Bintan

Where is Bintan Island?

It is located about 30 miles off the coast of Singapore.  It sits in Straight of Singapore which is a narrow straight between the Malaysian peninsula and the island of Sumatra.

How do you get there?

You fly into Singapore and then catch a ferry from Singapore to Bintan.  Flying time from LA to Singapore is about 20 hours.  It’s about a one hour ferry ride from Singapore to Bintan island.  Typically I fly in from LA spend a couple of days in Singapore before heading out to Bintan.  These couple of days in Singapore are useful to recover from the long flight and jetlag, do all the shopping of provisions we will need in Bintan (more about this later in the FAQs), waiting for all my family members to convene in Singapore from all parts of the world, and also spending some time with my friends in Singapore.

What’s the weather like?

Bintan and Singapore are very near the tropics and typically stays almost same weather year round.  Temperature varies between 80 and 90 degrees and is humid.  It’s common to shower once or twice in the middle of the day.  However typically it is for a short period 15 minutes to half an hour.  Even though it is humid, unless you are in direct sun, it is very comfortable. 

How much does it cost?

Expense depends upon what kind of accommodations you have.  Here is the website that will give you rack rate for accommodations:  http://www.bintanlagoon.com/main.asp  Because I go there for long stretches and have been there three times so far, I’m able to negotiate a rate better than the rack rate.  Let me know if you need help and I may be able to help you get a better rate.  It is not cheap but a very good value.  Even though Bintan is in Indonesia all business in Bintan is conducted in Singapore dollars.  The current exchange rate that I got at the airport was S$1.62/US$1.00.  Approx US$0.6/S$1.00.

What’s there to do?

The two biggest attraction of Bintan are golfing and going to the beach.  It also has other activities such as tennis, snorkeling, etc.  Please refer to their website for a complete list.  Bintan works great for those who can bring a group of people together who like to hang out together.  If you are looking for big attractions other than what I just mentioned you may be disappointed.

Where do you stay while in Bintan?

There are many hotels and resorts in Bintan island.  Here is a link that lists all the resorts:  http://bintan.travellingtoindonesia.com/  We stay in the resort called Bintan Lagoon Resort (BLR):  http://www.bintanlagoon.com/main.asp  In BLR we always stay in the Sea-facing Angshoka Villas which are biggest and the nicest ones with its own private swimming pool with the backyard adjacent to the beach.  There are these beautiful balconies on both 1st and 2nd floors overlooking the pool, backyard and the beach.  Sitting there looking out is like being in paradise.

Where do you buy all your groceries from?

That’s a major production and a major logistical challenge.  What you can get at the local bazaar is really basic stuff.  After three trips, we were starting to realize, that there was more stuff available there than we thought.  However, the last three times we bought 80% of the stuff from Singapore, boxed and shipped them along with our checked luggage.  Some of the specialty stuff that’s not available in Singapore, we brought from Calcutta or LA.  Fruits, vegetables, poultry and fish we bought in Bintan.  Over the last three trips to Bintan, we have perfected this process of shopping and shipping.  It is no easy trick though.  This time, the three of us (my brothers and I) got there three days early – this was the advance party to prepare for whatever was necessary for a successful vacation.  We had a great time hanging out together taking care of the shopping and organizing.  Fortunately, I now have friends in Singapore who are exceptional hosts and are more than happy to help us out in any way we need it. If any one reading this journal wants to replicate what we did, I have everything fully documented as a set of best practices that I’d be happy to share with you.  As I always say even rocket science is easy if you know what you are doing.  And believe me it is not rocket science – although not trivial either.

Now the big question – why Bintan, couldn’t I find another place equally appealing?

I’ll give you a very short version here.  However if you want to know the long version let me know and I have a much more detailed long version that I’d be happy to share with you. - Basu

