Where to stay in Pulau Ubin?

Situated in the north east of Singapore, Pulau Ubin (Ubin Island) is one of the last rural areas to be found in Singapore, with an abundance of natural flora and fauna. It offers a great weekend getaway from the busy life in Singapore.

Many visitors of Ubin Island leave it with the last boat and leave the island to about a hundred villagers living there. But you can also stay in Pulau Ubin. There is Celestial Resort Pulau Ubin on the island. Located at a 5 minute stroll thru the“Secret Garden”right of the Ubin Jetty, this Pulau Ubin resort offers a holiday house looking over Changi Coast of Singapore's main island.

Celestial Resort Pulau Ubin offers Standard Rooms and Beach Villa stay. Facilities at the Celestial Resort Pulau Ubin include a snack bar and wireless internet. Guests can enjoy a welcome drink on arrival.

Celestial Ubin Beach Resort offers a weekend escape from Singapore without living Singapore.

Batam ferry ticket sales deal offers cheap Batam ferry tickets

If you are looking for a fast ferry to Batam, Wave Master by Berlian Ferries Pte. Ltd. offers fast rides on Australia made vessels. 1 set of 2-way ferry ticket on such a Batam ferry costs $48 but with this Batam ferry ticket deal it costs only $38. Daily ferry tickets including weekend and public holiday are valid until 31 Dec 2014.

Wave Master vessels are made in Australia, with a total of 168 seats. The body is made from aluminium, which makes your journey smooth. Aluminium body provide a better security against pressure from the sea or powerful waves. All of the vessels are uniform with spacious leg room, giving you comfort while travelling!

Batam Island is a popular short holiday destination from Singapore and is accessible through ferry. This popularity is reflected in the demand for this deal as I was writing this entry, already 110 people have bought the tickets.

The deal includes taxes and exclusive lounge and waiting area access. To enjoy this Batam ferry deal you have 4 Price Options Available:

1 Set of 2-Way Ferry Ticket - Only $38 nett instead of $48
2 Sets of 2-Way Ferry Ticket - Only $75.80 nett instead of $96
5 Sets of 2-Way Ferry Ticket - Only $188.50 nett instead of $240
10 Sets of 2-Way Ferry Ticket - Only $370 nett instead of $480

Batam Ferry Ticket Promotion

For Wave Master ferry timing please refer to this page.

Best Hotels and Resorts in Batam Island

You know Batam is not only known as the red light destination from Singapore any more. In the past few years this Indonesian island right next to Singapore has started to transform itself from that image to a nice weekend family getaway from Singapore. Thanks to many new and quality hotels and resorts, many well organized tours, popular travel deals from coupon sites and the last but not the least efforts of Batam to transform itself, it is now a popular weekend escape island from Singapore which is just 45 minutes ferry ride away.

As Batam Island is transforming itself, new hotels and resorts have opened their doors for visitors while the old ones are upgrading themselves. So if you are asking where to stay in Batam, here in this article we have compiled some of the best Batam Resorts and Hotels to stay if you are eyeing to visit this island.

Best Batam Resorts

Tempat Senang Resort Spa and Restaurant
Sekupang, Sekupang, Batam Island

Voted No. 1 in the hotel category of Best Resorts and Spa on Batam Island consecutively since 2010, including the 2012 Certificate of Excellence and TripAdvisor Travellers Choice 2011 Top 10 Spa Destination in Asia award, Tempat Senang Boutique Spa and Resort at Batam Island is a small, cozy haven conveniently located 45 minutes away from Singapore in the beautiful Indah Puri Sekupang enclave, created with the passion to offer pure indulgence of the senses for individuals, lovers, and small groups.

Tempat Senang Boutique Spa and Resort Presidential Apartment

Montigo Resorts Nongsa
Jalan. Hang Lekir, Nongsa, Nongsa, Batam Island

Montigo Resorts Nongsa on North-Eastern coast of Batam Island is just half an hour away from Singapore by private Montigo Yacht Transfer or ferry. Composed of 88 villas with panoramic views of beautiful sea, the resort is also close to world class golf courses and offers its guests to enjoy many activities including water sports nearby, village treks, cylicing tours and mangrove fishing.

Montigo Resorts Nongsa

Holiday Inn Resort Batam
Waterfront City, Batam, Marina City, Batam Island
The Holiday Inn Resort Batam provides various selections of stay from your family trip to corporate incentive groups. The resort locates 15 minutes drive from Sekupang Ferry Terminal, 5 minutes from Waterfront Ferry Terminal and 30 minutes drive to Hang Nadim International Airport. Total 235 spacious suites & rooms, room size starts from 45 sqm in Studio Suite up to 120 sqm in Three Bedroom Suites, 4 dining outlets including Chinese, Japanese, Thai & International cuisines, Sports Lounge, KTV Bar, 2 indoor and 1 outdoor swimming pools, Balinese style Tee Tree Spa gives you series of activities or just stay away from daily life and pumper yourself. Kids’ facilities including kids club, kid’s swimming pool, water slide and games room assure all your family members have fun.

