalets, and each one has a small veranda both on the front and back.

An image of the front veranda at the Marriott resort and spa in Mulu

An image of the outdoor patio space in a room at the Marriott hotel Sarawak

The bedrooms are spacious and have either a king size bed or 2 queen sized beds. Before arrival, I was sent an email by the Mulu Marriott Resort and Spa to ask if I had a preference, which was a nice touch.

An image of the bed and lounge chair in the Mulu Marriott Resort bedrooms

As you would expect from a 5-star resort, there was all the necessary furniture in the room, including a baggage rack, a bolster at the end of the bed and a good sized wardrobe.

An image of the Mulu Marriott hotel bedroom

Amenities

Other amenities include a coffee machine, a kettle, minibar stocked with wine, beer and a few snacks, a safe, ironing board, dressing gown and an LCD television.

To my surprise, they were no slippers, although I later learnt that other rooms did have them and an umbrella. When I requested a pair of slippers housekeeping did provide them, but sadly they were the cheap paper thin sort that always reminds me of a hospital.

I didn’t request an umbrella as I had a rain jacket, but one would have been useful as the tropical rain here is rather substantial, and you have to go outside to get to all other aspects of the hotel.

Bathroom

The bathroom was beautiful and spacious with a separate bath and wet room.

An image of the bathroom at the Miri Marriot Resort and SpaAn image of the bathroom sink in a room at the Miri Marriott Resort and Spa

The shower was particularly outstanding with a large rain head and a separate adjustable shower head. The pressure was excellent, as was the hot water. I was particularly impressed by this, given that the Mulu Marriott is in the middle of the rain forest and the hotel electricity runs entirely off generators.

Complimentary products

Of course, there were all the necessary complementary bathroom products, including shampoo, conditioner, body wash and some thoughtful additions such as hand wash, an exquisite bar of soap and moisturiser.

The Miri Marriott Resort and Spa also provide those extra touches which included a sewing kit, hair bobble, spare toothbrush, shower cap and a few other useful items.

Plastic bottles

Sadly everything is provided in small plastic containers which are not suitable for the environment, and I do think that hotels of this calibre should be using refillable dispensers rather than disposable bottles.

Drinking Water

Water was provided in plastic bottles in the room and regularly restocked by housekeeping. Indeed every time I returned to my room there were two new bottles of water, but I would have preferred to see them use glass bottles.

It was disappointing to find no water dispensers around the resort. If you carry a reusable water bottle, there isn’t anywhere that you can refill it. The restaurant was the only place where you could get water, but they fill your bottle from the small plastic ones so its not an environmentally friendly option.

Bedding

The bedding was of high quality, and the Egyptian cotton was a delight to snuggle up to at night. The hotel is a little more eco-friendly with regards to the bedding. It is only changed every three days unless requested. The towels are also not refreshed each day unless specified, but they were always dried and folded upon my return.

Housekeeping

The housekeeping staff at the Marriott hotel Miri are incredibly discreet in fact I never saw them.

Housekeeping always serviced my room while I was at breakfast, and the rooms are nothing short of spotlessly clean.

After daily trips into the National Park, muddy footwear is commonplace with all guests including myself, so hats off to the housekeeping team.

You’ll be hard pushed to find any dirt on any of the surfaces around the hotel.

Shared spaces within the Mulu Marriott Resort

The hotel is one of the Marriott tropical resorts that is surrounded by a lush green oasis of natural rainforest.  The scenery surrounding every inch of the hotel is stunning.

An image of the tropical rainforest and one of the buildings at the Marriott Resort Miri

The outdoor lounge and bar are both spacious with luxurious day beds and sofas. There are lounge games such as chess and dominoes to pass the time, or you can try your hand at a game of pool in the bar.

An image of the luxiourous day beds in the lounge at the Marriott, Borneo

There is a roof to provide cover from the tropical rainstorms and plenty of cushions for comfort.

The Bar

The bar is open from mid-afternoon until 11 pm and serves a range of drinks and bar snacks. You can expect to pay 180 ringgit for a bottle of wine and 30 ringgit for a beer.

Cafe/Restaurant

Don’t expect fine dining if you come here, but the food is of a reasonable standard. There’s a buffet most nights which has a good range of dishes although vegetarians are not really catered for.

The restaurant at the Mulu Marriott resort and spa, Borneo

Starters included a range of salads and soup, while for the main course there was a whole cooked fish, rice and a choice of curries. There was also a selection of cold meats.

There was an excellent range of salad dressings and condiments including a good quality balsamic aged vinegar, a decent olive oil, chilli oil and various other dressings.

The desserts were the best bit, with apple pie, ice cream, cheesecake, sponge cakes, creme caramel it was hard to resist not trying them all.

An image of the deserts including the striped cake which is famous in Sarawak

There is also an ala carte menu, but this was not always available, which meant that as a vegetarian, I did struggle. The first night I managed with salad, cabbage fritters and some of the potato gratin from the buffet followed by a lot of desserts.

An image of a plate of food which includes salad and cabbage fritters

It was an expensive meal at 80 ringgit, which was ok but the standard was not exceptional from a 5-star resort.

If your vegetarian you’re much better off eating at the National Park cafe or the little restaurant across the bridge from the Marriott.

