Batam

[BKKguru]

<snip>
After a while she suggests I go to the shower and freshen up so we can get things started. Walk into the bathroom, get the shower running, come back out to the room to grab my drink. There I find her with my wallet in her hands and half the cash out already! I'd been in the bathroom for like 15 seconds max to flick on the shower so she must be as quick as a damn mongoose to get the wallet out of my shorts and have the cash out already. She obviously got shocked when I came out so she dropped the wallet and cash on the floor. She's quite lucky at this point that I'm generally quite chilled, other guys would have handled the situation differently I'm sure. I know this kind of stuff happens, but was a first time for me in 15+ years of mongering all over the world. She then grabs her bag and walks out of the room.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

The exact same thing happened to me in Bangkok couple of years ago:

I had picked up a FL standing outside the gate of Hotel Nana (bang opposite the main entrance to Nana Plaza).
We walk back to my Hotel room for ST. I turn on the TV for her. I remove my jeans and leave it on the chair next to the desk.

I go into the shower and turn on the water. After less than 2 minutes, I walk back into the room with the towel tied around my waist. The water is still running in the shower.
I catch the girl in the act: she was holding my wallet in her hand, with my jeans still on the chair.

She mumbles sorry or something to that effect and looks very embarrassed. I gave her an angry look and point to the door. Tell her to leave before I call Hotel Security.
In all these years, this was the first time this happened to me.

The only difference is I did not lose any money. As you know, there is an advantage, when you pay *after* the deed.

~BKKguru.

[DonKey82]

Was in Batam over the weekend, and thought some might find my experiences of some help.

I arrived on the Saturday morning and was staying at the Harmoni suites. Was planning to take the easy option and hit some booking joints and try and find a cutie. I knew things would be tougher being a Saturday and many girls being pre-booked, but I started relatively early (2 pm) and went on a tour of a number of places. First I tried what (I assume) was Sedona. I couldn't see any sign, but my driver told me it was Sedona and was behind the Batam Star hotel. It has a Karaoke attached to it. The lineup there was pretty atrocious, maybe 10 or 12 girls, honestly the best was a 4/10.

I then told my driver to take me around the short list that I'd prepared from this site. First went to Happy8. I saw one girl there that had a body of 7+, but face of a 4. 5. Great body though so thought to myself I will come back for her if the other places do not produce. After this tried Sri Kandy (very few girls left, nothing above a 5), Bunga (highest number of girls. Nearly took one from here but figured the girl from Happy8 was slightly hotter and more smiley). After this I was pretty disappointed by the Batam mongering experience. But thought I would try to salvage the day by going back and taking the girl from Happy8. Before I did, driver suggested we try two others. One called MM or something of that nature, and another called Morena 30. This was where things took a turn for the worse. There was a girl at Morena 30 who looked quite good, and was giving off a friendly vibe. Overall she's probably a 6. 5, though she has some huge mole / growth thing on her eyebrow that I couldn't see until she gets outside. Nevertheless decided to forego Happy8 girl and take her instead. 1. 4 m was agreed and paid, and she came back to the hotel with me. Poured a glass of wine, she lights a smoke, chatting and listening to music. So far so good, she seems nice.

After a while she suggests I go to the shower and freshen up so we can get things started. Walk into the bathroom, get the shower running, come back out to the room to grab my drink. There I find her with my wallet in her hands and half the cash out already! I'd been in the bathroom for like 15 seconds max to flick on the shower so she must be as quick as a damn mongoose to get the wallet out of my shorts and have the cash out already. She obviously got shocked when I came out so she dropped the wallet and cash on the floor. She's quite lucky at this point that I'm generally quite chilled, other guys would have handled the situation differently I'm sure. I know this kind of stuff happens, but was a first time for me in 15+ years of mongering all over the world. She then grabs her bag and walks out of the room. Obviously we both know there's no chance to salvage a good session from this. By this time she's been in my room maybe 20 minutes total.

