[Trip Report] Batam, Indonesia : Tempat Senang Boutique Resort & Spa
 

Hi there, I recently went on short weekend getaway (only 1-hr from Singapore!), not sure if this is the right place to share it. Anyway, here goes if you're interested in the place :)

If you wanna read it off my blog instead, here over to here :)

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As mentioned in my December 2011 blog post on Tempat Senang (wow, time flies!), we finally made it back to the wonderful little spa resort in Batam! This time round, we took the 2D/1N Weekend Overnight Spa Special at SGD$235 per pax, which includes land transfers (7-minutes only), breakfast, one-night stay in a standard suite and a 3-hour spa session in the Couple Room. Pretty value-for-money if you ask me! A similar treatment in Singapore is gonna cost a bomb!

Ferry ticket from Singapore to Batam via BatamFAST is priced at SGD$47 per pax. We didn’t want to wake up too early, thus we took the ferry at 12:10pm. The ferry terminal at Harbourfront Centre seemed to have undergone some renovation – it looked a little different from the last time we were here.

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The ferry journey was very fast and under an hour. After clearing immigration at Batam’s Sekupang Ferry Terminal, we saw Tempat Senang’s staff waiting for us immediately as we stepped into the arrival area (unlike the previous visit when we were left waiting for 10-minutes or so). It was the same guy from a year back!

Check-in was smooth and efficient. At the reception, we decided on the spa treatments we wanted before being ushered to our room for a short rest.

The room we got?

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Initially, we wanted to book the Sultan Room, which was unfortunately not available. Remember to reserve way ahead in advance!

Stepping into our lovely India Room ..

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There is an extra little space in the wall for doing .. anything you want?!

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The room was thematically decorated, with plenty of Indian influences.

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The hot water thermal flask was covered with an elephant pouch! You’ll have to ask the staff for hot water if you run out of hot water. Instant Coffee and tea packets are provided.

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Aromatherapy, anyone?

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The wardrobe with a mini-fridge hidden inside.

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The bathroom was simple and adequately equipped.

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>> continue at next post due to 20-images imitation ...

The shower area is semi-outdoor, no rain-shower here.

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At Tempat Senang, the rooms which were not occupied are left open. We had the chance to take a look at some of the available rooms. If you’re deciding on which rooms to take, this might help!

We didn’t want to mess up the rooms, so I took these pictures while standing outside. The Tree House had a tree right in the middle of the room!

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Javanese Joglo looks nice and huge.

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In and around Tempat Senang, I took a couple of shots of the surroundings.

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There were sooooooooooooooo many koi in the pond!

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The bigger of the two public swimming pool, located right outside our India Room.

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Meals in the resort are consumed in the open air terrace restaurant – which happened to be the main problem we had with the boutique establishment. Bugs!

When we were shown to our room, the staff did not remind us that there is a bottle of insect repellent in the room, or that there might be an issue with mosquitoes at the resort. Well, guess we forgot to apply it before coming to the restaurant and ended up with plenty of mosquitoes bites. It might have been the rain earlier which made it worst? Meh.

During our meals, our food was also constantly surrounding by a fly or two which refuses to go away despite our numerous swatting. Tempat Senang probably needs to figure a way to handle the problem with bugs.

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The food itself was pretty alright though. We chose the American breakfast – it came with fruits, toast, eggs, sausages and potato wedges! Delicious!

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For the dinner, we had Balinese Grilled Fish (SGD$25) and Nasi Goreng (SGD$12) which were delicious, to be honest. Yeah, we didn’t feel like having the Beer Can Chicken and we have already tried the Nasi Campur the last time we were here. A little pricey? For sure. In terms of portion, we couldn’t even finish them! Guess we’re small-eaters, huh?

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Just as we have experienced it last year, the spa treatments were excellent and definitely value-for-money. If you don’t fancy a stay at Tempat Senang, I would highly recommend the 3-Hour Day Spa Special!

In conclusion, I would like to touch on something different. Instead of saying what Tempat Senang can offer you, it would be much more meaningful to discuss what Tempat Senang could have been.

Yes, for the price, Tempat Senang is definitely worth trying based on my experiences. However, with Montigo Resorts opening in Nongsa, it might pose some serious competition.

The service is great at Tempat Senang, but the staff really needs to brush up on their English to facilitate communication. Just to quote an example, I asked whether the Hot Apple Crumb Cake was available during dinner, but the staff probably didn’t know what I was saying. Neither did anyone come back to me to clarify after that. Weird, huh?

The products at the used at the resort (shampoo, bath gel, etc) were supposed to be natural and eco-friendly. Well, at least get some new bottles for them? Don’t store them in empty Biore bottles! (see the pictures above to get what I mean).

I believe that the resort should spend a little bit of money to spruce up its all-round presentation. At least make a trip to Ikea or something? The off-the-shelf pineapple jam for breakfast toast. The cheap green plastic rubbish bin with white garbage bag. The tissue box instead of napkins during meal times. The thermal flask in rooms rather than an electric kettle. The lack of a safe for keeping valuables. The cracked toilet bowl seat.

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against Tempat Senang and would gladly return for another spa visit. What I’m saying is that Tempat Senang has the potential to be much, much more than what it is now. The little details are what that matters the most.

Boutique resort? Yes.
Luxury boutique resort? Not quite there yet.

Enjoyed reading your report! Din know Batam has such a resort, where do you book them?

Thanks luv_flying! You can book through Booking.com, Agoda, or email them directly at their website.

I reserved my room via email, and only paid upon checking out :)