We offer special price for your accommodation in Amaroossa Hotel, Aston Tropicana Hotel, Grand Serela Hotel, Kedaton Hotel, Anggrek Shopping Hotel, Sheraton Hotel, Scarlet Dago Hotel Bandung. For your reviews about Bandung please visit www.itravelindonesia.com
Monday, 31 January 2011
Batam, A little Cowboy Town on the Edge of a Nation
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Batam Information and Batam Hotels
Batam Information and Batam Hotels
Batam, Indonesia was a quiet coastal backwater, far from central Jakarta, at the forgotten edge of Indonesia. This dramatically changed in 1989, when the duty free and export zone was established. Although Batam has lost some of its economic luster to the Chinese and Vietnamese in the 2000s, the 80s and 90s was a period of dramatic transformation. The new Hang Nadim Airport, good class hotels, restaurants and entertainment complexes mushroomed all over Batam island. Batam became the Singaporeans’ playground. The golf courses are busy on every weekend, and the huge hawker centre at Pujasera teems with fresh seafood and Singaporeans alike.
Batam has a deserved reputation for its seafood restaurants. Prawns, lobsters, green clams, and the local specialty “Gong Gong” are on offer at many restaurants. Gong Gong is a conch-shaped mollusc, boiled, extracted on a toothpick, and dipped into spicy hot sambal sauce.
Nights are usually spent at a discotheque or a karaoke bar. Alternatively, take time out from eating, shopping and your massage. You might find an interesting cultural performance at “Desa Seni” in Sekupang.
Most travelers to Batam stay around either Nagoya or Waterfront City. Sekupang is the usual port of entry if you are arriving by the ferries from Singapore’s WTC. Ferries to other domestic destinations leave from the pier next door. It is a 30min taxi ride to downtown Nagoya.
Nagoya (yes, it is named after the Japanese city), is the effective centre for the Batam traveler. You will find the best hotels in town, the inimitable Pujasera Hawker Centre, and of course numerous Spas offering sports massage.
Waterfront City on the west coast of Batam, south of Sekupang, is a magnet for thrill seekers. Thrills include bungee-jumping, and even indoor skiing. By night, the area comes alive with more than a handful discos and karaoke pubs. Not suitable for the faint hearted. Batam is a duty free zone. Alcohol and cigarettes are ridiculously cheap.
Overall, there is a distinct cowboy vibe to the whole Batam experience. Still, it’s a fun stopover for your Visa Run to and from Singapore.
Batam has a deserved reputation for its seafood restaurants. Prawns, lobsters, green clams, and the local specialty “Gong Gong” are on offer at many restaurants. Gong Gong is a conch-shaped mollusc, boiled, extracted on a toothpick, and dipped into spicy hot sambal sauce.
Nights are usually spent at a discotheque or a karaoke bar. Alternatively, take time out from eating, shopping and your massage. You might find an interesting cultural performance at “Desa Seni” in Sekupang.
Most travelers to Batam stay around either Nagoya or Waterfront City. Sekupang is the usual port of entry if you are arriving by the ferries from Singapore’s WTC. Ferries to other domestic destinations leave from the pier next door. It is a 30min taxi ride to downtown Nagoya.
Nagoya (yes, it is named after the Japanese city), is the effective centre for the Batam traveler. You will find the best hotels in town, the inimitable Pujasera Hawker Centre, and of course numerous Spas offering sports massage.
Waterfront City on the west coast of Batam, south of Sekupang, is a magnet for thrill seekers. Thrills include bungee-jumping, and even indoor skiing. By night, the area comes alive with more than a handful discos and karaoke pubs. Not suitable for the faint hearted. Batam is a duty free zone. Alcohol and cigarettes are ridiculously cheap.
Overall, there is a distinct cowboy vibe to the whole Batam experience. Still, it’s a fun stopover for your Visa Run to and from Singapore.
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Batam is also a busy port and industrial centre. Consequently, there are several good midpriced hotels in the city. Far better than you would find anywhere else in Sumatra.
It is also a great place to swing your golf clubs. Several fine courses are available at a fraction of Singapore prices. Do note that beach lovers will be disappointed. Swimming here is best done in the hotel pools.
The illegal casinos run by the syndicates have also shut down.
It is also a great place to swing your golf clubs. Several fine courses are available at a fraction of Singapore prices. Do note that beach lovers will be disappointed. Swimming here is best done in the hotel pools.
The illegal casinos run by the syndicates have also shut down.
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Hotel rooms under USD $ 50
Wednesday, 27 October 2010
From The Editor
We are proud to bring you the Inaugural issue of itravelindonesia. The young team felt that it was time to go beyond just booking your discounted hotels and Indonesian domestic flights. So here we are.
In this Animal issue, we take a close look at my favourite destination in Indonesia, the Seminyak district in Bali. For our funky jilbabbers, Islamic fashion makes waves in London’s fashion week.
For the hordes of Indonesians flying to Singapore to shop and visit the doctors, we say there is more to Singapore than just Takashimaya and Mount Elizabeth.
Indonesians are the happiest people in the world. We look at a recent Norwegian survey that tells us that Indonesians smile more than anyone else on the Planet.
It is a modest start for us. In the next year, we will bring together articles that we hope will entertain, inform and bring you back. We hope that you will be a frequent visitor to itravelindonesia. As always, send us your feedback, kudos, and brickbats to cs@itravelindonesia.com.
Happy holidays.
Delis Elias
www.itravelindonesia.com
Thursday, 23 September 2010
Planet Holiday Hotel Sei Jodoh Batam
The Planet Holiday Hotel Batam offers some of the best accomodation in Batam. Planet Holiday Hotel Batam offers quality accommodation and has been catering to picky Singaporean guests for years.Do not be put off by its garish pink exterior.
Apart from its plush and impressive lobby, the Planet Holiday offers good spa treatments and a range of good restaurants. These serve Japanese, European and local food. The breakfast buffet is the best on the island in both taste and variety. The pool is large, but surprisingly drab, compared to the rest of the Hotel.
The Planet Holiday Hotel offers a range of rooms with varying degrees of luxury. All are comfortable and equipped with fittings worthy of any modern hotel.
The bar and karaoke on the ground floor are busy most weekends. You will find endless chatter from women happy to make your acquaintance. If this is not your scene, the sky lounge on the top floor offers live music and a bird’s eye view of Batam. It is also reportedly rainbow friendly. The Planet Holiday Hotel Batam is the tallest building in Batam.
Visit Pages
Planet Holiday Hotel, Sei Jodoh, Batam
Batam Hotels Pages
Itravelindonesia Pages
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