What is there
The 2010 report describes two pools, each 2 to 3 metres across, dug by the estate to collect hot salty water rising from the ground. One pool is clear with a slow flow. The other is murky and flows hard enough to sound like water on the boil. More hot seeps are scattered over the hill, which keeps the path up wet, and a neighbouring hill is said to have salty hot springs nobody has explored.
No water temperature has been published. The site was undeveloped in 2010, with no buildings, changing rooms or toilets mentioned, and we found nothing to say that has changed.
Why the water is salty
Fredolin Javino, a senior geologist with the Minerals and Geoscience Department (JMG) in Sabah, said the saltiness points to a high sodium content, but only a lab test would confirm it. His working idea: water from higher ground picks up salts while moving through mineral-rich rock and is heated by young, hot rock under Kunak. Nearby Mount Mostyn is a volcano that erupted about 30,000 years ago, according to a Kunak local history blog.
He also told visitors not to put the water in their mouths to check how salty it is, because it may carry other chemicals such as mercury and arsenic. We found no chemical analysis published since.
History and legend
Abdul Kusin Husin, a local resident, said his uncle Sarail Panglima Ombit, a hunter and timber worker, found the spring in the 1970s. Endem Suliman, 81, of Kampung Langas, tells a legend of two giants: one on the hill threw a bamboo raft tied with tuba root at a giant on Pulau Timbun Mata, who threw mangrove wood back. The story is used to explain the salty water and the coastal-type trees said to grow around the spring.
Other Kunak sights in the same report
The local assemblyman listed the Sungang hot springs, a mud volcano pool at Binuang estate, Gua Baturong (a limestone cave at Tingkayu) and a Japanese tunnel at Mostyn said to be about 8 km long. The Sungang spring has its own page: Kunak Hot Spring.
Getting there
The spring is on Sime Darby estate land at Tingkayu. The 2010 report puts it about 60 km from Kunak town, but the exact spot is not on any map. The pin on this page marks Jalan Tingkayu, which is under 20 km from Kunak town in a straight line, so treat both the pin and the distance as rough. Ask the estate office for permission and directions before going in. Expect estate roads and a wet uphill path. There is no public transport.
Before you go
- Do not put the water in your mouth: the JMG geologist warned it may contain mercury and arsenic.
- Ask the Sime Darby estate office for permission and directions before you drive in; the pin here only marks Jalan Tingkayu.
- Wear shoes with grip; hot seeps keep the hillside path wet.
- Bring drinking water and a towel; no facilities were reported on site.
- Test the murky, hard-flowing pool with a hand before letting children near it; its temperature has never been published.
Questions people ask
Can you swim at Tingkayu Salt Hot Spring?
The two pools are small, about 2 to 3 metres across, and were dug to collect the water rather than for bathing. There are no facilities and no published water temperature.
Why is the hot spring water salty?
A Sabah JMG geologist said the saltiness suggests high sodium from water passing through mineral-rich rock, but no lab test has been published to confirm it.
Is Tingkayu Salt Hot Spring open to the public?
It is on a private Sime Darby estate. No access rules or hours are published, so ask the estate first.
Is Tingkayu Salt Hot Spring the same as Kunak Hot Spring?
No. The 2010 report lists the Sungang hot springs as a separate Kunak attraction, and they have their own page under the name Kunak Hot Spring.
Are there other salty hot springs in Sabah?
The JMG geologist interviewed in 2010 said that, as far as he knew, Kunak was the only place in Sabah with salty hot springs like this.
Other springs within 150 km
Sources
Facts on this page were checked against these sources. Prices and hours change; confirm with the operator before a long drive.
- mStar (Bernama): Kolam Air Panas Masin Kunak Tarikan Pelancong (2 June 2010)
- Kunakians: Menyingkap sejarah daerah Kunak (2009), on Gunung Merapi Mostyn and Tingkayu
- OpenStreetMap: Jalan Tingkayu, Kunak (area reference, not the pools)
- Nominatim (OpenStreetMap): Kunak town and Jalan Tingkayu, used to check the distance
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