Resorts have always stirred feelings of ambivalence within me. It’s a place meant for relaxation and wellness, to rejuvenate and recharge. Yet, I always found myself having trouble with that—no matter how many knots in my shoulders were undone, or how wrinkled my fingertips became from hours in the pool. There was always this undercurrent of uneasiness I felt from flying to a foreign land (more often than not, a developing one) and being tended to by its locals. Perhaps apprehension is a better word for it. Either way, the better the service was, the heavier the guilt. But more on that later.
That was how I felt checking into Hotel Indigo at Bintan Lagoi Beach, one of IHG Hotels and Resorts' latest ventures, which opened its doors just last October in 2024. After a breezy hour-long ferry ride and a short car transfer from the terminal, I arrived at the resort’s doors. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I certainly didn’t expect to walk into one of the most breathtaking open-air lobbies I’d ever seen. Trust me, the pictures do not do it justice.
The pathway to the lobby is flanked by ponds that reflect the sky beneath tall wooden pillars. White tiles stretch across the spacious lobby to create a visual expanse, their surface embedded with a map of the Riau Archipelago.
From the ceiling hang mooring ropes, and in the corner sits a small-scale replica of a 19th-century ship. Like every Hotel Indigo property, the décor is anchored by the location they inhabit. Local fishing traditions and pirate lore in this case.
The King Suite Ocean View, where I stayed, reflected this design philosophy. The room itself is spacious and warm—yellowed walls are accompanied by wooden-planked flooring. Antique chest-style nightstands, rattan webbed sofas, and wooden coffee tables echo the local fishing spirit, nodding subtly to the Riau Island culture.
There are over 120 guest rooms and suites, each one clustered into blocks and scattered across the grounds. Take your time wandering boardwalks and bridges suspended over airy ponds. Stop to appreciate the weeds and exotic flowers sprouting along footpaths. (I stared at the young trees with leaves too small to provide any shade against the sun.) There was something endearing and symbolic about the trees growing with the resort.
But I digress—you can’t go wrong with any room on offer. I noticed how each block is angled toward the ocean, which means every guest has their own private balcony with a sprawling view of the South China Sea.
You have your board games, aqua stretching, and snorkelling. Then there are the wilder ones, like overcoming a floating obstacle course in the ocean, ATV riding, archery, and the super sofa ride, where you sit on an inflatable sofa as a speedboat drags you screaming across the water. There are also surfing lessons, wakeboarding sessions, fishing trips—you get the idea. Do note that some of these activities require a little somethin’ somethin’, while the tamer ones are completely free.
And of course, there’s wellness. No resort would be complete without a spa—or so they say. Hotel Indigo Bintan Lagoi Beach is a rare resort without a spa on its premises, but they’re exempt from the rule.
Behind the resort lies Holiday Inn Resort Bintan Lagoi Beach, its even newer sister property. Guests can slip into the cosy sanctum just five minutes away on foot to recharge at Sunjivva Spa. The area is spacious, quiet, and well-equipped to soothe whatever aches you bring with its impressive menu of treatments.
And the best part: because both resorts are under IHG, this privilege extends to the other facilities and activities Holiday Inn offers. This means more dining options, more pools to explore, and golf—all for the price of one resort.
Most of your meals will happen at SugarBEATS, the resort’s main restaurant serving up a hybrid of international and Indonesian fare right by the pool. Think daybeds, open-air dining, and a view of the coastline stretching into blue.
You might think it repetitive or monotonous to spend all three meals at a single place. But from my visit, SugarBEATS managed to keep things fresh with live performances in the evening, and organising barbecue buffet dinners on the weekend.
For something more elevated, there’s Stix Satay Bar. Their menu is much more compact, and the space is much more intimate. It’s an izakaya-inspired joint that focuses on expressing Southeast Asia’s bold flavours through grilled skewers.
You won’t regret ordering the Foie Gras Terrine, but the must-orders are the Prawn Stix, Snapper Stix, and Duck Stix. Each skewer is not only remarkably seasoned but are perfumed by the lick of the open-flame grill, creating a dining experience that might just contend for the best I’ve had at any resort.
The food at SugarBEATS was good too, don’t get me wrong. But what stayed with me wasn’t the food but its service. Since escorting me to a table on the first day, a server named Ilham became my unofficial caretaker whenever I dined at the restaurant.
“Mr Elliot!” He would call out enthusiastically each time he saw me, with a radiance that persisted from our first greeting to our last. This warmth, of course, made me feel extremely welcomed and appreciated. Then the feelings of guilt would crawl around my body very gently.
On my last meal, I finally voiced my gratitude to Ilham, at the same time, curious about how he remembered my name after a single introduction. He told me he makes it a point to remember the names of every guest he serves, even going as far as to remember where they usually prefer to sit in the restaurant.
You might think this is a special treatment reserved for the media. But even then, I’ve never experienced this degree of meticulousness in the other stays I’ve been on. And it wasn’t just Ilham. Every staff—and I mean every single one of them—would smile and greet me whenever we crossed paths.
Muhk, my guide on the Nature Cycling Tour, explained it best as we stopped for a break during a 6km ride around a beautiful, vast lake near the resort.
“The Bintan locals are just friendly like that,” he said, under a sharp sky with clouds as soft as feathers. “We find it strange not to greet someone when we pass.”
By the time I left, that ambivalence hadn’t disappeared. I might not ever get over the idea of being pampered by locals as a foreigner. But Hotel Indigo showed me a new perspective—that hospitality doesn’t always come from obligation, but instinct and culture. The service here never felt like a performance, just people being themselves and a friendliness that is second nature to the people of Bintan.
Hotel Indigo Bintan is located at Gurindam Street 12 Plot B3-01, Tourism Area, Bintan Regency, Riau Islands 29155, Indonesia.
