Dying to leave this island after two years of Covid-19 but not about to fork out the cash for an overpriced VTL flight? Rejoice, as you can now hop on a ferry to Batam or Bintan.
Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) from Singapore to Indonesia (Batam & Bintan) by ferry service will start on Feb 25, 2022 as part of Singapore’s simplified border measures, announced on Feb 16. That means you won’t need to quarantine after both legs of your journey if you’re fully vaccinated.
If you have family in Batam, it’s time to bust out the kueh at your first reunion in two years! For Singaporeans itching for a quick getaway, the trip to Batam or Bintan is a quick and easy 45 minute ride.
So, how do you get a VTL sea ticket? And how much will it cost to travel to Bintan or Batam now? Read on to find out.
The VTL Sea will operate from the Singapore Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal to the following destinations:
VTL Sea tickets can only be booked through one of the following ferry operators:
To book a Batam Ferry VTL trip from Singapore to Batam, select “Tanah Merah to Nongsa” on Batam Fast’s website. At the time of writing, you could only book trips in the first week of March 2022 or earlier.
Batam Ferry only operates VTL rides on Thursdays, Fridays and weekends. Here’s the schedule:
A round trip costs $80 per person. This is inclusive of boat fare, surcharge and departure fees.
To book a Bintan Ferry VTL trip, head to Bintan Resort Ferry’s website and select “Singapore (TMFT to BBT)”.
Bintan Ferry operates rides on Fridays, Mondays and weekends. Here’s the schedule:
A round trip costs$130 per person, including a $20 refundable deposit, boat fare, PCR test upon arrival in Bintan and levies / fees.
Travelling as a group or family? You can also go by private charter.
Travel requirements via VTL Sea are the same as for VTL Air.
You must:
What if you’re a tourist in Singapore and want to make a trip to Batam? If you are a short term visitor or work permit holder, you can also travel via the VTL on condition that you:
On Feb 23, 2022, the government launched Singapore-Batam and Singapore-Bintan travel bubbles. This isn’t the same thing as the VTR.
Here’s how the travel bubble differs from the VTL:
The requirements for the travel bubble are also different.
Travellers must:
Here’s how much you can expect to pay to stay in Batam or Bintan. We’ve used the lowest room rates for dates which accord with the VTL ferry schedules. At some Bintan resorts, staying from Sunday to Monday works out to be cheaper than Friday or Saturday night.
(excluding taxes)
1,274,14 SGD
If you are travelling via the travel bubble or are a work permit holder or short-term visitor to Singapore travelling via the VTL, you must have insurance offering at least 30,000 SGD worth of Covid-19 coverage.
For everyone else, travel insurance isn’t compulsory, but you should definitely still buy a plan with Covid-19 coverage! If you test positive for Covid-19 and are forced to cancel your trip, the insurance plan will enable you to recoup some of your costs.
ALSO READ: Travel insurance: Promo codes for 2022 and 7 more ways to save on it
This article was first published in MoneySmart.