I see her as I'm walking out through the lobby and tell her I'm going to go back to her work and speak to her boss to try and get this resolved. The cash I paid him is not a material amount, but it's the principle of the matter now as my Saturday night is likely ruined. So I head back to Morena 30 and speak to the guy behind the desk. At first this guy plays dumb / pretends to speak no English, then he makes a phone call and I wait 10 minutes or so for another guy to appear. This guy's English is fine, but he's a bigger criminal than his thief of an employee. He just stands there with a shit eating grin on his face saying 'oh no sir. The girl say you finish with her two shots and it is 700 k per shot so there's your 1. 4 m gone'. From when I took her to when I returned is probably 45 minutes. 20 minutes in the room. Never touched her and she never undressed. I said to him what you think I'm superman I can finish 2 shots in 20 minutes? He knows its bullshit, my driver who has come back in with me knows its bullshit, but Morena (I assume) manager is just sat there with a smug grim effectively saying 'too bad Bule'. Few times in my life have I been as tempted to smack someone in the face. But I was sober and assumed the law would not be on my side if I did. In the end after 45 minutes of back and forth with the guy I left. Lesson learnt. Batam is surely a snake pit, and Morena 30 is the worst of it. So go there if you want to get robbed by the staff and the management. In some later google research I discover that Morena as well as the MM place that my driver took me to are on a 'blacklist' on another (albeit quite old) mongering website post, so I'm not the first.

I decide to give up on the girls for Saturday and go for a good feed at Barelang seafood instead.

Sunday morning go for an early regular massage, then decide to try my luck at the booking houses again (obviously avoiding the thieves at Morena 30 this time! Went a bit earlier to see if that helped. Reached Sedona by 1 pm, literally 5 girls in there, nothing above a 4 again. Quickly left. Second stop was Bunga. Again. Large number of girls, pricing was 1 m or 1. 3 m for the range depending on who you picked. Took a Balinese girl for 1. 3 m. Face a 7, body probably a 5. 5 but couldn't see this until I got her back. Enthusiasm / attitude was an 8 though. Had a good session, went out for dinner, then another good session, then let her go with a tip. Was heading back on an early ferry on the Monday so that was the end of my exploits for the trip.

So that was a wrap on my first Batam mongering expedition. Sure I made a couple of mistakes, but my impression mirrors that of some other posters on this board. The place (if it was once good) is at least, in my opinion, now shit. The best girls I saw after visiting all of the places over those two days were of a standard you would not even look at in say Jakarta or even KL. Of course I know this is not Jakarta, but if you are Singapore based, my opinion is you should just spend a little bit more and play there. The girls will be hotter, you are less likely to get hustled, and the law is more likely to be on your side if you do. Plus, Batam itself is a pretty awful place.

That being said I don't like to write a place off after one tour, so who knows, may revisit in a couple of months once the sour taste of this tour is out of my mouth. Will report back if I do!

[Eszpresszo]

But seems the good Batam times are gone.

Why? Just because somebody on an internet forum, whom you've never met, told you so? I suggest you find out for yourself. Veracity is fleeting, and the "Debbie downers" always seem to hit me as people who never got more than 50 miles from home. Then again, YMMV. Best wishes and best of luck.

[Fiz2667]

A second thing is that it is not so good as years ago, when me "average white foreigner" had virtually no limits in scoring a sexy girl in a club or even in a mall. My Western face and nose were enough to make ladies to feel flattered by my smile to them. Now, too many Western men have spoiled the place already, including those who did not leave a good memory of their education and manners, so to speak.
A striking consequence is that, if years ago I could approach any girl in a disco and get at least a smile and handshake back, now more than half of them turn the face to the other side (I am speaking about disco, not pub).

So sad to hear that. I remember, some of the cutest ladies I invited to join me for short trips to Bali, Yogya, etc. And they happily followed me. What a great time I spent in Indonesia. I was always hoping to make sometimes a "revival" trip to Batam and refresh my wonderful memories. But seems the good Batam times are gone.

[Black Page]

My report of last Saturnight night, supposedly the best night to score freebies in Batam clubs. Unfortunately, the times have changed.

One thing is that there seems to be more money circulating around, or at least the middle and upper class have expanded, while the lower strata are still struggling in misery.
Therefore, consistently over all my last visits to Batam, I have seen less ladies (above some social level) hunting for a supposedly rich foreigner in clubs of kampung bule (basically, there only No Name and Foreplay qualify for that, as the others are mostly places where to play billiard and drink with PR ladies).

