Batam's symbol
A cable-stayed bridge.
Alex wong killerfvith — CC0 · Cabajar — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ivetta Inaray from Jakarta, Indonesia — CC BY 2.0 · Cun Cun — CC BY-SA 4.0
A chain of six bridges linking Batam island with Rempang, Galang and small islands between them, its name taken from the first letters of Batam-Rempang-Galang. They were completed in the late 1990s on the initiative of Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, who went on to become Indonesia's president, so the area sometimes bears his name. The best known is the first bridge, a cable-stayed span running about six hundred metres over the sea, its tall towers fanning cables, which has become Batam's foremost symbol and the backdrop of visitors' photos. On either side are stopping points, small cafés and seafood restaurants overlooking the sea and islands. It is free, loveliest at sunset when the towers light up and in the morning when the sea is clear. You can continue over the other bridges to Galang and the old Vietnamese refugee camp. The bridge is about forty minutes by car from central Batam; watch the traffic when stopping for photos.
A cable-stayed bridge.
Linking Batam, Rempang and Galang.
Restaurants over the sea.
South Batam, on the road to Rempang and Galang islands
By ferry from Singapore in about an hour, or from Johor Bahru in Malaysia, or by air to Hang Nadim airport from Indonesian cities.