Home » Featured, Headline, Travel

One day Batam trip

19 July 2009 5,124 views 22 Comments

One day Batam trip to eat and shop. A group of us decided to go Batam (free and easy) on a weekend. Batam is an Indonesia island very close to Singapore.

How to go Batam

There are many providers to bring you to Batam from Singapore. Some of them are located in Harbourfront center. They are the Penguin, Wave master and BatamFast. They operate ferry serice to and from Batam Center and Singapore at regular intervals.

Things to note when going to Batam

1. Batam is 1 hour behind SG time.

2. Beside the ferry ticket, there is a fuel surcharge of S$6 (both ways) and port fee of S$7 on return.

Batam, here we go

We met at 830 at Habourfront mrt in the morning and booked the tickets for the 0930 ferry with BatamFast. Their price was cheaper.

Our ferry to Batam

Our ferry to Batam

Inside the ferry to Batam

Inside the ferry to Batam

The ferry was pretty crowded today. The journey took us around an hour to reach the Batam Center.

Welcome to Batam center

Welcome to Batam center

While walking over to the Hyper Mart/Mega Mall, we saw a nostalgia bear, the A&W Bear we used to see in many locations in Singapore. They can be found in many places in Batam.

A&W Bear at Batam

A&W Bear at Batam

The main travel medium in Batam is by taxi and they are not running on meters. There are licensed taxis as well as unlicensed ones (or private cars). I recommend you to take those licensed taxis if your safety is more important. The licensed taxis charge a higher price. If you are on budget, then you may want to consider those private cars, the locals are friendly people. Our first stop is to Nagoya Hill Shopping Mall. It is one of the latest shopping mall and offers many food and clothing shops.

Nagoya Hill Shopping Center, Batam

Nagoya Hill Shopping Center, Batam

It has a huge floor area devoted to Food Street.

Food street in Nagoya Hill Batam

Food street in Nagoya Hill Batam

Here is the other side of the food street.

Another side of the food street

Another side of the food street

After shopping for a while, we went to the top floor’s Bistro Godiva for lunch.

Nagoya Hill Bistro Godiva

Nagoya Hill Bistro Godiva

I ordered the steak.

Steak at Batam

Steak at Batam

and the Avocado milkshake. This is a very popular drink in Batam.

Batam Avocado milkshake

Batam Avocado milkshake

Another interesting observation is many restaurants are offering free wifi service. You can bring your netbook along too.

After more shopping,we had some A&W root beer floats.

A&W root beer floats

A&W root beer floats

Here is a closer view of the root beer.

My A&W root beer

My A&W root beer

We continue to the next stop, Lucky Plaza, and then move on quickly to DC Mall. It has changed a lot since our last visit. Next we returned to the Hyper Mart/ Mega Mall for light meal at their KFC. We tried one of their local drinks, the fruit tea.

Fruit tea at KFC Batam

Fruit tea at KFC Batam

After a short rest, we returned to the Port and board our ferry to return to Singapore.

Ferry back to Singapore

Ferry back to Singapore

Related posts:

  1. Batam 2D1N – 01/02 Jan 2009
  2. Japan trip 3 weeks (Free and easy)
  3. How to go to tanah merah ferry terminal?
  4. Sony Ericsson MS500 bluetooth speaker
  5. Planting lotus is tough work – part 2
1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (No Ratings Yet)
Loading ... Loading ...

22 Comments »

  • Yog said:

    hi there! :-)

    Im planning to go to batam next week…. how much did the the taxi cost for the trip in batam? was the rate you paid for the whole day trip in batam? is it from the port then going back to the port? what would you suggest the best time for going back to singapore from batam?

    thanks,
    Yog
    Manila, Philippines

    # 1 September 2009 at 9:10 am
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Yog,

    The licensed taxis have a pre-fixed rate for going to most popular destinations. Maybe you use this as a guide. The trip from Batam Center to Nagoya Hill Shopping Mall cost around 40,000 to 45,000 rupees (or $7-8 SGD) for one way and that is for around 15-20 mins driving. This is considered pretty far to me. You can book a taxi for a whole day as well but try to negotiate with the driver. The ferry should be around SGD$40 for both ways (depending on the ferry provider), the Batam port charge SGD$7 for tax on departure (total is $47SGD). I used BatamFast more often as they are cheaper. The best time will be to keep away from peak hours (5-7pm) so that you do not have to spend too much time to clear the Customs. Let me know if you have any more question.

    Have a present trip.

    # 1 September 2009 at 10:04 am
  • Betty said:

    going to batam on deepavali.
    i heard about handbag factory outlets in batam.
    any suggestions?
    Thanks

    # 2 October 2009 at 1:51 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Betty,

    I have not heard of any popular handbag factory outlets in Batam. There are many handbag retailers in Nagoya Hill and DC Malls though. Make sure you book your return ticket in advance. It is going to be crowded.

    # 2 October 2009 at 11:00 pm
  • Betty said:

    Thanks for your reply.
    It was in those batam packages that I read about polo shirt
    factory outlet and handbag factory outlets in batam.
    Thanks for your advice but can only book return ticket
    on the day itself – no advance booking.

    # 3 October 2009 at 10:36 am
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Betty,

    The polo shirt factory outlet is very popular. It is one of the main tourist attraction. The price is not exactly cheap but there are usually some good bargain.