Holiday Inn Resort Batam

Turi Beach Resort
Jalan Hang Lekiu, Nongsa, Batam Island

Turi Beach Resort is nested in Nongsa Resorts, at the northeast of Batam Island, and  is surrounded by 18 hectares of lush tropical landscape and offers beautiful and serene place to relax and enjoy great sea view. Although it takes 15 minutes to reach by ferry, the location of this Batam resort is a bit out of the way and far from the city. But if you are looking for a nice resort to relax and for a short getaway from Singapore and away from a busy city, Turi Beach Resort offers one of the best and easiest to access alternative. With different type or rooms such as Tirta Junior Suite, Riani Deluxe Beachfront, Tirta Premier Beachfront, Riani Suite, Tirta Premier, Riani Suite Beachfront, Tirta Executive Suite, Riani Deluxe, Riani Superior, all equipped with Air conditioning, Cable television, Coffee/Tea maker, Minibar, Dressing area w/vanity & sink etc., the beach and swimming pool will be just right in front of the room.

Turi Beach Resort

Best Batam Hotels

Harris Hotel Batam Center
Jl. Engku Putri, Batam Center, Batam Island

Facing the sea, a minute away from Batam Center International Ferry terminal, walking distance to shopping mall and to Government offices, Harris Hotel Batam Center is ideal for both leisure and business travelers. The 171 room hotel provides meeting facilities, tours, Wi-Fi in public areas, valet parking, shops to ensure our guests the greatest comfort.

Harris Hotel Batam Center

I Hotel
Jl. Teuku Umar, Bukit, Nagoya, Batam Island

I Hotel Batam is an integrated hotel and apartment specially designed for daily and long-staying business travelers in mind. More spacious than most other hotel rooms in Batam, I Hotel offers Superior or Deluxe room, Suite or Studio Apartment and Executive or Deluxe apartment. I Hotel in Batam also has 12 one-room apartments and three (3) deluxe apartments. The hotel also offers long-stay rates. Lowest rates for 30 meter square superior rooms start from USD $83++ and 68 meter square Suite Rooms from $200++.

I Hotel

Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay
Jl. Duyung, Sei Jodoh, Batu Ampar, Batu Ampar, Batam Island

5mins walk from Harbour Bay, Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay is a brand new clean and value for money hotel in Batam which is near to good restaurants and seafood dining. The hotel features 179 guest rooms, each including air conditioning, internet access – wireless (complimentary), in room safe, desk, mini bar. The hotel also offers a variety of recreational facilities, including spa, garden, fitness center, massage.

Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay

Luxury Batam resort getaway from Singapore just 40 minutes away

Batam Island of Indonesia was mostly famous as a "red light" destination for men just up to a few years ago. Well, apparently it is not the case any more. Recently, Batam has spent significant amount of time and resources to clean up its reputation and market itself as a decent nearby getaway destination from Singapore and Johor Bahru. Now, you can see many family oriented coupon deals for weekend Batam getaway from Singapore in travel sections of many deal sites and there are some luxurious establishments on the island on par with Bintan Resorts area.

Montigo Resorts Nongsa on North-Eastern coast of Batam Island is just half an hour away from Singapore by private Montigo Yacht Transfer or ferry. Composed of 88 villas with panoramic views of beautiful sea, the resort is also close to world class golf courses and offers its guests to enjoy many activities including water sports nearby, village treks, cylicing tours and mangrove fishing.

There are TADD’s Restaurant serving local cuisine and Panitai Restaurant serving fresh seafood, along with private in-villa dining or sky terrace barbeques. Plus, the Montigo Spa, cooking classes and OLO Kid’s Club are all provided to fulfill your stay.

Getting there is easy: The resort is within easy access from Singapore and for a seamless luxury experience. You can take the scheduled yacht transfers by Aqua Voyage which departs from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. Just a 30-minute hop and jump away, you will arrive at Nongsa Point Marina and all immigration formalities will be taken care of. Alternatively, local ferry services depart from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and takes you to the Nongsa Ferry Terminal.

The villas in Montigo Resorts Nongsa cost between $380 and $500 per night and can house up to five people.

