So since I've blogged about Bintan and referenced it a few times to Batam, I thought I should start backlogging my travels of over 70 countries so here's the one on Batam! I managed to get a 2D1N deal to Batam inclusive of 4-star hotel accommodation + 7 course seafood meal + breakfast + ferry ride + local tour + 1 hour massage for SGD$49 (USD $39). Cool, right? *triumphant grin*
Foodprinted on 21-22 April 2012, Saturday-Sunday
The journey was much faster than we expected - only 45mins by ferry! Upon reaching, the local tour started - which was provided the answer as to how our trip could be so cheap.. COMMISSIONS, COMMISSIONS, COMMISSIONS!!!!
We were brought to a couple of shops: dried indo foodstuffs shop (with free samples of local honey cake, arabica coffee and layer cake (Kueh Lapis) shop. Prices were obviously marked-up, okay by Singapore standards but awfully expensive by Indonesian standards.
Layer cake (Kueh Lapis) is a traditional Indonesian layered spice cake, baked with an insane amount of butter and egg yolks. Very time-consuming and hence, expensive.
The highlight of our tour up till that point was definitely the seven course seafood lunch included in our package. *Nomz nomz nomz*
Pretty generous portions, right? OMG - the coconuts were bigger than our faces! O_O'''
Thereafter, we visited the Miniature House Indonesia which showcased the different architectural styles of houses in Indonesia, given that Indonesia has the world's largest archipelago with >17,000 islands!
Just across the Miniature House was a Go-Kart place ($15 for 10mins, totally not worth it). There was also a Flying Fox next to it but we didn't have time to go there, plus I bet it must be insanely priced too. So we scampered to explore the "zoo" next to the Miniature House.
The next destination we were supposed to go to was the traditional Batik factory. (Batik is a cloth that is traditionally made and colored using a manual wax-resist dyeing technique.) I have great admiration for this art form but I was happy that we skipped this as time was running out.. I'm pretty darn sure it's gonna be just another commission-based shopping experience - just like the First Factory Outlet we were brought to.
The tour guide, Harry (he asked us to call him Harry Potter O_O''') then took us to the Tua Pek Gong Chinese temple. Tua Pek Kong 大伯公 literally means "Grand Uncle", is one of the pantheon of Malaysian Chinese Gods.
A one-hour massage was also included in our tour - which, solely, would have been a good reason to buy the tour package. A one-hour massage would typically cost northwards of SGD$50 in Singapore but in Batam, it is not uncommon to find two hours of massage for SGD$14-20. Awesomeness!!!!
As usual, Harry Potter tried to do his magic in transferring $$ from folks to his own pocket by upselling and cross-selling massage services...+SGD$10 for aromatherapy, +SGD$10 for 30mins extra massage, +SGD$30 for aromatherapy + body scrub... again, it was okay by Singaporean standards but wayyyyyyy too expensive by Indo standards. Harry Potter got not an extra cent from us. ^_^
Other reasonably priced, clean massage places in Batam: IndoThai, Sawasdika, Isabella Massage House.
The best part of our trip got started when the tour ended. We were dropped off at HarborBay Hotel Amir around 5+pm and from there, we explored the harbor and its seemingly never-ending stretch of seafood restaurants.
Sotong with salted egg yolk paste ($3), Sweet and sour fish ($9), Avocado milkshake ($1.50)
Coconut ($1), Baby Kailan ($1.50), Stir fried Kang kong with belachan chilli ($1.50)
Crispy kampung (village) chicken ($6), Baby squids ($3.50)
Dinner was insane...we had a seafood feast for less than $30!!!
Top attractions in Batam. My conclusion: there's only 3 things to do in Batam: SMS. Shopping Massage Seafood. :) I don't think much of the shopping unless you're not on a group tour and can find places that aren't obviously marked-up to cater to fat-pocket tourists.
For massage, I give ***THUMBS UP*** to Tempat Senang Spa, which was *totally* deserving of its status as one of the TOP 11 SPAS IN ASIA.
We got the same 3 treatments: Balinese massage, Hot Herbal Compress and Foot Reflexology.
Basically you can choose any 3 treatments for a half-day package (3 hours, $75 weekdays/ $99 weekends) or 6 treatments for a full-day package (6 hours, $149 weekdays/ $195 weekends) from the list of available options below.
The resort was really, really beautiful. It had so many elements of my dream home - the simplicity, openness, greenery and plenty of water features.
What made our whole experience even better was that we stayed for dinner and by then, all the guests in the hotel had already left..so we were given a tour of the villa property. There are 8 luxury rooms and I really loved how the owner was able to inject her personality and travel collections onto the property.
JAPANESE ROOM
BALI ROOM
INDIAN ROOM
INDONESIAN ROOM
THAI ROOM
TREE HOUSE (gosh, it even has a big coconut tree right through it!)
JAVANESE JOGLO (100 year old antique Javanese teak house)
This house was literally transported to Batam via a container, in as-is condition!
After touring the property, it was time for us to go to the main hall where our dinner awaited us. It felt like we were in paradise with the serene golf course next to us, the fresh light rain, and breezy winds.
INDONESIAN DINNER: NASI CAMPUR
Our gorgeous platter included: Beef Rendang, Gado Gado (Indonesian rojak/ salad), Lumpia (spring rolls), Satay (BBQ shrimp skewers), Peanut sauce, Kaffir lime chicken, Fish fillet, Rice, Acar and Emping crackers
I was really pleasantly surprised at how fantastic this trip was. It's a great substitute to the more expensive (air tix alone cost >SGD$200!) Bangkok shopping massage food adventure. :)
Foodprinted on 21-22 April 2012, Saturday-Sunday
Sweet couple. I prayed for your better conjugal life. In Australia has great massage shop. I like to take massage therapy from there.
ReplyDeleteAustralian Massage Shop
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteSakura Hotel Batam welcomes you to Batam with your family & love ones. We provide free transportation as well as Massage & Spa services. Hope to serve you soon. http://www.SakuraHotelBatam.com/
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ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteWas wondering if you could let me know which seafood restaurant you explored after the tour and not Golden Prawn and where you ate the yummy gado gado from. Thanks :)
Nat
Dear Food Blogger and visitors,
ReplyDeletePlease visit us at Sei Enam Seafood Batam, we are a new branch of Sei Enam Seafood from Kijang and Tanjung Pinang (Bintan Island). We have been in the culinary scene since the 1970s, do check us out on tripadvisor, Facebook: seienambatam, or our Instagram: seienam_seafood.
The following is our address: Sei Enam Seafood, Jalan Engku Putri, Nusantara Golden Block A no: 4-6, Batam Centre.
We provide transport to and fro hotels or malls around batam centre area or the ferry terminal. Another benefit that you might not get elsewhere is the quality assurance of our seafood products. You do not pay if our seafood is not fresh.
For reservations: +62 778 748 6721 or +62 853 6009 6888, or
send us a mail: seienamseafood.batam@gmail.com
Looking forward to serving you!
Sei Enam Seafood