• It all started about four years (in 1997) on my way back from a business trip to Madras (Chennai). I went to spend a few days in Calcutta before heading back to LA.   I ended up having a couple of extra days in hand during my stop over in Singapore from Calcutta.  From the first sight, Singapore is very impressive.  Cleanliness, orderliness, and efficiency of the city and society make a very big first impression.  However, as you come back a few times to Singapore, the most impressive parts of Singapore become a given, and one starts to take it for granted.  Then you start observing other things in the city.  I came to a pretty quick conclusion; as impressive as the city is, it is not a great place to spend for more than a few days initially, and after that the city seems to possess less and less charm for an occasional visitor. 
• Consequently, during my 1997 visit when I had a couple of days to kill, I decided to explore what else is around Singapore.  That’s when I discovered Bintan Island, which is only about a 45 minute ferry ride across the Strait of Singapore and is actually a part of Indonesia.  This particular island has been developed primarily to make it an attractive resort destination for people living in and visiting Singapore.
• There are half a dozen scheduled departures of modern ferries from the Tanah Merah Ferry Port (TMFP) of Singapore to Bintan Island and back starting around 8:00 am and the last ferry departing out of Bintan Island around 4:00 PM.  There is an one-hour time difference between Singapore and Indonesian time.  You gain an hour going from Singapore to Bintan Island and lose the hour going back to Singapore. 
• I caught a 10:00 AM ferry out of TMFP and landed in Bintan around 10:30 AM.  My initial reaction of getting off the Bintan Island Ferry Port (BIFP) was like getting off the plane in a small Caribbean island like Grand Cayman, Barbados, Bahamas, or St. Lucia.  There were hotel buses waiting outside to pick up guests and a bunch of taxis waiting.  They also had a place for car rental that rented by the hour as well as by the day.  I decided to rent a car which comes with a driver.  I did not have a lot of time.  I needed to get back to the BIFP around 3:00 PM – that gave me about five hours to explore the island.  This of course is 1997, a full three years before I became a BAG (Born Again Golfer).  Had that exploratory trip taken place today, I’d have planned it totally differently.  Somehow I would have figured out a way to fit in a round of golf.  If that would have required staying overnight, I just would have suffered from the game of golf and stayed overnight.  Anyway, it was before I became a BAG and I was willing to live within the constraints of having only five hours to explore the Bintan Island.   
• I had already figured out that all of Bintan Island is nothing more than a collection of resorts.  You don’t go there to find Indonesian culture and handcraft, etc. You just go there to frolic in the sun and water (swimming pool and the ocean or to be more accurate the Strait) and play golf.  If that is not what you had in mind you have come to the wrong place. 
• My goal of exploration of Bintan Island was pretty simple – visit as many resorts as you can and assess each resort’s value proposition as a potential family vacation in the future.  In other words, I was being the advance man for a future vacation.  I told the driver of the rented car what I wanted to do and he took me to one resort after another.  I checked out a total of about six resorts ranging from very basic and inexpensive to an expensive Ritz Carlton type place called Banyan Tree resort.  It even has a Club Med.  After seeing all the resorts, the one that really caught my attention was the Sedona Hotel and Golf Resort.  Again, this was before I became a BAG, golf hardly made an impression on me.  It was the overall quality of the hotel, swimming pool, bars, restaurants and most importantly the quality of the beach.  Even though it was January, Bintan Island is pretty close to the equator and there is very little temperature difference between summer and winter.  Sedona Hotel has a beautifully clean beach because the water was clear and pretty warm.  The humid climate of the island makes frolicking pleasurable all year round.
• As if all this were not enough to get me excited about Bintan Island for a future vacation destination, I was really sold on Bintan Island’s rental villas (about 60 of them) which are part of the Sedona Golf Resort complex.  These were all California (Rancho Bernardo or Calabasas) style red tiled roof villas between three and four bedrooms right on the beach.  The biggest ones have their own swimming pool.  I immediately saw its potential for a family vacation.  For the longest period of time, I dreamt of this ideal beach front vacation home where I could walk on to the powder white beach with crystal clear warm ocean water; where you can step in the water any time of day or night and the water is always warm, comfortable and inviting.  Barbara, Robin and I went around all the nook and crannies of the beaches in Oahu in 1995 looking for this dream beach-front vacation home.  We did find a few on one of the best beaches in the US called Kailua beach.  Unfortunately, none of them were rentals.  The only other time I have come close to finding the dream beach-front vacation home was in Grand Cayman on the famous 7-mile beach.  That house in Grand Cayman was indeed a rental home owned by a gentleman in Wisconsin.  I even got his phone number in case we ever go back to Grand Cayman for a vacation. 
• Needless to say that I have been looking for something just like what I saw at the Sedona Golf Resort on Bintan Island for a long time.  Many of you reading this journal may be wondering why am I meandering through many experiences of the past.  I just wanted to share with you the journey I have been through looking for places just like the Villas in Bintan Island.  I have looked for them all over the world, and they are indeed very special to me.  I hope the lofty expectation I have of this vacation experience is met by reality.  Only time (the next seven days) will tell.  I hope my expectations are met.  Otherwise it will be a big disappointment.  I don’t foresee any factor screwing things up at this point except for the weather.  Right now I saw the Yahoo weather forecast and it reports that it will rain the first day we are there.  I hope the weather overall cooperates.
• As part of my exploration and investigation, I requested the hotel front desk to show me each of the Villas to see exactly what they look like inside.  There are three different models.  I was not able to see all three types of villas but did see two of the three – the biggest one is called Angshoka and the smallest model is called Chempaka.  The Angshoka model is a two-story with four bedrooms (officially sleeps seven) and the Chempaka is the one-story, three-bedroom model (officially sleeps four).  There was another model that I didn’t see, called Bugenvilla, also a two-story, four-bedroom that sleeps six.  I was very please with the over all quality of the furnishing and the lay out of the villas.  Looked like Californian architects designed the villas.  Needless to say I was sold on these villas for a family vacation.

