In what looks to be a difficult year ahead, it's travel without the trappings that holiday-makers need. BT Weekend explores several value-added destinations where some of life's most simple yet enjoyable pleasures - pure white beaches, quiet time, unspoiled territory - can be discovered afresh.
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Nikoi Island
Off the east coast of Bintan, Indonesia
Tel 9635-1950 www.nikoi.com
SO, a vacation at Richard Branson's Necker Island may seem a little too indulgent given the current economic clime, but keep those boater hats on - you don't have to rule out all private islands when choosing your next travel destination. Another option closer to home offers guests a chance to get closer to nature, too, and it's nearly as comfortable as ultra-luxurious Necker.
Nikoi (why, it even sounds alike) Island is a private island off the east coast of Bintan that's owned by six expatriates who 'share a passion for the outdoors, nature, food and wine'. Presumably used as a trading post outside the port of Tanjung Pinang at the turn of the 20th century, it began operation as a holiday destination last May with six Robinson Crusoe-inspired beach houses that can accommodate 22 guests, with another nine to be completed next May.
The new owners acquired the title to the island in 2004 because 'we were tired of run-of-the-mill destinations that were on offer within a short distance of Singapore', explains partner Andrew Dixon, an Australian who moved to Asia 10 years ago. He adds: 'We wanted to offer spacious accommodation that was sensitive to the environment using a vernacular design, and local building materials and workers.'
As such, the beach houses (from $300 a night) on Nikoi are built from local driftwood and have alang-alang grass roofs. Sea breezes sweep through the large open windows (there is no air-conditioning here, although 21st-century comforts make their presence felt in the form of hand-made electric fans and iPod speaker systems) and the floors are of sand and wood.
The toiletries have been blended specifically for the island ('we have shunned the use of designer labels and brands,' says Mr Dixon) and the island is staffed by trained locals who offer friendly service along with freshly-cooked gourmet meals.
All this, set against a backdrop of white sandy beaches, clear waters, coral reefs teeming with marine life and stately granite boulders overlooking the sea. Everything is open to guests' exploration, while activities such as sailing, kayaking, windsurfing, snorkelling and rock climbing - along with treasure hunts and movie nights for the kids - are available too.
'Nikoi was built by us, to suit our requirements, and hence has a genuinely personal feel that is more akin to a club on a private island than a predictable international resort. It is a place where craftsmanship, good food and personal service come together in a spectacular natural setting,' Mr Dixon asserts.
It is concepts like these, he feels, that will really take off this year, with 'lavish holidays to far-flung destinations replaced by better-value holidays closer to home'. In fact, according to Mr Dixon, Nikoi has already seen a particular increase in demand over the last three months of 2008.
If that is the case, holiday makers who want to experience Nikoi's 'simple barefoot luxury' would do well to make their reservations early, as the island is fully booked this month, and a price increase is planned for March.
by Audrey Phoon
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Tempat Senang Luxury Suites & Spa
Indah Puri Sekupang
Batam
Tel 2 (0) 778-325-616 www.tempatsenang.com
WITH its giant meat-eating Amazon fish, a waterfall at nearly every turn, and imposing stone sculptures that are half-curtained by lush vegetation, it's quite easy to mistake Tempat Senang for an exotic South American locale. But in reality, the resort is a mere hour's ride from Singapore by ferry - it's the newest accommodation option on the Indonesian island of Batam.
Owned by American Jasmine Borschberg and her husband, the five-suite property - which was previously a house owned by a Dutch couple who decided to move to a neighbouring site - opened in August and is named after the Bahasa Indonesia expression for 'a place of happy thoughts'.
As its name suggests, the sprawling 2,000 sq m space offers guests any number of nooks and crannies where they can get some privacy and quiet time, be it curling up with a book from the open-air library or sticking their feet into the in-house Turkish fish spa (don't worry, this isn't where the meat-eating fish are), even when all the rooms are booked out. 'There's a surprise around every corner, and we've made it a point to keep the number of rooms small so that everyone can enjoy the place without running into other people, if they wish,' says Mrs Borschberg. 'If it's too crowded, then it wouldn't be a tempat senang, would it?'
