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Saturday, November 20, 2010

~ Batam trip @ Harris Resort - Day 1 (Part 1) ~

15th November 2010 - We are going on a short get away trip to Harris Resort Batam! Batam is an island of Indonesia and it is about 20km away from Singapore's south coast. We booked our tickets through Holiday Bagus, made payments online and received our travel vouchers through email after confirmation.

As Denver got to attend an award ceremony in the morning, Gladys & I took the MRT down to Habourfront to collect our ferry tickets first. We proceed to Level 3 and collected our boarding pass and white cards from Batam Fast as well as paying for the $20/person (Singapore seaport tax) in cash. (Batam Fast do not accept payments by Nets or Credit card).


We waited for Hubby and Denver to arrive, had breakfast at Mcdonald before departing. :) The good thing is we have a direct train ride to Habourfront and saved a lot on cab fares. Plus, the journey only takes 30-35minutes to reach.


Proceeding to Level 2 for departure. Ferry on the left and Cruise on the right. We checked the weight of our luggage and it exceeded 10kg! (I guess I stuffed too may clothes inside. :p) We checked-in our luggage and went in to wait at the departing lobby.


The ferry is scheduled to leave at 12:10pm and after 40 minutes of waiting, we are finally onboard!


The ferry will be stopping over at Sekupang and then heading towards Waterfront ferry terminal which will be our destination stop. The entire ferry journey took about 1 hour and 10mins.





After clearing the customs, the orange bus (from Harris) is already waiting for us outside, picking up guests to the resort which is only 3-4mins drive from the Ferry terminal. :)


Upon alighting from the bus, we were WARMLY welcomed by the staff from Harris with music and dance. They sling a bag around us including a map, activities and Dino kids club's daily schedule. We were also being served with home-made cookies as well as a welcome drink. The children also had pop-corns and hi-5s with some of the staff at the entrance. :)


Next, is checking out where is our room! Harris has rooms in the old wing (8 years old) - Harris Funky as well as in the new wing (~ 7 months old) - Harris Trendy. There are also Cabana rooms which are nearer to the beach with a private backyard.

Although the check-in time is 2pm, rooms are already ready and we were being allocated to a standard room at Harris Funky with a King size bed and pool view! :) Nice! As adviced by the staff, the rooms in the old wing are bigger and spacious. The furnishing is slightly old with some stained floor tiles but the room is clean and tidy. Bath tub is available in the toilet and it is not crampy too.


We definitely love the view from the balcony especially Gladys who enjoys standing by the balcony now and then to look at the swimming pool. :)



After settling down, it is time to explore around the resort. Our very first stop is the Dino Kids Club! Located at another building nearer to the new wing, the kids' club is a small room with toys, mini-slides and swing. The facilities within is suitable for the younger children and there is also a Dino Club Nanny who will help to keep the children occupied with the activities according to the schedule. Parents can probably leave the older kids but best to keep watch for the younger ones. :)



There isn't anyone when we arrived. (maybe due to the fact that it is a Monday?) The children played in the kids' room while we explore within the building. Adults can go for spa, sauna, foot reflexology, nail treatment or opt for sporty activities like bowling, table-tennis, billards, squash, archery and many others. (Note: Games/rental rates applies in SGD). Access to sauna, jacuzzi and gym is free and we also got a free bowling game and bicycle ride for 2.


We had a pretty late lunch and had no other options but to dine at Harris Cafe. We ordered a seafood pizza and a can of Fanta Strawberri which costs $5 SGD!!!!! Well, dining within the resort is expected to be expensive and the rates are in SGD (paid in Rupiah). Total Damages = $20 SGD. (We will bring lots of cup noodles and snacks to munch next time. Hahahahahah)

Luckily our package includes free breakfast and 1 time free lunch/dinner. We learned that there is a seafood resturant near the Ferry Terminal which is not too far away but was simply too tired to get out of the resort. Maybe next time. :)



Day 1 - Part 2 (To be continued....)

4 comments:

jfook said...

Owhhh I only heard about Batam in PCK's series. Thanks for "bringing" me to Batam. =D

JoyBea said...

S$5 for a can of drinks !!! ! ! ! ! !

faint !

Phoebe said...

Hi Jfook, Your welcome :)

Hi Jilly, YA! $5 sgd for a canned drink.. heartache. :p

the Charioteer said...

Batam is a nice place to visit =)

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