For detailed information on visas, please see Indonesia page. All Bintan ports, namely Sri Bintan Pura Tanjung Pinang, Lobam and Bandar Bentan Telani/Lagoi Bintan Resorts are visa-free and visa-on-arrival points of entry.
As of July 2011 a 7-day visa on arrival at 10 US$ per person is available again for individuals. This visa is valid for visits to the special economic zone of Bintan / Batam / Karimum only.
By ship
You are most likely to arrive by boat. Most international travelers arrive from Singapore and Johor Bahru. Bintan is also the major domestic seaport for the Riau Islands and is a port of call for Indonesia's major passenger shipping company Pelni. The ride across itself return ticket around S$50 is worth the trip. Make sure you get on the open deck most locals stay in the air-conditioned cabin. Close to Singapore, hundreds and hundreds of oil tankers, freighters and huge container ships from all over the world literally fill up the horizon in any direction. Later on on the ride, there will be small islands dotted across South China Sea, most seem uninhabited, with mysterious jungle coastlines, and dark volcanoes in the background. Just use your imagination and think about the pirates that have been hiding on those islands for centuries and are still now, or how participants of the "Survivor" TV series would cope on such an island, with huge pythons all over the jungle.
There are several passenger ports in Bintan. The most common one is at Tanjung Pinang where most short-distance inter-island ferries and those from Singapore and Johor Bahru dock. The other ferry terminals are at Tanjung Uban, Kijang where Pelni boats dock, and Teluk Sebung which serves the Bintan Resorts area on the northern part of the island. Please see Bintan Resorts for details to get to that part of Bintan.
From/to Singapore
three companies - Penguin, Indo Falcon and Berlian/Wavemaster - operate ferries between Singapore's Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal and Tanjung Pinang. Together, they operate six ferries on weekdays, increasing to nine during weekends and public holidays. Tickets cost around S$50-59 return / S$40 one way excluding Indonesia port tax. Berlian/Wave master Tel: +65-67869959 in Tanah Merah FT / +62-771316636 Indonesia Indo Falcon Tel: +65-62706778/62757393 in Singapore, +65-65426786 for booking enquiries Penguin Tel: +65-65427105 in Tanah Merah FTThe various ferries from Singapore take around 2 hours to get to Tanjung Pinang. When you arrive you should confirm your return at the ferry company offices ASAP as the ferries can get full. It is impossible to get out of the terminal without a guide latching on to you, so take advantage and get them to show you where the office is, they may offer to do this anyway. It is roughly - left out of the terminal, then take the first left and the office is at the end of the street and should only take a couple of minutes to reach.