A second thing is that it is not so good as years ago, when me "average white foreigner" had virtually no limits in scoring a sexy girl in a club or even in a mall. My Western face and nose were enough to make ladies to feel flattered by my smile to them. Now, too many Western men have spoiled the place already, including those who did not leave a good memory of their education and manners, so to speak.
A striking consequence is that, if years ago I could approach any girl in a disco and get at least a smile and handshake back, now more than half of them turn the face to the other side (I am speaking about disco, not pub).

So, yesterday Saturday (I wrote these notes few days ago) I went to No Name, previously the highest highlight of Batam's Saturday night fever. Years ago, at 1am it was so packed to have problems in choosing a stunning girl among many. Yesterday, it was just 50% full, and all ladies were old-seasoned PRs, who go there every night for months in a row if not years. Not even so sexy, just average bar girls. I recognize some faces as I have seen them at least 1 if not 2 years ago there already.

I spent my effort to discriminate professionals and find possible casual ladies who go out on Saturday to have some fun. I found ONE lady, around 35yo, average looking with the dress of weekend, who was not there to work. Alone, just seeking some entertainment after a week of boring work in office. In brief I decided to invest on her and leave the "disco B plan after 2am" for another day.
I proposed her to leave that sad place and move to Square.
She has a big car, and it was a while I was not driven around Batam by a lady on her own car.

So now, finally, let me go to the topic addressed in the title of this post: SQUARE CLUB at I-Hotel Penuin.

You must go there at least once on a Saturday. It is instructive indeed. There is some rich people in Batam, but you will not see them if you stick to Nagoya malls, clubs, kampung bule, etc.
Parking: full of new shiny cars.
Entry cover ticket: rp 200k per person (yes, 200,000), including one BINTANG BEER as "free drink" (in can, I had to request two glasses otherwise I would have not got that). Yes, the same Bintang beer that is the cheapest drink offered in a disco or billiard bar.
Maybe the 200k is not for every Saturday, maybe the DJ was a famous one from Jakarta, who knows. However, this is the most expensive cover charge I saw in Batam.

So, too late to show me stingy in front of the lady, I had to pay this 2x200k = 400k for me and the lady.
Inside: FULL. I mean packed. Impossible to find place if not pressed from all sides. Everyone paying the 200k cover charge, plus bottles and cocktails in quantity. The average spending there is above 500k per person, I believe.

Some Western men, but very few. 95% of people were local upper-class youth.
Jeez!! If you want to see and get to know what is a sexy Indonesian, go there.
There is NO OTHER PLACE IN BATAM (I am sure in JKT it's a different story) where you can see how sexy Indonesian can be. Long dress, high heels, regrettably short pants under the dress instead of a sexy slip as in Europe, perfectly arranged make-up and hair. I was mesmerized.

NO, I did not regret to go there with this lady instead of hunting freely. The girls there are not there to hunt for money. They SPEND the money, or better have a boyfriend who does not care about money and spends.
In short, I know that my chances there approach zero, as I do not look as Brad Pitt and I do not have a Lamborghini parked outside.

The DJ is on another upper level compared to the clubs in Nagoya. So the ambience and music too. It's a place to visit at least once, unless one really believes that the most expensive places to go in Batam are Bunga and M1 Pub.
Trust me, I still have some long legs planted on high heels printed in my eyes.

I know what you naughty mouthwatering old dudes want to know: my lady.
At 3am, she said she was sleepy, she wanted to go back. So I asked her to drive me back to Formosa, we went to the room, and she kept on saying she wanted to leave because sleepy. No resistance though when I started to unbotton her dress here and there.

Once naked, she positioned herself with open legs, knee up, and waited with eyes closed. Just that. I proceeded, and the only reaction from her was smiling and some noise. No action. She said she does not like BJs. Then she turned, closed the legs, started to move up and down with my dick inside, had her climax in that odd way, then she patiently waited I had mine.
Not that she was pretending anything. She really must feel the sex in that way.
We changed a few positions, then my experience came out in that situation.

I decided to not come and release my climax, but to keep my bullet and libido level for another lady later. Yes, I had a massage girl fucked at Sweet Massage few hours before, and the number of bullets I have is limited, so I try to save when I can.

