Batam Info Thread

[nono1973]

Originally Posted by wala

Taxi drivers, they will try to get commission for every fcking thing they send you to, booking girls, food, hotels, blah blah. And not only the expensive food like Golden prawn, mostly they get 10% there, last time I used to tell the oldman at the cashier, no taxi with us and can get at least 15% discount. Even for Nasi padang like Mak Atek the driver gets some ciggi or aqua.

This is an interesting piece of information.

I know taxi driver do get commission from restaurants,takeaway food,girls and almost every damn thing delivered.But i didnt know they can get as high as 15% from restaurants and that there is a need to bargain with cashier to get a discount...lol. Lucky i dont frequent tourist trap restaurants like Wey Wey,Golden Prawn,Nagoya Hill Mall etc (cant take seafood too). No wonder i often see drivers in Batam so keen and enthusiastic in da bao-ing food for their customers,hehehe....(i have never once ask my driver/s to da bao anything for me before). Thats why i stayed in Formosa where nearly everything is within 2 mins walk away.

Now i am able to understand how why Wey Wey restaurant and Golden Prawn restaurant bill is very often so much higher than any other restaurants when i was treated by some friends there,hehehe... (almost double). I am comparing with the zhi char store near Mickey Mouse where 10 person ordered 2 fish dishes,some crabs and at least 8 to 9 other dishes,where the bill turn out to be only 700k. (maybe ambiance different)

Really really thank you for this piece of information.

Originally Posted by Ladymaster

Just have to comment on the staffs at formosa. I carelessly drop one of my small pouch during breakfast and only realising it when i am about to check out. Went back to down to try my luck to see if i can find it there and found out the staff actually found it and kept it for the time being. Kudo to their excellent services and integrity. This hotel will be on my priority list whenever im going to batam again.

Thank you for sharing. So much good things has been heard about the Hotel Formosa and it seems like a perfect hotel to stay in. Now i will take your post to point out their known "not-so-good" points,hehehe...just to be fair.

1. If one is staying at non-smoking area at the 3rd floor of the hotel,be known that Alishan KTV is usually just above those rooms. And yes,at time you will feel vibration or music from the 4th floor KTV.

2. Formosa Hotel was build 16 years ago,over time they have undergone several major renovation externally (like Wifi Strength,Gym,lightings etc) but their internal facilities are aging,eg Bath Tub wall are peeling,air-con in some rooms air-con are no longer cold enough,metal tap metal peeling,toilet wall turned yellowish etc. The good thing is they are gradually renovating EACH room a time in my last trip and i chance upon a room that are full renovated and it look brand new,hehehe...then again,they have 107 rooms,so its gonna take them a while to finish renovating. Air con not cold enough is one of the most popular complain among guests.

3. As Formosa Hotel are mainly carpet,it tends to attract uninvited insects staying within it,so they have to constantly spray insecticide within the hotel premises,hence sometime the rooms and hallways contain come level of insecticide smell.

4. Television antenna,this is something quite puzzling. During the day,TV channels are not working well,sometime some channels can be totally out-of-view. It happens mostly during the day starting from late morning till the early afternoon. It helps me to check out early tho...lol.

5. Phone charger that are in its room. The most popular phone charger from Samsung smart phone is almost always never working,hehehe....

6. No in-room safe...in most 3 star hotels around the world,there will at most time have an in-room safe,but not in Formosa Hotel. So one has to keep their valuable in the safe at the reception.

7. In the online booking stated there is a business center and yes it does have but that was 1 year+ ago. If you ask about the business center,the staffs will tell you it never existed. Reason,becos the new staffs that work there are new,i doubt they even know that there is a Business center in Formosa Hotel. Renting the business center table space is at 2k/hr. Internet speed is world slowest.

8. Not all room has a strong enough Wifi Strength,so better ask for a room with strong wifi if you are very wifi reliance person and if you do that,they usually put you near the lift area,hehehe...so you hear the lift "ting" sound whenever someone uses the lift,hehehe....you can still hear the sound in the middle of the night unless you turn on the TV.

9. Formosa Hotel has their very own filtration system for their tap water,but still tap water is unsafe for drinking. And becos they have their filtration system,sometime there wont be enough water to supply to hotel guest during drought season when hotel occupancy hit 90% and above.

