Batam - Singapore - Malaysia (Oct 2 - 10)

Let me share with you the trip I had couple of weeks ago to Batam island, Singapore, and Malaysia. I spent my vacation with my grandma, my auntie, and my uncle with his wife. This was my second visit to Singapore and my first to Malaysia. Below are our itinerary:

• We depart from Jakarta to Batam on Oct 2 using Air Asia flight service. We rode on their new aircraft: Airbus A330-300.
• We spent the night in Batam island at Harbour Bay Amir Hotel. I wouldn't recommend this hotel to anyone due to their quite expensive rates and remote location. But this hotel might be suitable to anyone who wishes to depart to Singapore from Harbour Bay Ferry Terminal since the ferry terminal is just 10 minutes walk from the hotel.
• We departed to Singapore from Harbour Bay on Oct 3 in the morning. The ferry trip took us just 30 minutes. This is faster than departing from Batam Center.
• After arriving in Singapore, the next thing to do is finding a place to stay. Most accomodation are fully booked due to Lebaran holidays. We finally found a convenient studio apartment owned by Beach Hotel located near the Bugis Junction shopping area. We only spent one night there due to the quite expensive rate but we extremely loved the place.
• In the evening we took the MRT train to go to Raffles' Place. We took on Singapore River Cruise. The city is so beautiful in the evening.
• On Oct 4 in the morning we relocate to a rental apartment owned by an Indonesian at People's Park Centre in Chinatown. This place is a good place to stay since the food are suitable for our Indonesian stomach.
• In the afternoon, we went to Sentosa. We got the chance to visit the Underwater World and Dolphin Lagoon.
• On Oct 5, in the morning we went to Esplanade: Theatres On The Bay. A little tip for you: take the lift to the top of the esplanade. It's wonderful.
• In the afternoon, we visited the Merlion Park which is within walking distance from the Esplanade. Here, we can take photos of ourselves with the emblem of Singapore city.
• Still in the afternoon, we visited the well-known Orchad Road. We had our late lunch at the Food Republic at Wisma Atria.
• In the evening we checked out the night market of the Chinatown where we shopped for souvenirs.
• On Oct 6, we departed from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We used the overly convenient Aeroline bus service. The trip took us 6 hours. We bus stopped at Corrus Hotel, but we didn't stay there because it is too expensive for us. We stayed in the classic budget hotel, The Heritage Station Hotel, located in the historical Old Railway Station.
• We spent the evening browsing through Petaling Street, the Chinatown of Kuala Lumpur. There's another good budget hotel here: Stay Orange Hotel.
• On Oct 7, we traveled to Petronas Twin Tower Skybridge in the morning. In the afternoon, we visited Genting Highlands via cable car. We hired a tour coordinator for our trips in malaysia. His name is Georga Salvam. He works for SIMA Travel & Tours. If you are on vacation in KL, you can contact him if you need his service. His number is +60 12 9023 851.
• On Oct 8, we took the Malacca Historical Tour with George, our tour coordinator. We checked out St. Peter Church, St. Francis Xavier Church, St. Paul Church, Christ Church, Famosa, Stadhuys, some other museums and Jonker Street. We loved the becak ride and the chicken riceball.
• On Oct 9, we returned to Singapore using Aeroline bus again. We returned to Batam that same day. This time we stayed in the confortable Hotel 89.
• I returned to Jakarta on Oct 10 but the rest prefer to spend another week in Batam island.

Well, I hope my information can be useful for those who wish to go to the same destination. Anyway, if you need a guide to go to Singapore or Malaysia, you can always contact me (you will pay for my expenses of course).