Montigo Resorts Nongsa

Singapore Deal of the day: Tioman Island Getaway package

Tioman Island is one of the most beautiful tropic islands in Malaysia and South East Asia. It is also quite popular for Singaporeans looking for a quick weekend getaway from Singapore. This almost unspoiled island of Malaysia's East Coast is quite accessible from Singapore by a relatively easy bus and ferry ride or a short flight.

Tioman Island offers unspoiled turquoise-colored beaches and white sands, lush tropical forest sprawled about 12,000 hectares all over this island with incalculable mountain creeks and a plethora of marine life as well as beautiful corals inhabiting under the sea; a heaven for skuba diving or snorkeling. Tioman is the perfect destination for anyone from all walks of life seeking for a relaxed holiday.

Currently there is a 3D2N Quick Tioman Getaway deal featured in DEAL.com.sg. The deal is priced at only $149.90 per person instead of usual $258 which translates into a $108 saving (43% off). The deal is for travel period  between 6 Jul 2013 to 15 Nov 2013 and booking must be made by 20 Jul 2013.

The Tioman holiday deal package includes:

• 2-night accommodation at Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort standard chalet
• Daily breakfast
• Return coach and ferry transfers (Singapore / Tanjung Gemok – Tioman – Tanjung Gemok / Singapore)
• Welcome drinks upon arrival (non-alcoholic)

Tioman Island Getaway package

3-star Paya Beach Spa and Dive Resort is Tioman Island hotel located next to one of the world’s oldest mangrove swamps and the Tropical Rain Forest, and also boasts having a spectacular House Coral reef. It is a basic budget hotel near beach offers a very good holiday accommodations for beach, sea and sun lovers. You can read the reviews of this Tioman beach resort here.

Also, do not forget to read terms  and conditions and fine print of this Tioman Island deal here.

Tioman Island

Paya Beach Resort Tioman

Bintan Resorts (Lagoi)

Bintan Resorts refer to the area on the entire northern coast of Bintan Island. Also known as Lagoi, the area is separated from the rest of Bintan Island with a thick tropical forest and checkpoints. The area has a significantly better infrastructure and security compared to the "rest" and currently houses five independently owned and operated beach resorts, four golf courses, as well as several recreational facilities and attractions.

Bintan Resorts is truly a relaxed, tropical paradise right next to busy and urbanized Singapore. The area is very easily accessed from Singapore (see below) by a 55 minutes ferry ride from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal of Singapore to Bandar Bentan Telani Ferry Terminal serving the area.

How to get to Bintan Resorts?

There is a regular ferry service from Singapore to Bintan. The ferries, operated by Bintan Resorts Ferries, travel between Singapore's Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and Bintan Resort's Bandar Bentan Telani Ferry Terminal. The travel time between these 2 points by ferry is around 55 minutes. A two way economy class adult ferry ticket price between Singapore to Bintan is 68.40. You can check the latest ticket prices here. In weekdays there are 5 departures from Singapore and 5 departures from Bintan per day the latest leaving Singapore at 20:00 and Bintan at 20:15 (Bintan time). In weekends there are 7 round-trips per day. You can see the Singapore - Bintan ferry schedule here.

There is also a ferry service from Batam Island (Telaga Punggur Ferry Terminal) to Bintan Resorts (Bandar Bentan Telani Ferry Terminal) which takes about 45 minutes.

Map showing where Bintan is as well as the ferry route between Singapore - Bintan Resorts
and Batam - Bintan Resorts. Bintan Island is just 45 km Southeast of Singapore
on the Northern Shores of Bintan Island, which forms part of Indonesia's
Riau Archipelago.

Bintan Resorts
Bintan Resorts is of course famous with its resorts. There is something for every budget in the area from family friendly relatively low cost hotel rooms to suites and private pool villas. Here is a list of these resorts (sorted by the distance from ferry terminal).

1) Nirvana Gardens Bintan Resort
Nirvana Gardens Bintan Resort offers 5 different holiday experiences:
Nirvana Resort Hotel is a family oriented 245 rooms & suites hotel offers something for every budget. Famous with its clear beach, wonderful sea view and food. It is a perfect short escape from everyday life of Singapore.

Nirwana Beach Club Cabana Resort offers water sports like jet skiing, kayaking and scuba diving; relaxed and laid back environment. Accommodation is Cabana and Cabana with Private Deck near a tropical beachfront. It is really kampong style!

Indra Maya Pool Villas offers 2 and 3 bedroom villa with private pools, spacious living areas and courtyards. For those who needs more space there is also a single 4 room private pool villa.

Villa-only Banyu Biru Hotel offers 2 bedroom villas (4 people) and 3 bedroom villas (6 people). It is more like a Chalet than hotel and good for a big family with young children.