10. Key card system in their hotel is also a bit rundown,meaning it works sometime,it doesnt at times. So make sure to check your room door is in locked condition before leaving your room.

I guess i hit 10 weakness of Formosa Hotel here.There is no such thing as a perfect hotel. It is up to one if they can live with its weakness,and if you can,it will be a perfect for you as this is a hotel that is safe enough to stay,and also a centralised hotel area where moving anywhere by foot is convenient.

My personal perspective,it is my perfect hotel to stay-in whenever i am in Batam.

Cheers!

[nono1973]

Originally Posted by johnkhb

I'm a bit of a Korean food buff, so I do know my Korean food..

Quality of this restaurant is 5/10 at best, and it's not cheap.. Me and my OC ate there maybe abt 18 months ago and it was abt 1 juta for 3-4 dishes..

Thank you for your reply,i always believe a lousy place should be named as much as a good place. Good place,go more often,no good place,to avoid. I guess Sarang bang Korean Restaurant food is more suitable for European taste buds as it is located in a tourist spot in NED,it could also meant to be a....hehehe....err...not for me,but mainly for bigger spender that can afford to spend w/o the need to think.

There is a Arirang Restaurant in Planet Holiday Hotel 2nd floor that does both Korean and Japanese food TOGETHER. Well,its Planet Holiday,so i guess it wont be cheap,hehehe...NED again.

There is another Sura Korean and Japanese Restaurant too. Its at Batu Ampar. Not much reviews noted except by tourists of the west.

Not forgetting there is Dae Jang Gem at Batam Center. This one appears to look a little more down to earth and appears to be more popularly rated (and frequent) by the Batam locals (or asian tourists) than tourists from the west :

Even tho there is an address,but i think it is not gonna be easy to locate this place even by using taxi hence it is the least popular among the 3.(cheaper too...lol.) Other than that,places/Hotels like Montigo Hotel Resort provides Korean food too,and thanks but no thanks,hehehe...i shant spell all of it here...lol.

[Arilus]

anybody going this weekend?

[lurpsexx]

Originally Posted by shahgila

I recommend Sederhana Nasi Padang. It is down the road from Harmoni Hotel and behind the police post. The beef rendang is incredible. But be prepared for lots of houseflies although it is fully air conditioned.

Hi bro..I had the same nasi padang in this restaurant..actually not that delicious as I had expected.. I feel the nasi padang in sg even more delicious than this branch..The food here is salty and cold..there are some other dishes at the counter that they did not bring to our table, that I had wished i had eaten..all in the price is not cheap and I'll eat somewhere else.. I think the food courts serve better food and cheaper, tho will be hotter due to the open air

[Bigbird00]

Originally Posted by lurpsexx

Hi bro..I had the same nasi padang in this restaurant..actually not that delicious as I had expected.. I feel the nasi padang in sg even more delicious than this branch..The food here is salty and cold..there are some other dishes at the counter that they did not bring to our table, that I had wished i had eaten..all in the price is not cheap and I'll eat somewhere else.. I think the food courts serve better food and cheaper, tho will be hotter due to the open air

Originally Posted by shahgila

I recommend Sederhana Nasi Padang. It is down the road from Harmoni Hotel and behind the police post. The beef rendang is incredible. But be prepared for lots of houseflies although it is fully air conditioned.

Thanks guys for your recommendation and opinion. More reviews will create a balance view. I will check it out when i'm there. Keep the local food recommendation coming please. I always practice going local i.e. eat, fcuk, ride local (unless due to really special circumstances).

p.s. yes nasi padang is very difference between MYS, SGP & INDO incl the cooking style and the ingredients used. SGP nasi padang is a hybrid between Malaysia & Java which have more gravy & spices. Indo ones are dryer and more basic which caters to office workers unless you go to those slightly higher end type like "Garuda".