    # 4 October 2009 at 7:23 am
  • Betty said:

    polo shirt factory outlets are in Nagoya Shopping Mall? or in DC?

    # 4 October 2009 at 1:37 pm
  • Jeffrey (author) said:

    Hi Betty,

    They have their own building as the outlet. They are also available at some major shopping malls.

    # 4 October 2009 at 8:33 pm
  • Luther said:

    When I arrive in Batam customs at Harbor Bay, do I have to give my passport to the Batam customs employee? Someone told me that the Batam customs employee will keep my passport and then return it to me when I return to the ferry terrminal to go back to Singapore. I don’t like the idea of some stranger holding my passport for 3 days.

    # 27 October 2009 at 7:13 am
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Luther,

    I have never come across any country where they will retain your passport. I have traveled to Batam many times via The Batam Center and Sekupang, they do not retain your passport. I do not think the Harbour Bay will practice differently. Just make sure the Custom officer stamps on your passport and return the departure slip to you on your arrival.

    # 28 October 2009 at 10:43 pm
  • BH said:

    hi

    my mum is interested to buy some dry food stuff like Ikan Bilis from batam, there is a place called BengKong dry food centre, can get there from the Mega Mall by taxi? it is very far? are the stuff readly cheap?

    Thanks
    BH

    # 3 December 2009 at 9:39 am
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi BH,

    I have went to that place 4-5 times but was usually via those 1 day Batam tour package. The place actual name is “Bengkong Dry Market Food Stuff Market” and it is a very popular tourist attraction (Ahem). Those taxi by the Mega Mall should have a fixed price to go there. Yes, they have a list of prices to the various popular places. As for the food price, some are on the higher side, some are competitive. You should consider it more of a one stop shop for tourists to pick up a comprehensive range of dry goods. I have not seen another place that keeps such a wide range of dry foods. Dry food like Ikan Bilis are sold in some shopping malls but the quality and packing can defer. If you have spare time, try to walk inside one of the mall’s supermarket to get a rough feel of the prices.

    # 5 December 2009 at 12:18 am
  • Choy Fong said:

    Hi Jeffrey,

    Do you know where are these no. 3, 5, 7 & etc on these Polo t come from? As in why is it 3 and not 1?

    thanks.

    choy

    # 11 January 2010 at 4:22 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Choy,

    You have an interesting question. I suppose we can ask this question at their factory outlet on our next visit.

    # 11 January 2010 at 6:00 pm
  • ZZ said:

    Hi Jeffrey!

    U mentioned that those taxi by the Mega Mall should have a fixed price goin to those tourist attractions. Does that mean Nagoya Shopping Mall has a taxi counter with licensed taxis and they should offer reasonable pricing to go those tourist attractions ?

    I am also concerned about being a carrot head there… =)

    ZZ

    # 1 February 2010 at 10:19 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi ZZ,

    Nagoya Shopping Mall is rather complicated because it has many entrances/exits. If you go to the main one (like in my picture), there will be someone at a small counter asking you whether you need a taxi. Ask for the price before making the deal. You are the carrot head at those tourist attractions, not the transport ;-)

    # 4 February 2010 at 1:44 pm
  • yan said:

    Hi

    How can we differentiate a licensed taxi from an unlicensed one? Where can we get the taxi upon reaching batam ferry terminal?

    # 3 June 2010 at 9:20 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi yan,

    The licensed taxi is very obvious. There will be “taxi” wording on it or on the car’s top. Those unlicensed one are just like any private car on the road.

    Here are some example of the licensed taxi:
    http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2623/4220859231_097c5668ec.jpg
    http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4221622416_ace68ace79.jpg

    Let me know if you still have doubt.

    # 3 June 2010 at 10:17 pm
  • Edora said:

    Hi There, I intend to go for 1day trip to Batam. Please advice if I want to go Golden Prawn Seafood for dinner will it be good if I book ferry tickets @ 0930 then go to Hypermart then Matahari then massage then go to Golden Prawn Seafood for dinner…take the last ferry at about 2100hrs…please advice

    # 10 July 2010 at 12:29 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Edora,

    You schedule looks like a typical 1 day batam tour package offered by many agencies except many of them offered Golden Prawn as lunch instead of dinner. If u intend to go free & easy and want to do those activities u mentioned, u should be ok with 0930 and return on 2100. Batam is not a very big place. However, i would recommend that u book your return ticket on 2100 beforehand and have an early dinner. Try to take your dinner and leave the restaurant before 1900. This is in case of traffic jam. Try to ask the cabbie on the travel time needed to get back to the ferry point. Enjoy your trip.

    # 11 July 2010 at 3:26 pm
  • Jess said:

    Hi

    Is it safe at night around the shopping centre. especially we are taking the last ferry.

    # 31 July 2010 at 10:45 pm
  • Jeffrey Chua (author) said:

    Hi Jess,

    I would recommend to stay close in group. It helps to deter people with bad intention.

    # 2 August 2010 at 9:32 am

Leave your response!

Add your comment below, or trackback from your own site. You can also subscribe to these comments via RSS.

Be nice. Keep it clean. Stay on topic. No spam.

You can use these tags:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

This is a Gravatar-enabled weblog. To get your own globally-recognized-avatar, please register at Gravatar.

*
To prove you're a person (not a spam script), type the security word shown in the picture. Click on the picture to hear an audio file of the word.
Click to hear an audio file of the anti-spam word