Batam Island Hotels

Batam is a small but busy island in Indonesia of 45km x 25km and nearly a million people, hundreds of multinational owned factories, towns, shopping centres and gateway to the Riau Islands. Other destinations Rempang Island - rural island dotted with coastal villages on stilts Galang Island - location of former Vietnamese refugee camp Understand Located only 20km from Singapore and 25km from Johor in Malaysia, Batam is Indonesia's equivalent to China's SEZ's (Special Economic Zones) - a place where the nation's economic planners test new economic policies and ideas. The island is an industrial hub with electronics factories, a large and growing ship repair industry and an even larger oil service sector. Quite a few expats head there for work, and pubs and golf courses have sprung up to serve them. Most tourists, on the other hand, used to come from nearby Singapore and were mostly interested in illegal casinos, which have been closed for several years now. In any case, you're better off going elsewhere, such as Batam's more resort-y neighbor Bintan, home to the peaceful capital city of the province Tanjung Pinang. Bandung was originally established in the late 19th century as a colonial garrison town, but it rapidly acquired importance as a commercial and educational centre. Because of its pleasant climate – it stands at 750m above sea level – the Dutch even had plans to make it the capital prior to WWII. Bandung's most notable entry in the history books was as host of the Asia-Africa conference in 1955, which finally placed it in the world spotlight. The main attraction of Bandung is its proximity to sights; high volcanic peaks, hot springs and enormous tea plantations are all easy day trips from the city. But with its cool climate and a handful of its own attractions, Bandung is worth a day or two of your time. This is the place to dip into Sundanese culture and, with street after street of shopping options, explore the depths of your shopping desires.