[hawkeye007]

Originally Posted by lurpsexx

Hi bro..I had the same nasi padang in this restaurant..actually not that delicious as I had expected.. I feel the nasi padang in sg even more delicious than this branch..The food here is salty and cold..there are some other dishes at the counter that they did not bring to our table, that I had wished i had eaten..all in the price is not cheap and I'll eat somewhere else.. I think the food courts serve better food and cheaper, tho will be hotter due to the open air

I absolutely agree, the Sederhana diagonally across McDonalds Harmoni is absolutely crap. You would think that being in such a high traffic area and with so many hotels around, this Sederhana branch (there are quite a few in Batam) will have better food in terms of quality and "freshness".

On the contrary, the Sederhana branch at Kepri Mall is far better. The food are generally warm (if not hot) and the taste is fresher (ie, doesn't taste like it has been kept overnight). Kepri mall is only about 5km (15 mins) away from Nagoya area.

[funkymonk]

Hi guys,

trying to enquire if anyone has a link to the current money changer rates in batam. Friend coming in from australia and trying to find out if rates for AUD/IDR are competitive or if aud is even acceptable in batam.

Any advise people?

[hottip]

Originally Posted by nono1973

This is an interesting piece of information.
>>>>>

Thank you for sharing. So much good things has been heard about the Hotel Formosa and it seems like a perfect hotel to stay in. Now i will take your post to point out their known "not-so-good" points,hehehe...just to be fair.
.......
2. Formosa Hotel was build 16 years ago ......

Cheers!

I agree that there are more positives than negatives favouring Formosa.

This time around I discovered that the brand new Da Vienna, just 100m to the right of Formosa has a Soft Launch Promo of 450k a nite. I think their rack rates are 575-650k. The rooms are new and therefore no worned off carpeting, cigarette burns, excellent WiFi and really nice staffers. Even at the rack rates, its value for money. Not sure how long the Promo will last. Filling up fast. Location is also excellent. It is bout 50m to NHM and City Walk and almost joined to it. Just in case, better declare that I am not a shareholder of Da Vienna. Just a sharer of good deals, ..... thats my nick.

BTW, Red Crab is Offering 50% OFF their crabs. I think it is now Offered at 125-175k per kilo. Really good deal.

Bad News:
Unfortunately, Hapi Massage has joined the ranks of the "Chutters".
My friend took a pretty 1.2m by the name of Dian from Hapi. Beware, If a pretty one is still not taken by 5pm, we should have suspected that there is something wrong. However, we made sure that Mami Maya and the girl agreed that it is overniter and the girl (DIan) agreed to stay until 9am next morning. Of course Mami guaranteed no chutting, otherwise ...??? So he took her back at about 5pm. We wanted to go out for dinner, but Dian said that she did not want to go, and will stay in the hotel room. At her request, my friend ordered room service nasi goreng and drink (90k) as requested. He also told her that she can order room service if she needs anything else and put it in the room bill.
We came back at about 10pm after, dinner, roving, massage, and went to our respective rooms. As I had taken care of my needs at Kenzya, I wanted to sleep and did not need anyone to bother me. Good decision.
I was surprised to get a knock on my door at 11.30pm.
So this is the story: As soon as he came through the door, she (Dian) stripped naked and wanted to make out with him. My friend said, he was not in the mood and wanted to take it slow. But she really rushed it and was almost raping him. Anyway, according to my friend, after about 20 minutes, she told him, she had cum twice and was tired. But, my friend had not finished. So she don't care, complained that this and that pain, and went to the bathroom to wash. She then got dressed and told him that she is sick, headache, made belching sounds, act like she was going to vomit on the bed, etc, etc, .... and told him that she must go home to rest. My friend is already pissed off by now, and told her that she can rest and he won't disturb her tonight. Somemore BS nagging, and he just mai chai her and watched TV. She then just SPLASHED SOME PERFUME on her armpits, upped and left. So actually not much that he can do about it, except come to me to cry. Since I have both Mami Maya and Papi Aciang's numbers, I tried to call. Papi's phone is of course turned off. Who the fxxk would call him at that time of the night .. certainly not to thank him for the wonderful time and offer more bonus money. Mami Maya answered, and basically said, "What do you want me to do?" Of course, not much except to complain and say replace. So she retorted: "Well, everyone is asleep. Talk to Papi in the morning." I am sure this is Line #2 in the fxxk the customer Manual.
So tomorrow morning called Papi Aciang at about 11am. He actually picked up. This is time for booking leh. Mami had briefed him by then and warned him to expect our call.
So get this:
1) Girl Dian left because she got sick with gastric because we never gave her any food to eat.
2) My friend fxxked her 3 times already so she can leave.
3) She really really needed to go home to sleep.
So we asked her why does she need to splash on perfume to go home to sleep at 11.30pm???
Well, basically: Caveat Emptor - Suckers Beware !! If you want to fxxk, be prepared to be fxxked !!
Down to it, not much you can do except to post and make sure that if you are smitten by this pretty face and want to date Dian of Hapi, go in with your eyes open.
Just sharing, so Dian of Hapi fans, no need to waste bandwidth and flame me. Just making sure that you don't say. "I don't kno"