My friend ordered the Mulu chicken, which she said was average although the chicken was on the bone, so the portion was quite small.

Service

Service was disappointing! The waitress was rather unhelpful when I announced my dietary needs. No effort was made to speak to the chef to see if the kitchen could make something. I was just told that the buffet was my only option.

During our meal, the staff never came over once to see if everything was ok or to ask if we needed any more drinks.

In-Room Dining

Room service is available with a service charge as you would expect. There was a reasonable selection available with a couple of vegetarian choices, but I can’t vouch for the quality as I didn’t try it. Options included pizza and chips, toasted sandwiches and a few Asian dishes.

Mulu Marriott -Review of Breakfast

There’s an excellent selection for breakfast although I’d recommend that you get there early.

The kitchen did not always replenish the food, and much of it was uncovered. So, for example, the cheese had gone dry on the outside, and the top slices of bread were often stale. There was, however, a good selection of speciality loaves, including one with walnuts that were delicious.

A selection of speciality breads available at breakfast at the royal mulu resort marriott

The cheese board had a selection was also labelled with different cheese such as Brie, Cheddar, and Edam; however, the cheese was the same type each day, so the different labels were very misguiding.

An image of the cheese board at the `Miri Marriott

On the plus side, the omelettes, pancakes and waffles were delicious. They were cooked to order by the chef, and there was plenty of fillings and toppings to choose from.

The fruit was slightly disappointing, although apples, bananas and oranges were available.

An image of the fruit and pastries at breakfast

Pastries for a continental breakfast

The selection of pastries at breakfast will not disappoint; there’s muffins, doughnuts, bread and butter pudding, cake, and croissants to devour.

Cereal

A few kinds of cereal were available, and it was good to see a choice of milk, including soya and skimmed. There was also plain natural yoghurt.

An image of jars filled with different toppings for cereals including nuts and seeds served at breakfast at the Marriott Mulu hotel in Sarawak

An image of glass jars filled with different cereals at the Mulu Marriott Resort and Spa breakfast

Marriott Miri Resort and Spa Facilities

Your days are filled with the numerous Mulu national Park Tours, and after trekking through the jungle, it was fantastic to return in the evening and enjoy the excellent facilities at the Miri Marriott.

Swimming pool

Swimming in the pool was a fabulous way to cool off from the heat and humidity of the jungle.

An image of the swimming pool at the Marriott Resort and Spa Miri

The pool is kept immaculately clean, and there was never any debris from the surrounding trees.

There was a choice of day beds and sun loungers with comfy cushions and small tables.

For much of the day, the area was quiet as people were at the national park, but later in the day it did become busy, and it wasn’t always possible to find a sun lounger. However, there is plenty of outdoor chairs to sit on by the restaurant.

Gym

If trekking through the park wasn’t enough to burn those calories off from the delicious pastries at breakfast, you could always take a workout in the gym.

It’s small but fully equipped with a good selection of equipment and weights. The view is stunning through the big glass windows, and it’s great to work out if the tropical weather has cut your trekking short in the National Park.

An image of the gym at the Mulu Marriott and Spa, Sarawak
There’s also a yoga studio if you wish to meditate.

Spa

If trekking around the national park and exploring caves have taken its toll on your muscles, you can treat yourself to a range of treatments at the spa.

Treatments include massages, pedicures and pure indulgence Mulu Marriott packages. Prices start from as little as 95 ringgit, which is approximately $23 US.

Wifi

The Marriott wifi is only available in the reception, lounge and restaurant area, but to be honest, it’s not worth trying to connect, unless you need to. It’s slow at best and offers nothing but frustration.

You are in the middle of the rainforest, so it’s no surprise that the connection is weak, I hasten to add that it’s no better at the National Park. So embrace the natural oasis and switch off from the outside world for a few days.

Staff at the Mulu Marriott Resort and Spa

The general staff around the hotel are incredibly polite, and everyone will say hello and ask how you are. There aim is obviously to please and create a friendly environment.

My only reservation was with the staff in the restaurant. Service was slow, particularly at breakfast, and I had to ask for a cup of coffee each morning.

You also had to grab the attention of the chef if you wanted something cooking at breakfast as he was often busy doing other jobs. Personally, I would have preferred for a waitress to have taken my order.

In conclusion

The Marriott does offer luxury accommodation in the jungle, and for the most part, the service and quality of the facilities were outstanding.

However, I would recommend eating at the National Park Cafe before returning to the hotel as the food offers much better value for money.  They also have a much better selection for vegetarians.

Check out the reviews of other travellers on TripAdvisor here.

If your looking for other unique areas of natural beauty in Asia you may be interested in learning more about the Kanchanaburi Province in Thailand you can also find a guide to the best hotels in Kanchanaburi here.

For information on the best places to stay in Thailand click here.

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Fiona
Fiona

Hi, I’m Fiona Berry- I live in Lancashire in the North of England, but my job as an instrumental music examiner takes me all over the world. Travel has enriched my life in so many ways and allowed me to experience different cultures, make new friends and see extraordinary sights. Through this blog, I share my knowledge and expertise so that my readers have all the resources they require to ensure their travels provide unique and unforgettable memories to destinations that are beyond the ordinary.

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