Batam

[Blanquiceleste]

Will be taking a day trip to Batam from Singapore and was wondering where to go during the daytime. Is this even possible or is everything at night?

Thanks in advance.

Massage shops / Booking joints open by 12 noon. Any earlier, you are on your own.

[VivaMattyVegas]

Will be taking a day trip to Batam from Singapore and was wondering where to go during the daytime. Is this even possible or is everything at night?

Thanks in advance.

[Trillian]

Adivce No. 1: Do not overplan. Follow the wind. Do what you like. Do not regret mistakes, because you'll make many, but also will have some good happenings.

Made more difficult with a bule friend tagging along, but will do my best. Thanks for all the great advice, exactly what I needed to hear. Will report after trip.

[Blanquiceleste]

Gold Bird's old name is Sedona.

Wasn't it called Golden Bird?

BTW Golden Bird aka Sedona also has a KTV setup. Just in case. No price advantage though.

[Black Page]

Adivce No. 1: Do not overplan. Follow the wind. Do what you like. Do not regret mistakes, because you'll make many, but also will have some good happenings.

I don't drink and would have to find an FL which seems like a pain and more prone to problems, based on what I've read. Again, it's my first time in that part of the world so I want to keep things simple. But yeah, if things don't go well, I'd have to find something else. What about KTVs?.

Do you speak Bahasa? In KTV you pay to have a girl with you in a room to drink and sing. Boring if you don't speak. Chinese DO LIKE THAT, but I would not.

Try Alishan at Formosa. Not so expensive and some girls are nice (one is my friend, ahaha, but she's not available for booking). You can ask the manager what girls are there for sitting and who for booking.

Most expensive KTV is M1, but again: what do you do there?

Will the hotel be helpful? Do they have ATMs I can withdraw from?.

Plenty of ATM, which is the best way to get local cash. I thought you WANTED to change, because you have cash. If you don't, use your DEBIT card to withdraw IDR from ATMs. There are more ATMs than western tourists.

Still trying to figure out where "Gold Bird" is.

Take an ojek and ask him to take you arounf for a tour. You will pay some extra, but it's worth to avoid the hassle.

Gold Bird's old name is Sedona.

Try Happy8 and Bunga, Havana, AVOID ANY MORENA PLACE.

[Trillian]

If you don't go out at night, I believe you miss the best, however then you MUST have booked a good girl for the night. If you regret your choice, I advise to kick her out with any excuse and go for bars.

I don't drink and would have to find an FL which seems like a pain and more prone to problems, based on what I've read. Again, it's my first time in that part of the world so I want to keep things simple. But yeah, if things don't go well, I'd have to find something else. What about KTVs?

Take you cash to an exchange counter. There are so many around. Avoid those in Nagoya Hill mall and at arrival at Harbour Bay, because of their worst rate. Ask to some in town, in Nagoya.

Will the hotel be helpful? Do they have ATMs I can withdraw from?

Still trying to figure out where "Gold Bird" is.

[Blanquiceleste]

Any experienced visitor of Batam will tell you the same: change in Batam, not in Singapore. (I am actually speaking to other readers, as I don't think I can convince you).

Try to read the SBF Batam Thread, where all posters are local or Singaporeans. It's unanymous: best rates are in Batam.

There is a reason: in Singapore they are not interested to buy SGD and all IDR come from currency trade, while in Batam they WANT SGD, fuel of local business.

I have to agree with this. I live in Singapore and for several years the rates in Indonesia for SGD have always been better than in Singapore. I have also got rates better than Ooanda or XE if you take along S $100 new bills.

The logic is simple - there is a huge demand for SGD in Indonesia. Practically none for the IDR in Singapore.

[Black Page]

Most people I know and even the indonesian I used to live with change before going to Indonesia.

Any experienced visitor of Batam will tell you the same: change in Batam, not in Singapore. (I am actually speaking to other readers, as I don't think I can convince you).

Try to read the SBF Batam Thread, where all posters are local or Singaporeans. It's unanymous: best rates are in Batam.

There is a reason: in Singapore they are not interested to buy SGD and all IDR come from currency trade, while in Batam they WANT SGD, fuel of local business.

[MakeItOrBreak]

Never change SGD to IDR in Singapore before going to Batam. Go to Batam and, if you have so much to change to make 1% or less a significant difference to you, ask around several exchange counters to identify the best deal. Negotiate and bargain.
I am used to ask all the booths along the Jalan Bonjol street in front of Nagoya Hill, where there is Nagoya Plaza hotel for example. If I change 500 USD, 1% is enough to pay a couple of taxi or several ojek rides.

There must be a reason if no Singaporean goes to Batam with IDR, but they all change their SGD on site after arriving.

The rates from SGD or USD to IDR in Batam approach or (absurd but true) may even be better than the rates you see on xe.com. If you offer new large-denomination notes. I think the reason is that someone needs foreign currency cash, say out of regular bank trade.