2) Banyan Tree Bintan
All-villa Banyan Tree Bintan is a luxurious hideaway situated between the beauty of the South China Sea and a lush, natural rain forest. The hotel offers a perfect retreat for couples and honeymooners in elegant guest rooms that offer private pools, villas, satellite television and refrigerators. Western, Mediterranean and Southeast Asian cuisine are served at the Banyan Tree Hotel’s Crosswords restaurant.

3) Angsana Bintan
Nested on the white sands of Tanjong Said Bay, Angsana Bintan is one of the two high-end hotels in Bintan's Lagoi area operated by The Banyan Tree Group. The 4.5-Star luxurious hotel shares the same private beach with its all-villa sister, Banyan Tree Bintan. Angsana Bintan offers 106 rooms and suites, a majority of which offer a balcony view overlooking the South China Sea and offers a great place for a weekend getaway from the busy city life of Singapore.

4) Villa Aarya

What to do in Bintan Resorts
Many come to Bintan Resorts for luxurious hotels, white-sandy beaches and golf. Golf courses in Bintan are much cheaper than Singapore. You can also try different watersports. Other than these, there are numerous eco-tours such as PATA Gold Winner's Mangrove Tour and Firefly Night Tour. You can contact brctours@bintan-resorts.com for the tours.

How to find cheap Bintan holiday package?
Bintan Island is one of the most popular getaway destination from Singapore and is one of the most popular travel deal package destinations for coupon sides. You can check Deals.sg Travel deals page for latest travel deals which almost always include one or more Bintan Island deal (note that not all Bintan hotels and resorts are located in Bintan Resort area).

Angsana Bintan

Singapore may be a tropical island but thanks to its heavy urbanization it lacks beaches and resorts buried in lush forest settings. For many in the city state, Malaysian and Indonesian islands near Singapore are the way to go to have a relaxed getaways from the urban jungle. Of these islands, Indonesia's Bintan and Batam Islands are the most popular thanks to their proximity to Singapore. Bintan Island of Indonesia for example is just 45 minutes away from Singapore by ferries departing from Singapore's Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal.

Bintan Island is mostly known for its family friendly, luxury and expensive resorts housed in the northern coast of the island facing Singapore. This region, known as Bintan Resorts or Lagoi, is separated from the rest of the island by a tick forest and check points and is quite different than the "rest" of Bintan. There are several high-end hotels and resorts here such as The Nirwana Gardens Bintan Resort, Club Med Ria Bintan, Bintan Lagoon Resort and Bintan Lodge.

Nested on the white sands of Tanjong Said Bay, Angsana Bintan is one of the two high-end hotels in Bintan's Lagoi area operated by The Banyan Tree Group. The 4.5-Star luxurious hotel shares the same private beach with its all-villa sister, Banyan Tree Bintan. Angsana Bintan offers 106 rooms and suites, a majority of which offer a balcony view overlooking the South China Sea and offers a great place for a weekend getaway from the busy city life of Singapore.

Location of Bintan Island. As you can see from the map, it is quite near Singapore.
Angsana Bintan is on the shaded international resorts region of the
island known as Lagoi. - Source : WikiTravel Bintan Island

Angsana Bintan is a hidden paradise. You will not be able to believe that you were in Singapore just an hour ago and you have arrived to this white sandy beach and clear turquoise ocean with a simple ferry ride. The hotel is directly by the beach and ocean and if you choose to stay in a room viewing the ocean, in a few short hours you will directly get "lost" in the paradise. It is an ideal location for relaxed, lazy and laid back tropical island holiday and best appreciated during one of those long holiday weekends in Singapore.

The facilities are not as luxurious as 5-star hotels but for the location and the holiday experience, the prices are in the reasonable range. The cheapest of the rooms offered, Superior Rooms, are priced from USD 210 per night and comes with 2 beds. Deluxe Queen Bed and Twin Bed rooms are from USD 260 per night. Not bad if you think that you do not need to pay for an airline ticket to arrive to this paradise. The hotel also offers 3 types of suites : One Bedroom Suite (From USD 340 per night),  Two Bedroom Suite (From USD 420 per night) and Angsana Suite (From USD 530 per night).

The hotel regularly offers romance and honeymoon packages.

Angsana Bintan sits on the beautiful white sands of Tanjong Said Bay and stands out with
its wonderful beach.

Banyan Tree Bintan

Bintan Island can be divided into 2 areas: The northern coast of Bintan called Bintan resorts and the rest. The rest is a typical Indonesian border island with fishing villages, electronic factories and local resorts. These two areas are separated from each other with a thick forest and check-points and are worlds apart in terms of infrastructure, security and utilities available.