Cheers !

[Intltuk]

Originally Posted by hottip

....brand new Da Vienna, just 100m to the right of Formosa has a Soft Launch Promo of 450k a nite.
BTW, Red Crab is Offering 50% OFF their crabs. I think it is now Offered at 125-175k per kilo. Really good deal.

Good info. Tks for sharing.

Originally Posted by hottip

Bad News:
Unfortunately, Hapi Massage has joined the ranks of the "Chutters".

So get this:
1) Girl Dian left because she got sick with gastric because we never gave her any food to eat.
2) My friend fxxked her 3 times already so she can leave.
3) She really really needed to go home to sleep.
So we asked her why does she need to splash on perfume to go home to sleep at 11.30pm???
...if you are smitten by this pretty face and want to date Dian of Hapi, go in with your eyes open.
Just sharing, so Dian of Hapi fans, no need to waste bandwidth and flame me. Just making sure that you don't say. "I don't kno"

Cheers !

Wow, bad luck to snag such a girl....reminds me during my time there.......never mind...tat is history. Anyway, is it individual girl issue or establishment? Only fellow bros who had patronize can comment.

[KohOnly21]

Originally Posted by hottip

BTW, Red Crab is Offering 50% OFF their crabs. I think it is now Offered at 125-175k per kilo. Really good deal.

Probably will try out tomorrow

Originally Posted by hottip

Bad News:
Unfortunately, Hapi Massage has joined the ranks of the "Chutters".

It is part of the experience for chiongsters that frequent farms..

3 tips from my previous experience if really wanna the girl to stay:

1) Keep the 3rd bonk after 3am or until morning to prevent the girl for having "valid reason" to leave and do let her know that you have her papi number.

2) When you sense or the girl tell you that she wanna leave, tell her the amount of tips that you willing to give to her if she stayed until morning.

3) Personally i feel they are human as well, if you can hit their soft spot you can manipulate them. Eg, normally if my budget is tight or it's already my last night for the trip, i will not let my girl go if i liked her somehow. I will pretend to be sad and make her feel guilty if she was to leave me, after catching her attention i will then tell her why i picked her blah blah..

Some may think that why go through all this trouble to make a girl stay? We are the customer and they are suppose to serve us.. However, i see it like a game. The girl create drama to run but i create another drama just to cover her drama. I feel that is like trying to chase your crush but was rejected initially and finally you got it in the end.

And in Batam if your girl leaves you after 10pm and you do not have any other contact, most likely you will be sleeping alone unless you venture into fl/ktv girl.

[lurpsexx]

Originally Posted by Bigbird00

Thanks guys for your recommendation and opinion. More reviews will create a balance view. I will check it out when i'm there. Keep the local food recommendation coming please. I always practice going local i.e. eat, fcuk, ride local (unless due to really special circumstances).

p.s. yes nasi padang is very difference between MYS, SGP & INDO incl the cooking style and the ingredients used. SGP nasi padang is a hybrid between Malaysia & Java which have more gravy & spices. Indo ones are dryer and more basic which caters to office workers unless you go to those slightly higher end type like "Garuda".

You're welcome bro.. I'm always willing to share what limited info I have..

Ya, going loco is the best way to experience a place.. but have to be careful of whats going into our stomach and out of our wallets and dicks...

[nono1973]

Originally Posted by hottip

This time around I discovered that the brand new Da Vienna, just 100m to the right of Formosa has a Soft Launch Promo of 450k a nite. I think their rack rates are 575-650k. The rooms are new and therefore no worned off carpeting, cigarette burns, excellent WiFi and really nice staffers. Even at the rack rates, its value for money. Not sure how long the Promo will last. Filling up fast. Location is also excellent. It is bout 50m to NHM and City Walk and almost joined to it.

