Have not been to Batam although it is just a 40mins ferry ride away hence decided to spend a weekend there. There are 2 ferry terminal which would take you to Batam from Singapore; Harbourfront Ferry Terminal and Tenah Merah Ferry Terminal. However they will arrive at different port of call in Batam so it depends on where you are heading.
Batam Fast Ferry Routes:
Harbourfront Ferry Terminal (HFT) goes to: Harbour Bay, Sekupang, Waterfront, Batam Center.
Tenah Merah Ferry Terminal (TMFT) goes to Nongsa.
We took the one to Nongsa as it is the nearest to our resort. It cost S$47 return including all taxes and terminal charges, the ticket alone cost about S$22 return.
Wanted to have a relaxing trip by the beach and found Turi Beach Resort to be reasonably priced at S$98 nett and have fairly good review. The price includes a night stay in Tirta Premier Room, American breakfast and 2 way land transfer between Nongsa and Turi Beach Resort. But do note that it is a distance from the city (about 40-45mins drive).
The trip begins from Tenah Merah Ferry Terminal, we took bus 35 from Bedok interchange and reached at 10am for our Ferry at 11am.
Our Ferry to Nongsa at 11am.
Yeah finally arrived at Turi Beach Resort.
The Bridge, a good viewing platform to enjoy the sun and sea. A pity that only half the bridge is accessible as some renovation work is on-going.
The bridge leads to the Island Bar.
The start of the bridge.
The island bar, opens only at 5pm to 9pm.
The roof, very rustic look.
Full view of the Island Bar.
Another shot of the Island Bar.
Its almost lunch time and we decide to eat at the resort so we can relax and just slack there for the day. But it seems like only the Taming Sari Cafe is open (by the way it Friday).
Nasi Padang (IDR 89,100/S$11). Taste quite good.
Martabak with beef curry below (IDR 72,900/S$9.00)
At the resort they accept both IDR and SGD hence they will list the price for both. Paying in SGD seems to be more worth it. At the time of this trip the exchange rate is about S$1 to IDR7700. The meal cost about S$35 including the above and a coke (S$4.50) and ice lemon tea (S$4), there is a 10% service charge and 11% tax. After lunch we slack in our room and went for a swim, forgot to take pictures so sorry no pics.
As there was nothing much to eat at the resort we decided to venture out for seafood. Found this place called Rezeki (at Batu Besar) which was recommended by quite a number of people online for seafood. We asked the resort to call a transport for us it cost IDR12,000 (return trip), as it is difficult to get a transport there it is better to ask for a return transport so the driver will wait for you there.
Chilli Crab, not the usual one we eat in Singapore but it taste good.
Salted Egg Crab.
BBQ crab, not recommended. Three crabs cost IDR 200,000.
Bun not the small ones, think we ordered too many. IDR30,000.
Hong Kong Style Steam Grouper (IDR 115,000). Very fresh and tasty.
We also ordered salted egg sotong (IDR 30,000), vegetable soup (IDR 30,000), 2 green tea (IDR 2,000), rice (IDR 5000) which totalled to S$63. A very good and satisfying dinner, highly recommended. All the dishes are good except for the soup and BBQ crab which is acceptable.
We decided to head to the city the next day, again we ask the hotel to arrange for transport from the resort to Batam City Square (BCS), it cost IDR 100,000. Nothing much at BCS unless you are looking for manicure or pedicure shops, there is a high recommended one there called Step1One Nails, it is very cheap compared to Singapore. We head over to Nagoya (taxi cost IDR 35,000), there are much more eating places there, a big supermarket and many popular massage around.
Roasted Duck Noodles (IDR 30,800), the duck is very flavourful, recommended. At Grand Duck, Nagoya Hill Shopping Centre.
Next stop is the highlight of the trip, SPA. There are a few popular ones but after searching and reading the review online decided to go for The Spa Secret to pamper ourselves. The other popular one is Isabella Massage House, will try that if I head to Batam again.
The entrance to the spa, about 5 mins walk from Nagoya Hill Shopping Centre.
The reception.
Waiting Area.
Private Massage room with jacuzzi and showers.
After the good massage(S$74 each), we went shopping at the supermarket. The chips, toothpaste, toothbrush are all good buy. We decided to try another Seafood restaurant, we took a taxi to Harbour Bay Wey Wey Seafood Restaurant (cost IDR 40,000).
Cereal Sotong (IDR 40,000).
Grouper (IDR 140,000).
Vegetables (IDR 20,000).
We also ordered a salted egg crab (IDR 90,000), rice (IDR 5,000) and 1 green tea (IDR 9,000).
Finally a taxi back to the resort cost IDR 110,000. Overall I will say that Batam is a good place to have some seafood and a good massage. There isn't much to shop except at the supermarket.