Entire northern coast of Bintan Island is generally referred as Bintan Resorts (also known as Lagoi) and is full of expensive and luxury resorts catering mostly to tourists from nearby Singapore (45 minutes from Singapore by ferry). For most tourists, Bintan Island is a serene getaway from busy and crowded Singapore where they can simply enjoy lazy hours at the beach, spa, pool; play golf and pass time with water sports.

There are several high-end hotels in Bintan Island’s resort area such as The Nirwana Gardens Bintan Resort, Club Med Ria Bintan, Bintan Lagoon Resort and Bintan Lodge. The Banyan Tree Group operates two high-end hotels in Bintan Resorts area which share the same private beach: Villa only Banyan Tree Bintan and Angsana Bintan offering queen rooms, 1- and 2-bed suites.

Banyan Tree Bintan is located on a hill overlooking the South China Sea and the private beach. This is an all-villa resort and if you can afford it, it offers an unforgettable getaway. Reaching the resort is quite easy from Singapore: A high-speed catamaran will take 45 minutes to arrive from Singapore Tanah Merah ferry terminal to Bintan.

Banyan Tree Bintan resort is built in a lush rainforest with 50 to 100 years old trees nestled along the shore. The villas in the resort are built on stilts and inspired by the traditional fishing villages on Bintan Island. They offer tree-top experience just right next to nature. The resort offers Pool Villa - Seaview (From USD 390 per night), Pool Villa - Seafront (From USD 425 per night), Pool Villa - On-the-rocks (from USD 460 per night), One Bedroom Banyan Pool Villa (from USD 680  per night), Two Bedroom Banyan Pool Villa (from USD 765 per night) and Spa Pool Villa (from USD 1,130 per night).

Banyan Tree Bintan view from the sea.

Banyan Tree Bintan Deluxe Villa Exterior

Banyan Tree Bintan - Bayfront Pool Villa - Living Area

Dinner on the Rocks at Banyan Tree Bintan is a candlelit dinner set on dramatic rock
with a personal chef and waiter.

The resort is designed to be secluded. As we have written above, do not expect to experience local culture or visit rest of Bintan Island since the resort area is not designed in that way. If you are looking for a laid back, serene and lazy holiday in a tropical paradise which is not very far away, this resort is for you.

For those who are looking for a more reasonably priced experience, you can also try Banyan Tree Bintan’s sister on the same private beach : Angsana Bintan. Superior rooms start from From USD210 per night.

Harmoni One Convention Hotel & Serviced Apartments - Batam Island

Just 20 km and a 45 minute ferry ride from Singapore, Indonesia's Batam Island, is the nearest and one of the most popular holiday destinations for Singaporeans. It is ideal for a weekend getaway destination from Singapore. With the proximity,  Batam also offers something like a staycation with some hotels providing excellent facilities and relaxed environment for Singaporean visitors.

If you are looking for a classic , elegant, and comfortable hotel in Batam with relatively low budget, Harmoni One Convention Hotel and Service Apartments offers a very good alternative. The hotel which is designed like a little palace offers 292 hotel rooms and suites. There are 9 spaciously designed VIP accommodations & Presidential Suite, each equipped with a personal whirlpool and private pool.

The most distinctive feature of Harmoni One Hotel is its huge and welcoming main lobby. Although a lot of space is wasted for this huge entrance, rooms are still spacious. The staff is quite helpful in all parts of the hotel. There is a main swimming pool (a little dip) and  a Jacuzzi.

One of the most popular ways to visit Batam and stay in this hotel is buying a coupon from one of the deal websites. For example currently, deal.com.sg has a 2D1N Batam Stay at Harmoni One International Convention Hotel which includes 2-Way ferry ticket from Singapore, return land transfer, authentic Indo buffet lunch, Balinese Massage (for adult) or Bird's Nest Soup (for child) and RP 100,000 shopping vouchers consisting of shopping discount vouchers (RP 50,000 off at First outlet with minimum purchase RP 200,000; not exchangeable for cash & non-refundable if unused).

Harmoni One Hotel Batam Island

Hotel's location is not the very best feature of it but it offers service to 3 shopping centers at town (call for booking for these service and the latest time from Nagoya is 8.40 pm).  Harmoni One Hotel is 15 minutes walk to Mega Mall, but it's quite far from Nagoya.

Tips:

• There is an Italian restaurant just one road away from the hotel. Food and service is great with  entertainment by the live band.
• Call for booking for bus services to shopping malls in Town center. The last returning service from Nagoya is 8:40 pm.

Other popular hotels in Batam:  

The BCC Hotel & Residence

I Hotel Batam

HARRIS Hotel Batam Center

Montigo Resorts Nongsa

Batam package from Singapore 2013

Batam is one of the most popular islands near Singapore thanks to its proximity to the island state. It is easily accessible by a short ferry ride from Singapore's Harbourfront Ferry Terminal or Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and is especially popular a weekend getaway destination. Although Bintan Island is better known for family friendly resorts and Batam is more known for its naughty night life, things has started to change in the past few years and Batam is becoming popular as a straight holiday destination.