The resort is easy enough to get to - you just hop on an airconditioned ferry from HarbourFront Centre to Batam's spanking new Sekupang terminal, which was built this year, where a Tempat Senang staff member will meet you and whisk you off in an MPV. Ten minutes and some bouncing along a tree-lined dirt track later, you pull up at the stone-and-wood entrance of the resort, where you are greeted with a warm welcome and a cold drink.
Inside, the rooms - priced from $175 per night - are decorated in the styles of four different countries: India, Thailand, China and Indonesia. Along with modern comforts such as a television, a DVD player and a refrigerator, each is equipped with an open-air shower. Meanwhile, an in-house spa offers high-tech laser facials and massages using products home-made by Mrs Borschberg, a former cancer research scientist: there are luxuriously smooth papaya creams and refreshing cucumber scrubs along with more unique treatments such as the 'aspirin green tea mask' that promises to treat and revitalise tired skin.
Save for the occasional mosquito attack, a stay here should prove a relaxing treat for most - even golfers are catered for, as Tempat Senang looks out onto the 14th hole of Batam's Indah Puri championship golf course and the Borschbergs have cut a deal with the golf club to give guests discounted rates.
There's also customised catering ('from lobsters to heart-shaped chocolate cakes') and personalised tours around Batam, along with the couple's own recommendations on where to eat, shop and visit if you prefer not to stay in. 'In times like this, the value-for-dollar aspect has to be there. If people like the quality of something, they'll come back,' says Mrs Borschberg. 'There'll always be a market for this.'
IT'S not just humans who thrive in Gayana Eco Resort's lush, natural environment - giant clams and corals are among the other living things that do, too.
The eco-friendly luxury resort - part of the Preferred Boutique hotel group - runs a marine ecology research centre that includes a propagation facility for the eight species of giant clams found in the world, as well as a coral regeneration programme. Guests can experience these if they wish - they're encouraged to participate in the resort's projects by making coral platforms, for instance, that are later placed in the reefs surrounding the property, says Gayana's general manager, Scot Toon.
'Gayana's quite unique in the sense that we are a boutique luxury resort on a jungle island within a national marine park,' he says. 'It's a place to immerse yourself in the nature of Borneo and as such we do a lot of work to assist the marine environment and lessen our impact on it.'
The resort, which changed hands last year (it's now run by a family-owned company from Sabah), reopened six months ago after being completely refurbished. It's located on Gaya Island, the largest of the five coral reef islands that make up the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, but despite its seemingly remote environment, is just 10 minutes away from Kota Kinabalu, and 20 minutes from the international airport.
A total of 44 villas make up the resort, each kitted out in designer Frette linen, LCD TVs and Harnn toiletries with rates starting from about $295 per night. They've been built over water, so guests are assured of a picturesque sight from their personal balcony.
If you manage to tear yourself away from your villa, however, you can go jungle trekking, snorkelling, diving or kayaking through mangrove swamps ('all water sports are non-motorised to ensure minimum impact on the environment', explains Mr Toon). Urbanites, meanwhile, may prefer to unwind in the resort's spa, take a swim in the infinity pool that overlooks Malohom Bay, or explore the town.
'Travellers will be looking for safe places to visit in the coming months that offer great value and cultural experiences. They are waiting to see how the economy pans out in the short term, but they will begin to travel again in the new year,' Mr Toon says. 'They will maybe take shorter trips, go for interesting holidays that don't cost a lot and are within a few hours from home.
'Kota Kinabalu, or Sabah in general, then, is a perfect destination - it's very stable, hassle-free and there's so much here: beaches, diving, water sports, shopping, food, Mount Kinabalu, orang utan sanctuaries, jungle and river trails.'
By Audrey Phoon
aphoon@sph.com.sg
This article was first published in The Business Times on Jan 3, 2009.
