What do you think of Bintan?
Mar 14, 2008, 5:04 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 399
What do you think of Bintan?
Hey everyone.
We are travelling to Singapore in May for about 6 days and was looking into travelling by ferry to Bintan for a couple of those days and staying at the Banyan Tree there.
What does everyone here think of Bintan, is it a nice island and a good place to relax?
Thanks so much
We are travelling to Singapore in May for about 6 days and was looking into travelling by ferry to Bintan for a couple of those days and staying at the Banyan Tree there.
What does everyone here think of Bintan, is it a nice island and a good place to relax?
Thanks so much
Mar 14, 2008, 8:15 am
#2
Join Date: Dec 2007
Programs: NW,SQ
Posts: 82
Hello there...
Bintan is nice.. for a night or 2...
Don't expect it to be like Bali or the Maldives..
But for that particular region, it is a nice place to escape to from the hustle and bustle of Singapore.
Banyan Tree is one of the better resorts on the island.( There are a couple of others)
There is nothing much to see on the rest of the island though.. well based on my previous visits anyway,where I popped by this so-called tourist village with nothing much there.Perhaps for some provisions like soft-drinks and snacks.
The resort may plan a special event like a beach party during your stay. If not check out if the other resorts are planning anything special.
They do have watersports there.Mana-Mana Beach resort has jet-skis and banana-boat rides.
But all in all.. nothing really spectacular.
I did drop by this seafood joint which was nice and affordable.
Can't remember what it was though, but you can always ask the concierge if there are nice place to dine outside of the resorts, and if you are fortunate, there will be a shuttle to bring you there.
Transportation around the island is usually by a shuttle that will go around the resorts to pick up and drop off guests.
Currency of choice would be SGD though, given the proximity to SIN, but having some rupiah on standby would be fine.
Oh, you may need to get a Visa on arrival seeing Bintan is part of Indonesia.
Not too sure how much it is though.
Check out the thread on Batam. Could be some useful info there.
Have a safe trip.. cheers!
Bintan is nice.. for a night or 2...
Don't expect it to be like Bali or the Maldives..
But for that particular region, it is a nice place to escape to from the hustle and bustle of Singapore.
Banyan Tree is one of the better resorts on the island.( There are a couple of others)
There is nothing much to see on the rest of the island though.. well based on my previous visits anyway,where I popped by this so-called tourist village with nothing much there.Perhaps for some provisions like soft-drinks and snacks.
The resort may plan a special event like a beach party during your stay. If not check out if the other resorts are planning anything special.
They do have watersports there.Mana-Mana Beach resort has jet-skis and banana-boat rides.
But all in all.. nothing really spectacular.
I did drop by this seafood joint which was nice and affordable.
Can't remember what it was though, but you can always ask the concierge if there are nice place to dine outside of the resorts, and if you are fortunate, there will be a shuttle to bring you there.
Transportation around the island is usually by a shuttle that will go around the resorts to pick up and drop off guests.
Currency of choice would be SGD though, given the proximity to SIN, but having some rupiah on standby would be fine.
Oh, you may need to get a Visa on arrival seeing Bintan is part of Indonesia.
Not too sure how much it is though.
Check out the thread on Batam. Could be some useful info there.
Have a safe trip.. cheers!
Last edited by Kismaibat; Mar 14, 2008 at 8:24 am
Mar 15, 2008, 6:18 pm
#3
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: BCN
Programs: BA Gold · A3 Gold · DL Gold · VY apologist
Posts: 8,545
We honeymooned there in May and thought it was terrific. Transfer from Singapore via ferry was pretty much painless, and the Banyan Tree staff met us as we got off the boat. From that moment until we set foot on it again six days later, service was perfect - just the right amount of attention.
We had one of the seaview villas with Jacuzzi, which was lovely. Food ranged from good to excellent; breakfasts were incredible. Spa nice, though nothing special. Both pools at the Banyan Tree were great, and the beach quite nice as well. Note that there is an affiliated resort at the other end of the beach and you have access to their restaurants and facilities.
The staff delivered on a lot of touches while we were there. In addition to the usual rose-petal-strewing and the like which are to be expected, they did some things that were really special: on the first day, the girl who checked us in noticed that we spoke Spanish to each other and summoned a Spanish-speaking driver from the next-door resort. Every single day for the duration of our stay, each time we popped out of the door of our villa, he would pull up and ask where we wanted to go in Spanish. After that first day, he was always in the uniform of Banyan Tree.
They also organized a special romantic dinner on our last night that was especially memorable. They closed the entire beach, set up a tent with a rose-petal-covered bed and about 300 candles in it (the tent, not the bed), and served us a fabulous ricetable there looking out at the sea and stars next to a bonfire.
We were thrilled with our experience. Take note that the resort is great for relaxing...there isn't much to do there except lay about, eat, swim, get massages and facials, play on the beach, etc. For a few days it is wonderful. The rest of the island is nothing special, from what we saw.
We had one of the seaview villas with Jacuzzi, which was lovely. Food ranged from good to excellent; breakfasts were incredible. Spa nice, though nothing special. Both pools at the Banyan Tree were great, and the beach quite nice as well. Note that there is an affiliated resort at the other end of the beach and you have access to their restaurants and facilities.
The staff delivered on a lot of touches while we were there. In addition to the usual rose-petal-strewing and the like which are to be expected, they did some things that were really special: on the first day, the girl who checked us in noticed that we spoke Spanish to each other and summoned a Spanish-speaking driver from the next-door resort. Every single day for the duration of our stay, each time we popped out of the door of our villa, he would pull up and ask where we wanted to go in Spanish. After that first day, he was always in the uniform of Banyan Tree.
They also organized a special romantic dinner on our last night that was especially memorable. They closed the entire beach, set up a tent with a rose-petal-covered bed and about 300 candles in it (the tent, not the bed), and served us a fabulous ricetable there looking out at the sea and stars next to a bonfire.
We were thrilled with our experience. Take note that the resort is great for relaxing...there isn't much to do there except lay about, eat, swim, get massages and facials, play on the beach, etc. For a few days it is wonderful. The rest of the island is nothing special, from what we saw.
Mar 16, 2008, 12:35 am
#5
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Terra Australis Cognita
Posts: 5,350
Bintan is split into two very different halves. The resorts are on the north side, which is a colony of Singapore in all but name. The rest of the island, including Tanjung Pinang, is "real" Indonesia with all that goes with it.
http://wikitravel.org/en/Bintan
http://wikitravel.org/en/Bintan