My Singapore Sing business partner Corinne and I came here for two days to conduct a team-building exercise for a Brazilian company. What you will find is that a lot of companies have retreats in Bintan. It's close to Singapore, inexpensive, gives you a feel of going away when in reality it's only 60 minutes away and it's tropical.
I've always come to Bintan Resorts for work ... but I keep saying to myself that we've got to come back for a relaxing weeked at the Banyan Trees Resort, which everyone praises.
Since Bintan Island is the quickest and most convenient tropical island destination to urban Singapore, it makes for a perfect long weekend getaway.
Singapore has a very strong role in the development of Bintan Resorts. All the hotels there have been built by Singapore developers and even the electricity is on a different, independent grid than the rest of the island. If you ever wander off to the rest of the island outside Bintan Resorts you will notice that you go through a security post ... somewhat indicating that only now have you entered 'real' Indonesia.
But best of all ... you don't need to get Indonesian Rupiah. Every thing at the Bintan resorts is charged in Singapore dollars. After all ... it does seem to be an extension of Singapore :-)
HOW TO GET THERE:
Getting to Bintan is very easy. The ferry ride from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal to Bintan takes 60 minutes. You can buy the tickets online. Prior to booking your ticket make sure you have the passengers' name as in passport, date of birth, passport number and expiry date. You don't want to waste precious time filling out the online form, only to find out you don't have everyone's expiry date.
Recommendation: you might as well pay a little extra and book yourself in
Emerald Class!
Priority boarding, wide comfy seats, free non-alcoholic drinks (I know, they should change this!!) and most importantly priority with immigration when you disembark the ferry in Indonesia. Plus, they deliver your departure tickets to your hotel so you don't have to stand in line on your way back.
Worth every penny for the many conveniences :-)
> Indonesian Visa: Upon arriving to Bintan you will need to get a visa, which thankfully is a simple process in larger ports of entry into Indonesia. Make sure you have US $10 handy, or the equivalent in Singapore Dollars of Indonesian Rupiahs.
All the hotels have transfers waiting at the terminal, so getting to your respective resort will be hassle-free.
Although only 60 minutes by ferry from Singapore, Bintan does have an hour time difference. It's an hour back from Singapore. That can get very confusing when you're telling the hotel when to pick you up. For example ... if you leave Singapore at 1700, you arrive to Bintan at ... 1700! Keep that in mind so that you don't screw up with the transfers.
WHAT TO DO:
If you don't come here for business, then the beach is what I would come here for. Each resort has it's own beach front ... just beware that the sun is very strong here. I got badly burnt the last time I was here, for I fell asleep for a good 45 minutes on a lounge chair by the sea.
Bintan Island is also renowned for its golf. And although I don't golf, there are several golf courses to indulge yourselves in which everyone seems to praise. There are four golf courses close to the resorts, including one from Greg Norman and Jack Nicklaus.
Moreover, you can also do jetski safaris, eco tours, sightseeing flights with ultra-light aircraft, diving, spas, go-karts ... you name it. Basically, you won't run out of things to do!
> Bintan Mangrove Tour: of course, being on Bintan, you can end up being 'stuck' in your resort. So why not discover the natural surroundings. The mangrove tour is a great 2 hour break from your tanning. And given how developed Bintan resorts are, the Bong river is surprisingly untouched! As you cruise down the river you will pass small fishing huts, kilns where they dry charcoal that is collected from in between the mangroves … and then you move into small tributaries, which are narrow and covered with a beautiful canopy above you. The sun beaming through the leaves and reflecting in the waters, amongst the shadows of the mangroves, is beautiful … but what you're really looking for are snakes. Pythons and mangrove snakes, resting on branches right above you. We did see 3 mangrove snakes, black long snakes with yellow rings … yet the pythons remained undiscovered. Make sure you put lots of lotion on, given that the tour boats are not covered. And just to make you feel reassured, with the purchase of a ticket for the tour, you also get an accident compensation insurance … $20,000 SGD in case of death! Hmmm ...
> RIN Japanese Restaurant: located adjacent to the Nirwana Resort Hotel, is this upscale and hip Japanese restaurant. Start of with some sake cocktails on their beachfront terrace which has lounge furniture and glass railing, giving you a beautiful view of the beach below. Ready for dinner? Move indoors and try out their specialties. A great dining experience.
> Kedaton Tropical Spa: this was a great discovery! Hidden behind the Mayang Sari Beach Resort is this small, yet wonderful spa. The entrance has a checkered lawn, combining sandstone tiles and tightly mowed grass to create this wonderfully soothing chess-board effect. They have a great spa menu with some beautiful private villa rooms for two. Too bad we discovered this on our last afternoon there!
HOTELS:
There are about 12 different hotels on Bintan Resorts, catering to every type of individual traveller or company group.
> Bintan Lagoon Resort: this is the largest of the developments on Bintan Island, and is also the furthest from the ferry terminal. Don't panic though ... that means a 15 minute ride away. It's an expansive property with two golf courses and a long beach. It's somewhat on the simple side ... the rooms are a bit tired ... but if you're a golf enthusiast, you will love it. Since it's the largest hotel on the island, it's very popular with tour groups and company retreats.
Nirwana Gardens: located close to the ferry terminal, this resort has several hotels, amongst them the Nirwana Beach Club, Nirwana Resort Hotel and the Mayang Sari Beach Resort. Now, it all depends what you're into …
> Mayang Sari Beach Resort: We stayed here, in rustic beach houses right on the wide sandy beach. It's simple yet connected to nature and the beach is beautiful. Something you have to be careful of are the kite surfers. The first swim we had here there were two kite-surfers zooming around. A guy seemed to know what he was doing, but the girl was a bit unsure, and at one point, the kite came zooming past our heads and smashed into the water right next to us. If it had hit us … !! The only surprise we got is that when we arrived, the whole reception area was under construction. Something that was not noted on their website. Not really a nice welcome!
> Nirwana Beach Club Cabana Resort: the only thing impressive about this place was the great Luna bar/club by the beach. We were there on Saturday night, downing gin-tonics … and the music was excellent. Plus, there were some great dancers to look at - good entertainment value. The colourful bungalows are inland and more simple than the Mayang Sari Beach Resort.
> Nirwana Resort Hotel: if you don't like rustic and want to be with more of a crowd, then the resort is the place to be. It's large, with a central pool area right by the beach, with several restaurants … and the rooms looked very comfortable. The suites have their own balcony … so you know where I would stay!
> Banyan Tree Resort: although I've never been to this one, they say it's by far the nicest.
Bojan Tercon
The beach of Bintan Island is really nice. Beautiful!
Posted by: flowers montreal | July 21, 2010 at 01:32