Most people I know and even the indonesian I used to live with change before going to Indonesia. I don't doubt that you can get a good exchange rate if you bring big denominations but like I said I never had better exchange rates in this world than in SGP. So if they are comparable with Google "sgd to idr" I do not personally see any benefit chasing down a good rate and changing there. If you change a lot of money I reckon the percentage counts but it it's 1 dollar different for me it is not worth the hassle!

[Black Page]

Singapore has some of the best rates I seen in the world. If they short change you with displayed price check google and ask politely if they can match which they normally try to do with some profit of course.

Never change SGD to IDR in Singapore before going to Batam. Go to Batam and, if you have so much to change to make 1% or less a significant difference to you, ask around several exchange counters to identify the best deal. Negotiate and bargain.
I am used to ask all the booths along the Jalan Bonjol street in front of Nagoya Hill, where there is Nagoya Plaza hotel for example. If I change 500 USD, 1% is enough to pay a couple of taxi or several ojek rides.

There must be a reason if no Singaporean goes to Batam with IDR, but they all change their SGD on site after arriving.

The rates from SGD or USD to IDR in Batam approach or (absurd but true) may even be better than the rates you see on xe.com. If you offer new large-denomination notes. I think the reason is that someone needs foreign currency cash, say out of regular bank trade.

[MakeItOrBreak]

If you don't go out at night, I believe you miss the best, however then you MUST have booked a good girl for the night.

If you regret your choice, I advise to kick her out with any excuse and go for bars.

No reason to use SGD. Few will accept it, and with a killing rate.

Take you cash to an exchange counter. There are so many around. Avoid those in Nagoya Hill mall and at arrival at Harbour Bay, because of their worst rate. Ask to some in town, in Nagoya.

Singapore has some of the best rates I seen in the world. If they short change you with displayed price check google and ask politely if they can match which they normally try to do with some profit of course.

[Black Page]

While Harmoni Hotel is in NED, its bar / disco is supposedly dead these days. And the booking sites most people recommend seem to be down near the shopping center. Am I better off at Suites if I don't plan on hanging out at night, past midnight?

If you don't go out at night, I believe you miss the best, however then you MUST have booked a good girl for the night.

If you regret your choice, I advise to kick her out with any excuse and go for bars.

As for money, can I use SGD instead? It's worth a tad more than 10 k IGD right now, but I don't care about the difference.

No reason to use SGD. Few will accept it, and with a killing rate.

Take you cash to an exchange counter. There are so many around. Avoid those in Nagoya Hill mall and at arrival at Harbour Bay, because of their worst rate. Ask to some in town, in Nagoya.

[Trillian]

I'll be visiting SEA for the first time next month, starting with 3 days in Singapore then a day in Batam before going onto Malaysia and beyond. Nothing I can do about the dates at this point. I'll be with a "bule" friend who's never been to Asia period.

My plan was to take an early ferry so we can grab lunch and settle in our room before heading out. But of course hotels check in at 2 pm, and while I've not had problems with getting a room early in western countries, I doubt they'd be as generous in Batam. So that's the first issue.

I want to book for a night, because I'm not a wham-bam-ma'am kind of guy. I want 2-3 hours per session so I don't feel rushed. Two hours would probably suffice but I don't feel good when I feel rushed. A few people recommend against booking, instead preferring a spa for first-timers, though.

Third, will I stand out if I use my Pixel 3 on the streets of Batam? I'm so bad at directions, I'd use GPS in the heart of Manhattan. I can bring along a Moto but its SIM slot doesn't work so it's only good with WiFi.

Also, I tried looking up Gold Bird KTV and Sedona but best I get is being redirected to Grand Dragon on Google Maps. Has it changed name again?

While Harmoni Hotel is in NED, its bar / disco is supposedly dead these days. And the booking sites most people recommend seem to be down near the shopping center. Am I better off at Suites if I don't plan on hanging out at night, past midnight?

As for money, can I use SGD instead? It's worth a tad more than 10 k IGD right now, but I don't care about the difference.

I probably have other questions but these are what I can think of right now.

FYI I RTFM and then some, not just this site but pretty much all the sites I could find on Batam.

Thanks guys!

[Action Boy]

Did you pull everything from booking joint?

Yes, for deed at hotel didn't try anywhere else. Did take a happy ending massage at one of the spas.

[Transporter]

Hey guys,

Not very active in this region but would love to share my recent experience with all the bros planning to visit Batam.

Visited for a few nights in the first week of Ramadan. As expected, was not very crowded.

Picked up ladies from KupuKupu, Sri Jaya and Havana. Visited JV Happy but didn't like any there even though they had the most number of women. Visited one or two others as well but wasn't happy with the variety. For new comers, recommend JV Happy and KupuKupu. Damages for LT were 1.2 Juta. Girls were all accommodating. No point sharing names as I'm quite sure they were fake and they didn't have numbers or I don't remember them at least. Overall great experience, recommended.

Tips for new guys:

- Don't waste time and money in bars unless you just want companionship and nothing later.

- You get what you see in massage parlors, if you don't see a girl you like when you enter, don't expect a beautiful one to show up in the room later.

Did you pull everything from booking joint?