Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal
Majestic Ferry Service
Although you can book their ferry service online, there was no where to indicate our voucher number for the redemption. However, a simple email settled the booking. The service personnel replied fast, and asked for our details, selected ferry timing, and also our voucher number. Another email, and the service was booked. Thanks for the prompt response.
Batam Centre Ferry Terminal + MegaMall
So we took the 1030 ferry, and we arrived at around 1100hrs (Indo timing). Immediately, we went to Majestic Ferry Reception and booked our return trip. Everyone was doing the same thing, and i guess you should as well to avoid disappointment in inability to secure your desired ferry timing back to SG.
Lunch + Shuttle Bus
After booking the return tickets, we went to search for the Harris Barelang's service personnel. For your note, the service personnel will stand/ sit near the arrival gate, and they are wearing orange. We saw and approached them, and our names were made on their list of patrons. We were told that the bus would only left at 1200hrs and hence, we made our way to the Mega Mall for our breakfast. There is a walkway at the level 2 of the Batam Centre Ferry Terminal that directly links to the Mega Mall. Since we only had about 30 mins or less left, we decided for the favourite fastfood that we could no longer find in Singapore, and that's our All American Food, the A&W.
The food aint really cheap in Batam Shopping Mall, it costed us about 160k for the two sets of food. And honestly, i think the next day lunch (Wendy's chicken) tasted better than the A&W. Nonetheless, quick lunch and we were back to the ferry terminal, and was ushered to the shuttle bus.
The shuttle bus was kinda small, with about 13 passengers capacity, and the seats are FCFS. If you are slow, you could end up sitting separately, or taking seats that the leg rooms are smaller. So you might want to take note of this! The journey was 30mins, and the journey was kinda smooth after the initial heavy traffic after the ferry terminal. Along the way, not much scenery and you can see the famous Barelang Bridge just before you enter the Harris's compound.
Harris Barelang Resort
Reaching at around 1245hrs, the room wasn't ready and we were told to take a walk around. As the lobby was kinda empty then, took the opportunity to take some of the memorial scenic shot of mamaTan!
The lobby itself had a bar (you have to pay for the drinks) and a mini-mart. The mini-mart is not very well-equipped, but you could find your necessities if you have forgotten them at home. Together, it sells cigarettes, ice-creams, titbits, swimming toys, and most importantly the beer. You should buy the beer from here instead of ordering from the room service. The beers are selling at the range of 20k to 35k whilst papaTan ordered a beer through room service for about 85k. So yea, do remember this if you are going to drink.
There is a counter located just directly opposite the reception, and we were able to redeem our spa voucher there. The timeslots were surprisingly taken up fast, and you should book your spa right after your check-in. We captured the menu for your quick reference. For PapaTan, he took the Rejuvenating Therapy, and MamaTan took the Relaxing Therapy. We must say that the massage was good. The strength was consistent throughout the session, body parts were massaged in balance, and the ambience was good. Despite the price, we still recommend you to go for the spa and massage.
- took a walk at the surrounding while waiting for the room to be ready.
- huge area with alot of nice places for photo
- was hot, walked for about 20minutes and went back to lobby to wait for the room.
The weather wasn't forgiving that day, and we didn't walk too long and returned back to the lobby for our wait.