After exchanging phone numbers, I accompanied her to her car at 4am. She told me "YOU WILL NOT HAVE ANOTHER GIRL NOW, RIGHT??"
To be honest, my time in Batam is short, and why should I refrain?
I like this lady, because she's a good person and I respect her, but I also want to hunt.
So, I said no, I waited to see her car leaving the parking, I took an ojek, and at 4:30am I triumphally made my entrance in Newton.

PS: No happy end. Newton was still full, but mostly couples and groups of friends, as usual on a Saturday. Local girls are not flashed by bule anymore, just because bule. They stick to their friends.
Working girls at that hour must have been taken already. So, at 5:30am I went back sleeping.

PPS: Be careful, I found one or two ladyboys there, both in Newton and P3 (different ones). In the darkness, it's easy to be confused and be happy if a tall girl starts smiling at you. If you have some experience, you can detect the typical way of a ladyboy to move, smile, touch the hair, and you should be not fooled before having his/her tongue in your mouth. Good luck.

[Black Page]

Yesterday I had the pleasure to experience de visu the Indonesian Police in action.

Just 30 minutes after I entered Foreplay in Kampung Bule, and I just started sipping a glass of orange juice with a drop of vodka, a huge anti-narcotics Police task force entered the premises to do drug tests and check people.

Of course, this is not Texas and policemen are not like in USA. So, instead of putting everyone against the wall with hands raised, pointing automatic rifles against the chest of the slower ones, everything was much smoother. No cowboys, neither emulators of Joseph Arpaio here, but just Indonesian-style smiles. You know, the same face you get regardless you are complaining for something or giving kudos for service in a hotel.

The main Officer stepped on the stage, stopped the band, and asked kindly to switch on lights ("lampu, lampu tolong"). I did not notice that before then, but about 20 policemen with and without uniform had already entered the room and were filling up all sides.

Then, other policemen armed with professional photocameras and cellphones started to videorecord all the procedure and to take photos of the people.

I guess today my face with all others must be posted on local newspapers and must have been already broadcasted on local TV News, as an evidence of how seriously Batam Police fights drugs here*.
A girl next to me was scared as hell, fearing her face was going to be seen by her parents at home.

(*I don't think they have ever sold drugs in Foreplay, but as a matter of fact every time I enter P3 or P2 I am literally pestered by a few thugs who stand in front of me expecting I buy obat. I am sorry to disappoint them. Their business seems ok even without me, however, at least judging by the number of people shaking heads with eyes closed.).

Everything took less than 30 minutes, and I am not kidding it was done in an extremely professional way (I hope they will not post faces on TV news. I don't care, but others may). Female Officers searched the bags of some random girls. Other people was asked to peeee (will this pass this damn ISG censorship?) in test bottles, I think, because in front of all videocameras like playing a movie scene the officers started to check with a chemical test set some liquids in 4 small plastic glasses.

Everything, everything done with smiles and very kind attitude by all police officers. This is Indonesia, not USA, so instead of fearing a shot in my chest, should I do anything unexpected, I had the feeling that they were going to offer flowers to ladies and other gifts to guys once finished.

Regrettably, no flowers for me or the ladies. Just a big "thank you" to everyone for the collaboration, smiles at 360, and even an applause to our beloved police when they left the room.

Then, business as usual. Music restarted and sexy dancers jumped on stage.

I love Indonesia. Did I say that already?

[Blanquiceleste]

What you mean with " instead of going through all this"? In my last paragraph "The Good News", I explained that it's now easy to buy a preregistered card on arrival in Harbour Bay and forget all hassle.

Did not get that far. I know the erstwhile lengthy procedure of registering a SIM card. Hence my comment of "instead of going through all this".

Now that you mention pre-registered SIM cards, it just makes things easier I guess.

[Black Page]

Thank you for the update. But really, instead of going through all this, (ASSUMING ONE IS TRAVELLING TO BATAM FROM SINGAPORE) it is easier to get a Starhub or Singtel pre-paid which comes with an option of free data roaming in Batam. Sure, you need to register the SIM card in Singapore too, but that is easier and less questionable that getting a SIM card in Batam, especially for those who want to makea discrete side-trip from Singapore.