Aren’t the basic groceries available from the hotel?

Yes it is, however it is prohibitively expensive and you feel taken advantage of.  As a result we get stuff from the hotel on as a last measure.  This is the only aspect of the resort that I’m not happy about and I have let the management know about it.

Why stay in the villa and not in the hotel?

The only reason you still have this question is because you were not paying attention while reading my explanation “Why Bintan?”  That said, it is not necessarily the best option for everyone to stay in the villa.  Here is the summary of all the reason we prefer to stay in the villa:

• It’s like being at home with your family.
• We (my family) are what you would call Foodies – we love food and we are experts in making them.  A big part of the fun of the vacation is food.  We considered bringing a cook with us so that we didn’t have to cook, but one of my sisters (who takes such pleasure in preparing meals for us) threatened me.  She said that if we bring a cook she won’t come next time. As it turns out, you have plenty of time on your hands, so cooking the meals is not a chore for a group like ours.
• My brothers loved to take a bus to go to the local bazaar and buy the fresh catch of the day to bring back for our next meal.  Honestly, the only catch we liked, that they brought back, were the prawns.  Some of the prawns they brought back were really giant in size.  The price was very reasonable.
• The sense of togetherness that you can have living in a home cannot be replicated in a hotel room where each couple may have a different room.  It’s a totally different kind of experience.  Again this would only work for groups where you can be together for a week or so and not get sick of each other.
• Being in a villa together is one big, long party.  You ask yourself every morning, “What I have done to deserve this?”

What if you didn’t want to make your own meals – not everyone is a foodie like you and your family

There are a number of restaurants in the hotel.  The only one we frequented this year was the main bistro type restaurant for our daily breakfast.  It was an excellent experience – a full American style buffet breakfast including an omelet bar.  The other two restaurants are Japanese and Italian cuisines.

What’s the best part of Bintan Lagoon Resort experience?

In one word: service.  The level of service we received there every single day is over the top – world class.  What I found in Bintan are people who are naturally gentle, kind, always greeting you with a smile, and always taking care of what ever you need.  I found in Bintan that Indonesian people are some of most hospitable people I have ever come across in my life.  It also helps to be kind and appreciative in return which allows them to double their effort of hospitality.  In fact, it helps that we are returning guests and they really go the extra mile for repeat guests.  Finally, not too many people stay as long a stretch as we do.  As a result, most of the resort staff know who we are and make us feel really special through their routine interactions with us.

Anything negative that you can think of about BLR?

Two things I did not like. 

• You get really fleeced if you buy any of the grocery provisions from the hotel. First time we were there we did not know what was available locally.  However now we know better and buy perishable stuff (vegetables, fruits, poultry, fish etc) from the local market accessible thru bus of car within about 20 minutes from the hotel.  So we buy stuff from the hotel only as a last resort.
• Secondly you get screwed on the exchange rate.  They quote the price in Singapore dollars, but the final settlement of the bill takes place in Indonesian Rupiah.  When I checked out, this time,  I felt I was screwed to the tune of $300.00 through this exchange rate scam.

What about golf?

This is a golfer’s paradise that is unknown to most of the world except for people from Singapore.  This is an island in Indonesia that is a 45-minute ferry ride from Singapore.  To understand Golf in Bintan you have to go back a little bit to Singapore.  Singapore is only a one-hour ferry ride from Singapore.  Singapore today is a very rich and successful city state with a lot of people with a lot of money who like to play golf.  But Singapore has very little land for building too many golf courses.  For a relatively small place it has a fairly good number of golf courses – about 20 of them.  But for the 4 million people in Singapore with many foreigners living and a lot of Singaporeans being golf crazy there just are not enough golf courses in Singapore to satisfy all the needs.  So these resorts were built by Singaporean companies in collaboration with Indonesian government to meet the golfing needs of people living in Singapore.

Ria Bintan Golf Club:  Ria Bintan Golf Club is probably the best maintained course I have ever played.  It has three 9-holes and you can play in any combination you want.  One of the three nine holes has ocean frontage.  I rank this course a 9.5 out of 10, on par with Sherwood if not better.  The lavishness and opulence of the Clubhouse will blow you away.  Designed by Gary Player.  Weekday green fee about $75.00 (S$110) that includes the cart and a caddy.  Caddy is optional and costs about $12.00.   Unfortunately no “Mr. Basu special” in Ria Bintan.