Many tour operators as well as recently very popular deal sites offer Batam packages from Singapore with sometimes very deep discounts up to 75%.  Thus, buying a Batam stay deal including hotel stay, 2-way ferry and occasional pluses such as SPA, city tour, etc. is one of the best and cheapest ways to do a short holiday in Batam.

Batam is one of the most popular travel deal package destinations for coupon sides. You can check Deals.sg Travel deals page for latest travel deals which almost always include one or more Batam Island deal.

Here we have listed some of these Batam package deals from Singapore which include a nice hotel stay and 2-way ferry tickets.

4-Star Turi Beach Resort in Batam offers a beautiful beach, lush greenery and crystal clear sapphire sea to its visitors. The resort, located at the northeast part of Batam island, takes 15 minutes to reach by ferry. Pretty and lush greenery sprawls about 7 hectares of crisp ambience, perfect for you and your loved one. Sea sports enthusiasts find excitement in the sea sport package at a discounted rate which allows 20 minutes of jet skiing, 30 minutes of kayaking and snorkelling. Currently there is a limited time 2D1N Stay at 4-Star Turi Beach Resort Deal for only $99 per person instead of $278 (64% off) and comes with a premier room with Private Sea View Balcony, full American breakfast, 2-way ferry ticket from Singapore and land transfer.

Turi Beach Resort

New Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay is a 4-star international hotel which provides a high quality standard of services and facilities. The hotel is ideally located in the central business and commercial district, only 30 minutes from Hang Nadim International Airport and 35 minutes to Singapore by high speed ferry from Harbour Bay Ferry Terminal, which is adjacent to the hotel. Currently there is a limited time 2D1N New Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay Deal for only $70 per person instead of $158 which comes with 2-way ferry ticket, meals, 60 minute massage and shopping voucher.

Swiss-Belhotel Harbour Bay

Golden View Hotel Batam offers rest in the calming and serene setting and enjoy the relaxing and fun short getaway. You can relax with the 60 minutes massage session or simply rest your mind as you gulp down a bowl of nutritious Bird's Nest. You can also shoot away your stress at the Golden Go-Kart Centre, enjoy the local cultural dance and visit the Batam Taman Mini Indonesia! Currently there is a limited time 2D1N Stay at Golden View Hotel Batam Deal for only $65 per person instead of $168 which comes with free upgrade to Deluxe Room, breakfast, 7-course seafood lunch, 60-min massage or bowl of Bird's Nest, set dinner and perks.

Golden View Hotel Batam

Luxurious BCC Hotel & Residence is a very popular hotel which offers both hotel rooms and apartments ideal for families. This 2D1N Luxury Stay at The BCC Hotel Deal is only $69 per person instead of $188 and 2-way ferry ticket & land transfer, buffet breakfast, buffet lunch, 60-min Balinese Massage and more.

BCC Hotel & Residence

I Hotel Batam

If you are looking for a good hotel in Batam Island with good location and affordable room prices, you should definitely check I Hotel Batam. The hotel is located 10 mins walking distance away from Nagoya Hill,  the biggest mall in Batam, and appeals to both business travelers as well as leisure travellers who would like to try a "town" hotel in Batam besides the fequent resorts.

I Hotel Batam is an integrated hotel and apartment specially designed for daily and long-staying business travelers in mind. More spacious than most other hotel rooms in Batam, I Hotel offers Superior or Deluxe room, Suite or Studio Apartment and Executive or Deluxe apartment. I Hotel in Batam also has 12 one-room apartments and three (3) deluxe apartments. The hotel also offers long-stay rates. Lowest rates for 30 meter square superior rooms start from USD $83++ and 68 meter square Suite Rooms from $200++.

The rooms in I Hotel Batam was clean and comfortable with a king bed, a clean tub and bathroom. The TV has around 40 channels to choose from. The Gym is just next to pool. The small, rectengular shaped swimming pool and heated Jacuzzi at Level 3 are opened until 10pm every night and are good for a night swim or Jacuzzi.

I Hotel Batam offers a good, clean  hotel in Batam Island
with good location and affordable room prices.

Nagoya Hill Mall, largest mall in Batam, is a plus of the hotel on its own. Many visitors who would like or need to stay in town chooses I Hotel Batam because of its proximity to this mall. A pathway behind the hotel and a 10 minutes walk will take you to the mall  which is packed with food outlets on 1st and 3rd floor. There are many shops in the mall such as j.co donuts, A&W, Polo Ralph Lauren and there is a departmental store, Matahari. Some staff sold here are a lot cheaper compared to Singapore. A must visit for travellers from Singapore is the huge supermarket in the mall which sells many items at a fraction of Singapore's prices.

