One day Batam trip
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
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
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
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
It has a huge floor area devoted to Food Street.
Food street in Nagoya Hill Batam
Here is the other 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
I ordered the steak.
Steak at Batam
and the Avocado milkshake. This is a very popular drink in Batam.
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
Here is a closer view of the 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
After a short rest, we returned to the Port and board our ferry to return to Singapore.
Ferry back to Singapore
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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
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.
going to batam on deepavali.
i heard about handbag factory outlets in batam.
any suggestions?
Thanks
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.
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.
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.
polo shirt factory outlets are in Nagoya Shopping Mall? or in DC?
Hi Betty,
They have their own building as the outlet. They are also available at some major shopping malls.
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.
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.
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
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.
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
Hi Choy,
You have an interesting question. I suppose we can ask this question at their factory outlet on our next visit.
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
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
Hi
How can we differentiate a licensed taxi from an unlicensed one? Where can we get the taxi upon reaching batam ferry terminal?
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.
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
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.
Hi
Is it safe at night around the shopping centre. especially we are taking the last ferry.
Hi Jess,
I would recommend to stay close in group. It helps to deter people with bad intention.
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