Golf at Bintan Lagoon Resort:  This resort has two courses one designed by Jack Nicklaus and the other designed by Ian Baker Finch.  This is the resort where we were vacationing.  .  The price of a round of golf for me was about $45 (S$64.00) including caddie and cart.  Tips to the caddie is extra.  I was told that I was getting the best rate (“Mr. Basu special” – as Rully, The General Manager of Golf Operations called it) they can offer and their normal guest rate is S$104.00 for weekdays and not sure what’s the rate for the weekends – I Know it’s considerably higher.  Since I got the $45/round weekend or weekdays I didn’t bother to find out the weekend rate for the general public.  Great course, great service, great value.

• Jack Nicklaus course: It’s a very good course.  Except for a couple of fairways the course is in excellent condition.    It’s a challenging course.  A lot of diversity from hole to hole. One hole (hole 12) is on the ocean.  $45 price is  an outstanding value. 
• Ian Baker Finch course: This course last year was not in a good condition. However they have cleaned up their act and I found the course this year in great condition. I played this course only one day because the course was too hilly and with my bad knees it was tough to play this course.  Yes, tougher than the Nicklaus course.  The green fee was the same as the JN course.

What’s ocean water like?

The water temperature is warm enough that you can go in the water at 6:00 a.m.  It’s very comfortable.  Same was true for the pool temperature.  Because of my knee problem, I swam in the pool every morning around 5:30 a.m. as part of my routine to get ready for early morning golf.  It’s a great way to get your joints moving.

What about Singapore?

I have been visiting Singapore for many many years.  It’s a great place to visit the first couple of times.  However you run out of things to do in Singapore after that.  My primary attraction of Singapore is hanging out some of the Singapore natives I have befriended over the years of travel thru Singapore and have become really good friends – Cedric and Lisa Lim.  We met them when we (my son Robin and I) were in Ko Samui, Thailand in 2002.  Since then every time we go through Singapore it has become a standard part of our stay to spend time Cedric and Lisa.  Cedric (ex-IBM Global) owns an IT consulting company and Lisa works for Sun Micro.  Given their professional background we are never at a loss for things to talk about.  They are very hospitable and gracious hosts and I really enjoy spending time with them.  Each time I’m in Singapore Cedric is always bringing some of his friends to meet me over dinner and finding me new golfing partners.  Typically they are almost always technology professionals.  As a result connecting with them is very easy.  My other favorite activities in Singapore are golf and dining out.  Golf is very expensive in Singapore and very hard to get a tee time unless you know someone who has a golf club membership.  This time Cedric introduced me to a friend – Shawn, who is a member at the Tanah Merah Country Club.  Shawn and I played at the TMCC the day after I returned from Bintan.  It’s a great course.  Really enjoyed playing the course and was very happy to make one more friend in Singapore.  I just love all the outdoor dining places in Singapore.  Because of the tropical climate and outdoor dining in the evening is just divine.  Last year Cedric took me to a new place called Chjimes – it’s a complex of restaurants and retail stores all having outdoor dining.  It’s a great place dine and hang out, frequented mostly by members of expatriate communities of Singapore.

My hotel of choice in Singapore- Holiday Inn Parkview (HIPV)

http://www.parkview.holiday-inn.com  I have been staying at this hotel for many years and has become my hotel of choice when I come to Singapore.  It’s not like a Holiday Inn in the US.  In terms of cost and quality closer to a Marriott or a Hyatt.  What I like best about this hotel is it’s location and for the price over quality of the hotel is a good value.  Very centrally located and most things I need are within walking distance.  My favorite dining joint in Singapore is this Indian Restaurant called Maharaja, it’s located right next to the HIPV.  The best way to book a room in hotels in Singapore is not make a reservation before you get there.  There is a hotel reservation desk at the arrival hall of the Changi Airport.  At that desk the airport authority has negotiated rates with most hotels in Singapore that is about 30-40% cheaper than their cheapest rate that you can directly from these hotels.  For example the cheapest rate for a standard room at the HIPV is about S$190 and at the airport is S$133.  However, there is a catch.  These rooms are made available by the hotels only based on availability.  As a result there is no guarantee that you will get a room at HIPV.  That’s the chance you take.  One way around that is to book a room on the internet – I was told by HIPV staff that’s their cheapest rate, without credit card guarantee and then try to get a room at the airport arrival hall.  As long as you are arriving before 6:00 PM, if you don’t get a room at the airport you still have you room that you booked.  This time both pre and post Bintan, I was out of luck and did not get a standard room at the HIPV.  Instead I was able to get a room in the executive level (with executive lounge and a few other perks) for S$190.  That was what I would have paid for a standard room anyway.  So it worked out OK.  The staff at the executive lounge were very friendly, attractive and poised (see the pictures).  Enjoyed their hospitality during my stay at the HIPV – both times, pre and post Bintan stay.