Other popular hotels in Batam:

The BCC Hotel & Residence

Turi Beach Resort

HARRIS Hotel Batam Center

Montigo Resorts Nongsa

Turi Beach Resort - Batam Island

Batam Island of Indonesia is one of the most popular weekend holiday destinations from Singapore. Located only 20km from Singapore, this  45km x 25km  island is the nearest Indonesian island to Singapore and easily accessible with a short ferry ride. Until recently the island was mainly a sex and night life getaway from Singapore (and Bintan was the destination for families and idyllic holiday seekers) but in the past few years, Batam has also been slowly transformed into family resorts destination.

There are several nice hotels and resorts to stay in Batam. If you are looking for a Batam resort which is a little away from everything then Nongsa Resorts area is for you. 4-Star Turi Beach Resort is nested in Nongsa Resorts, at the northeast of Batam Island, and  is surrounded by 18 hectares of lush tropical landscape and offers beautiful and serene place to relax and enjoy great sea view. Although it takes 15 minutes to reach by ferry, the location of this Batam resort is a bit out of the way and far from the city. But if you are looking for a nice resort to relax and for a short getaway from Singapore and away from a busy city, Turi Beach Resort offers one of the best and easiest to access alternative. With different type or rooms such as Tirta Junior Suite, Riani Deluxe Beachfront, Tirta Premier Beachfront, Riani Suite, Tirta Premier, Riani Suite Beachfront, Tirta Executive Suite, Riani Deluxe, Riani Superior, all equipped with Air conditioning, Cable television, Coffee/Tea maker, Minibar, Dressing area w/vanity & sink etc., the beach and swimming pool will be just right in front of the room.

Turi Beach Resort gets generally very good reviews with its scenic view and staff performance scoring high. Spacious and generally clean rooms with nice view of the sea + pool and private small balcony with Balinese-style furnitures in some of the rooms, air con, big bed and bathroom and relaxing sound of waves from the sea are the additional positives of the resort.The pools and small beach are also quite nice and well-maintained, surrounded by beautiful coconut trees.

Turi Beach Resort  of Batam Island offers a short getaway destination from Singapore.

Turi Beach Resort is a 35-minute ferry ride from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal - Singapore and 5-minute drive from Nongsapura Ferry Terminal. A return transfer between the ferry terminal and this Batam resort is provided to all resort guests. Simply indicate the arrival time and our staff will assist you at the ferry terminal.
This is quite nice because Singapore does not have these type of resorts and Batam and its resorts fill in this gap.

Turi Beach Resort on the Batam Map.

Batam Island has tropical climate with an average temperature of 28-32 degree Celsius and humidity levels of 60-90%. Expect more rainfalls from November to February.

Other popular hotels in Batam:  

The BCC Hotel & Residence

I Hotel Batam

HARRIS Hotel Batam Center

Montigo Resorts Nongsa

Best hotels in Tioman Island

Tioman Island, a beautiful tropical island in South China Sea (32 km off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia) is a popular holiday destination for Singaporeans. The island is relatively near and accessible by plane. It offers many activities such as great skuba diving sites, swimming, snorkeling, hiking and tracking.

The island is quite under developed and there is almost no road connection between the villages and hotels on the island. So if you are asking the typical question of where to stay in Tioman Island it is quite important to find a good hotel in Tioman Island with good location, clean and comfortable rooms, good food and service.

Luckily, there are some web sites to help you in your decision. For example, based on hotel booking sites "customer recommended hotels in Tioman Island" list which is compiled by the reviews of customers. According to these reviews, Tioman Island's only boutique resort,Japamala Resort, tops the list in all categories: Best value for money, best location, best staff performance,  best room comfort / standard and best food/dining. Budget range The Nipah Chalet and mid range hotel Impian Inn shares the second spot in various lists. Berjaya Tioman Resort, the most popular hotel in Tioman Island, is the 3rd in all lists except the best value for money and best room comfort / standard.