Nearly everyone is travelling to Batam from Singapore, but not everyone lives in Singapore and travels to Batam for a weekend of relax to ease his Singaporean work stress. I travel from Europe, I go to KL (it could be anywhere), and I simply transit in Singapore on my way to Batam.

I don't understand what you mean with "questionable" and "discrete". What is not discrete in buying a SIM card in Batam, and register it or not? I am perplexed.

By the way, your passport is stamped every time you cross the border. So, if you want to keep your travels to Batam hidden to your most significant one, having a Simpati card in the wallet is the least and last of your problems.

Finally, last time I was in Singapore for a week I bought a Starhub card. Once I activated it for roaming, I discovered I had only 2 GB (enough in most cases, but less than the 6 GB I have on the Simpati card), and most important it did not work anymore once I returned to Singapore. It seemed a one-way step.

My advice is to simply spend those Rp 120k (12 SGD, or 8 USD), buy a pre-registered Simpati card including 6 GB of data on 4G LTE, and enjoy 20 Mbps without hassle.

What you mean with " instead of going through all this"? In my last paragraph "The Good News", I explained that it's now easy to buy a preregistered card on arrival in Harbour Bay and forget all hassle.

[Blanquiceleste]

An update for all those who plan to come to Batam and need a SIM card.

The lengthy procedure for registering SIM cards In Indonesia, mandatory for using them without any grace period, is still in place (see my previous posts for details). When you buy a new SIM card, you MUST register it, providing your Indonesian ID number or Passport number if you are foreigner, or the SIM card cannot be activated. I asked several people in various shops, and all confirmed me the same.

Thank you for the update. But really, instead of going through all this, (ASSUMING ONE IS TRAVELLING TO BATAM FROM SINGAPORE) it is easier to get a Starhub or Singtel pre-paid which comes with an option of free data roaming in Batam. Sure, you need to register the SIM card in Singapore too, but that is easier and less questionable that getting a SIM card in Batam, especially for those who want to makea discrete side-trip from Singapore.

[Black Page]

An update for all those who plan to come to Batam and need a SIM card.

The lengthy procedure for registering SIM cards In Indonesia, mandatory for using them without any grace period, is still in place (see my previous posts for details). When you buy a new SIM card, you MUST register it, providing your Indonesian ID number or Passport number if you are foreigner, or the SIM card cannot be activated. I asked several people in various shops, and all confirmed me the same.

In the next lines, I will focus on Simpati cards, as they are the most widely used and maybe also the best performing.


1) Those who have an Indo ID (NIK, NOKK) can register sending a message: "UNTUK REGISTRASI SILAHKAN KETIK *444*NIK*NOKK#".

An employee at the TelKomSel Service Center told me that this can done also by a foreigner, sending the passport number instead of the NIK, but I doubt it may work. Should it really work, it would mean that the system accepts a registration giving any random number, as I doubt the system can check the existance and regularity of a passport number of foreign countries.
I did not try this simple way, and later I will explain why.


2) Those foreigners who do not have an Indo ID can register ONLY going to a Grapari Service Center of TelKomSel Customer Care. There is one at Nagoya Hill, another one at Penuin, at Batam Center, etc.

Assuming the *444* message cannot work with a foreign country passport, there is no other service center other than Grapari which can register the card under a foreign passport number. The shops cannot, even the big ones, not to say the small kiosks.

This is pissing off enough, and that is the same situation I reported in May 2018, but there's a good news now. The INDONESIA BOLEH Task Force has developed suitable antibodies.

The Good News

Many small shops are now selling pre-registered SIM cards. All such shops include all those small counters recently opened at the Harbour Bay arrival lounge, which you see right after the immigration and security screening, and a few ones at Lucky Plaza.

I tried to understand what are those pre-registered SIM cards, and under what name are they registered, but I received only Indonesian-style smiles back. Someone tried to say "It's TelkomSel which preregister cards", but of course it could not be exactly that, as the reason of imposing registration was to associate each card to a precise physical person, for security purposes. I think someone is pre-registering cards using random NIK-NOKK numbers.

