Where to take ferry to Batam? I have answered this question in my previous entry – How to go to Batam from Singapore. I talked about the ferry price there too. It is not difficult to go Batam by ferry. We went there by Sindo Ferry. Sindo Ferry Pte. Ltd was created through the acquisition of Penguin Ferry Services Pte Ltd (PFS) in July 2011. The company states that it is the largest ferry operator to Batam on its website.

Sindo Ferry Review

Sindo Ferry offers hourly ferries to Batam Centre and Sekupang, fewer ferries to Waterfront City. The ferry we took departed from Singapore HarbourFront Ferry Terminal (HarbourFront Centre) to Batam Ferry Terminal (Waterfront City. Dollar for dollar, the ticket pricing is quite reasonable. You are advised to check-in and collect their boarding passes about 1 hour before ferry departure time. Check-in close 25 or 30 minutes before ferry departure at the respective terminals. The extra time is factored in for queues and processing of the documents. Please note on eve of long weekends, public and school holidays, more time is needed for expected longer queues due to bigger holiday crowd. You should check that you are issued with the correct boarding passes and that your travel documents are in order before leaving the check-in counter.

The seats were standard in size. The cabin was not very clean and smelled a little bit musty. Luckily, there was a television in the cabin. Time goes faster if you watch television. Just sit back, relax, watch TV and get ready for your arrival in Batam. The ferry also sailed smoothly across the Singapore straits. I still had phobia ever since my trip to Koh Samui. Our boat nearly sank – see Koh Samui Day Trips: Angthong National Marine Park Day Trip. Around an hour or less we reached the shores of Batam. To me, the ride was quite pleasant. Remember to adjust your time as Batam is one hour behind Singapore.

FYI. We stayed at Holiday Inn which was just near to the ferry custom. Holiday Inn provides free shuttle to and fro between the ferry terminal and hotel.