Here are the best hotels in Tioman Island list with respect to several aspects of accomodation:

Hotels in Tioman Island - Best value for money
S/N	Tioman Hotel	Star	Price Range	Rating	Rating Category	Location
1	Japamala Resort	5	High end	8.4	Fantastic	Kampung Genting
2	The Nipah Chalet	1	Budget	8.4	Fantastic	Kampung Nipah
3	Impian Inn	3	Mid Range	8.2	Fantastic	Kampung Genting
4	Berjaya Tioman Resort	2	Budget	7.4	Good	Kampung Nipah
Hotels in Tioman Island - Best location
S/N	Tioman Hotel	Star	Price Range	Rating	Rating Category	Location
1	Japamala Resort	5	High end	9.2	Superb	Kampung Genting
2	The Nipah Chalet	1	Budget	8.6	Fantastic	Kampung Nipah
3	Berjaya Tioman Resort	4	Mid Range	8.2	Fantastic	Kampung Lalang
4	Impian Inn	3	Mid Range	8.2	Fantastic	Kampung Genting
Hotels in Tioman Island - Staff Performance
S/N	Tioman Hotel	Star	Price Range	Rating	Rating Category	Location
1	Japamala Resort	5	High end	9.0	Fantastic	Kampung Genting
2	Impian Inn	3	Mid Range	7.4	Good	Kampung Genting
3	Berjaya Tioman Resort	4	Mid Range	7.2	Good	Kampung Lalang
4	The Nipah Chalet	1	Budget	6.2	Pleasant	Kampung Nipah
Hotels in Tioman Island - Best room comfort / standard
S/N	Tioman Hotel	Star	Price Range	Rating	Rating Category	Location
1	Japamala Resort	5	High end	9.4	Superb	Kampung Genting
2	Impian Inn	3	Mid Range	9.2	Superb	Kampung Genting
3	The Nipah Chalet	1	Budget	8.8	Fantastic	Kampung Nipah
4	Berjaya Tioman Resort	2	Budget	8.2	Fantastic	Kampung Nipah
Hotels in Tioman Island - Best food/dining
S/N	Tioman Hotel	Star	Price Range	Rating	Rating Category	Location
1	Japamala Resort	5	High end	9.0	Fantastic	Kampung Genting
2	The Nipah Chalet	1	Budget	8.4	Fantastic	Kampung Nipah
3	Berjaya Tioman Resort	4	Mid Range	7.2	Good	Kampung Lalang
4	Berjaya Tioman Resort	2	Budget	7.2	Good	Kampung Nipah

Hotels in Tioman Island: Japamala Resort

With its relative proximity to Singapore and beauty, Tioman Island is one of the most popular getaway from Singapore. Japamala Resort, Tioman Island's only boutique resort, is one of the world's top 10 "ultra-boutique" hotels according to the luxury travel site Globorati and the only resort in entire Malaysia chosen to be a member of the prestigious Relais & Chateaux. It has wonderful private beach full of coral and tropical fish ideal for swimming and snorkelling. The landscape around the resort is just stunning with natural streams, steep cliffs and tropical vegetation. Absolute romantic weekend getaway from Singapore!

Japamala Resort is an ideal luxurious tropical escape from the busy city life. Tioman Island is under developed so there are almost no roads on the island. Boats and trekking are the only means of transportation and with South China Sea facing chalets and a thick tropical vegetation behind, the environment is isolated and relaxed. Very ideal for a love escape or a honeymoon indeed.

There are many ways to get to this resort but flying from Kuala Lumpur or Singapore is highly recommended over ferry which is tiring and sometimes unreliable. Berjaya-air operates 48 seat Dash-7 turboprop flights to Tioman from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore daily peak season and several times a week during the monsoon season. It is a 35 minutes and costs around 130 USD per person for a round trip. Next time we will choose to fly.

There are several accomodation options in Japamala Resort. Here are them in the descending order in terms of price and luxury:

The resorts Penghulu's House which is resting on the beach is the resort's only 2-storey-2-bedroom villa for rent. Resorts second best accommodation option, Seaview Sarang, is a love nest secluded and romantic. There is also currently only one villa of this kind at JapaMala.

Japamala Resort (Tioman Island) Seaview Sarang

Jungle Sarangs are on the lower terrain of the resort with an open-air bath tub with the rainforest as its backdrop (no worry, hidden enough to allow total privacy) a private living area good for dining, sunning or simply relaxing.

Japamala Resort Jungle Luxe Sarang

These accommodation options are on the high edge of the Mountain or Cliff Hill with a stunning view of the lagoon right below (all these chalets have unobstructed view of South China Sea).

Japamala Resort Seacliff Chalets

Japamala Resort Treetop Chalets are the cheapest accommodation options in the resort. Do not worry; it is not a steep and painful climb from the beach to these units hanging over the jungles canopy. And since they are just in the middle of the tropic island nature (and the cheapest units to rent in this luxurious resort), these chalets so keenly sought after.

Japamala Resort Treetop Chalets

Best time to go to Tioman Island is the dry season which extends from late February to mid-November. Rainy season of Malaysia’s East Coast is between November and February when the frequent rains are punctuated by intermittent sunshine. This is the cooler season.