New Hotel Da Vienna looks good,3 stars hotel with brand new everything. One man's meat likely to be another man's poison. When i read your post,i went to do some study on it over its distance,location and rates,i shant comment much. Sad to say it isnt my kind of hotel as it doesnt have the type of rooms i need.

Bath tub is only available for junior suite and exec suite which is going to cost more than S$110+ on weekdays.According to the map,i need to walk past Lucky Plaza,walk past Mickey Mouse (and Nagoya 68 hotel) ,over New Berlian and then beyond the next junction and then turn right in order to reach the hotel from Formosa Hotel. Definitely more than double of the said 50m distance just from Formosa Hotel alone,hehehe...

Sorry,bro...i am looking at some particular type of room that ONLY Formosa has,and there are only 5 of such rooms available in the whole of Batam. It is an ongoing search and from your intro of this new Hotel Da Vienna,it has prompted me to look further outward and i found this :

Turn out its even worse...its a 4 stars hotel tho super brand new but charging at S$91.00 yet w/o a bath tub. If there is ONLY 2 decent hotels Da Vienna Hotel and Nagoya Hill Hotel in Batam,i will pay S$110.00 for Da Vienna's junior suite for their cute little bath tub shown below,hehehe...

Nagoya Hill Hotel is definitely over-rated.

I like Da Vienna Hotel's tiles tho,hehehe...

[MistressVamp]

going batam this fri...
any nice and cheap seafood to recommend?

too long never go.."lost touch" with the food....ahahhaa

by the way, will be staying at harmoni suites hotel

[wala]

Originally Posted by MistressVamp

going batam this fri...
any nice and cheap seafood to recommend?

too long never go.."lost touch" with the food....ahahhaa

by the way, will be staying at harmoni suites hotel

Wao MV U still go Batam for SPA huh? Now which SPA good deal n good price?

[hottip]

Originally Posted by Intltuk

Good info. .... . Anyway, is it individual girl issue or establishment? Only fellow bros who had patronize can comment.

Basically its the girl going to meet her bf or customer at mid-nite after she had taken 1.2m from my friend and committed to all-nite stay. You can say he got screwed, or half-a-screw. ..Hahaha. Expect that promises dun mean anything in this place. Something we take for granted in our sanitized Sillypore environment. Must never forget that. It is also being naive to expect the establishment to be customer service oriented. No CASE to complain to. Can't even sue either ... Pak Polis? well you can try but expect to feed out more $$ for nothing. ... hahaha.

Can't even say that she had completed her part of the bargain and done her 3 shots and leave. So it is not a question of holding off the 3rd shot until morning. The 3 shots is a lie she gave to her Papi. Besides being forced into upping her, my friend paid 1.2m, bought her room service dinner, really treated her nicely, but he never touched her, except for the half-a-fxxk she forced on to him, just to justify that he had upped her. Actually given the circumstances, she should not even need to have the conscience to have to do that.
The point is, not much you can do about this in Btm, and the girls who know this will exploit it with impunity. Bringing this up so we can all be aware of the realities in Btm. If you want to play in the snake pit, expect to get bitten !!!

Bro Nono, at 450k, I was happy with my deal at Da Vienna. The WiFi was excellent and that is very high on my list of needs. Sorry, maybe take the presidential suite if you need a place for hide and seek.

BTW, I checked out DjuDju. I think we can strike it off our list. The location is even further than Formosa to Da Vienna. It is in Jodo. Even I am not sure about walking around that area at night. The front lobby is nothing like what you see in the picture. It is really really run-down. If Da Vienna is not suitable for you, I guarantee you Nasi Lemak that DjuDju CMI for you ... hee !

Brother sharing Nasi Padang. I agree that NP varies geographically. Can you share where "Garuda" is?

Oh, talking about "Polis caring season", when I was in Beauty 2, my ML got called downstairs for over 30 mins, as the "Home Team" had turned up to do surprised urine check. Good thing they left the tamu alone, otherwise they'll get to smell my petai piss.

Cheers !