This is a BIG RELIEF for all those like me, who visit Indonesia for few days, and would be not really happy to have to spend 1-2 hours, after buying the SIM card, to reach a Grapari point and queue just for this burocratic requirement.

At Harbour Bay Arrival right after Immigration, I chose the counter with the nicest smiling girl (a business criterion as others).
I found the pre-registered Simpati cards for 4G LTE data access sold for 150k (9 GB one month) or 120k (6 GB). I bought the second, without inquiring other shops to find a better offer because I was in hurry. Being in hurry made me probably miss the best deal, but I really had no time to spend to save 20k
Also SIM cards of other operators are on sale, cheaper down up to 50k for 3G access, but I preferred to opt for the best. I tried the speed transfer and I achieved 20 Mb/s via my mobile wifi router.
A signage on top of the glass showcase of another counter advertises cards with 3GB data for Rp 80k (I don't remember what Operator).

The shop at Harbour Bay was not sellng cheaper SIM cards for phone calls. I went to Lucky Plaza, where after few inquiries I found a shop selling pre-registered Simpati cards for phone calls (the "pre-registered" feature is the key feature and is not offered everywhere). I could choose between cards costing 75k including 10k of balance, but not pre-registered, and pre-registered cards costing 75k but with 0 balance. I bought this one and I added 20k balance (plus 2k service charge, total 97k).

[Black Page]

I forgot there's also Delta Spa. Expensive and questioned by some, but appreciated by others.

I apologize for the repeated incremental postings, but I just read on another forum about another spa, which I know but I totally forgot when I wrote my previous posts: New Spa at Batam City Hotel.

Again, Delta Spa is expensive and questioned by some, but appreciated by others. I guess YMMV. I suggest to avoid.

Atalanta and Octopus have a good reputation instead. I went once to Octopus, and it was perfect but not what I seek in Batam: very good service by a very pretty young girl in a clean good room, but overall a very mechanical SOP.

What I have never heard about is the places that you asked about (First Choice spa, MyIndoThai, Fame spa). And if I have never heard about them, there must be a reason. Either secret goldmines that nobody know, either nothing interesting for the average reader of ISG

I see you have asked the same question on SB, and there you got more or less the same response I gave you, that is "If i were to reply to your exact question word by word,my answer would be "there is NO men's spa" near BCS". However, Mr. Nono (a real expert, as he goes there every 1-2 months from Singapore) also pointed you to New Spa and Fame Spa, this mentioned as a new location, very expensive and quite far away. Try and report!

[Black Page]

NO. The only acceptable spas in Batam are maybe Octopus and Atalanta (near Harbour Bay). (I keep this simple to make it understandable)
See my reports here for details about more opportunities besides a spa.

I forgot there's also Delta Spa. Expensive and questioned by some, but appreciated by others.

Please note that I have never been in any of those 3 places, except one time at Octopus, as that kind of places are not "my cup of tea" in Batam. If one seeks the "spa experience", should go somewhere else.

[Black Page]

I have 3 good news. The first two are good just for me. The third for everyone interested to go to Batam.

1) I will be back on site in October. My mouth is watering already. Stay tuned.

2) My Formosa Membership Card is now Silver. Quite an achievement for someone who lives 10,000 km away! Ok, not the same as SPG Elite, but I feel proud. The good news is that I achieved my first free night with points. In October my bill will be lighter.

3) I heard a couple of people saying that now the SIM card registration at Grapari for foreigners is not necessary anymore, or was made simpler. I will find out once on site and report here, as always.

[Blanquiceleste]

NO. The only acceptable spas in Batam are maybe Octopus and Atalanta (near Harbour Bay). (I keep this simple to make it understandable)
See my reports here for details about more opportunities besides a spa.

I think there may be some confusion in terminology here. You are absolutely right BP that only Octopuss and Atalanta would qualify as a SPA in its pure definition.

I get a sense that the board member is referring to common massage parlors, which sometimes call themselves spas. LOL.

[Black Page]

I don't see your point, anyway for the benefit of other members do you know any spa near BCS mall since you are familiar with it?

NO. The only acceptable spas in Batam are maybe Octopus and Atalanta (near Harbour Bay). (I keep this simple to make it understandable)
See my reports here for details about more opportunities besides a spa.