June is a month of celebration to me, as it is my birthday month! So this year, Nicole came up with a great idea – a getaway in Bintan for a short weekend trip to celebrate? Yes, please! As you know, there is nothing more relaxing than a weekend at the beach, so I simply couldn’t refuse the offer! The rest of our family was also easily convinced so before we knew it, we were already fully packed and ready for a much-needed relaxing weekend at Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel.
👉 Don’t have time to read the whole post? This is our Nirwana Resort Hotel review. Rating 8/10
👉 We stayed at Nirwana Resort for 2 nights. Book via Booking.com or Expedia at attractive rates.
We have always been to Bintan and been attracted to its reputation as a “fun, family-friendly, relaxing and adventurous place”. Now we were even more excited to visit Nirwana as we got to find out a little more about it. It offers beautiful beaches, exciting activities that are family-friendly, and a very relaxing and peaceful environment to just unwind at.
Nirwana was a hit with our family and it was one of the reasons I chose Nirwana Gardens Resort for our stay in Bintan. I actually had a feeling that this was going to be an epic birthday weekend getaway already. It did not disappoint.
So follow along to see why Nirwana was a good choice for our family and what we did during our weekend staycation!
- About Nirwana Gardens
- Tips on Booking
- Top Things To Do In Nirwana Gardens Resort
- Buying the Ferry Tickets
- Birthday Promotion in Nirwana Resort Hotel
- Transfer to Hotel
- Welcome Ceremony
- Lunch @ Spice Restaurant
- Swimming Pool @ Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel
- Horse & Elephant Riding
- Sunset @ Calypso Floating Bar
- Dinner @ Dino Bistro
- Complimentary Photoshoot
- Conclusion
About Nirwana Gardens
Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel is one of the Singaporean’s favorite holiday spot. This 5-star Bintan resort is the gateway to Bintan’s white sand beaches and only about 55mins by ferry from Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel is also the host to part of the annual Bintan Triathlon.
Tips on Booking
- Look out for promotion on their website
- Buy ferry tickets from bintan ferry website at brf.com.sg
- Sunset in Nirwana is from 5.30pm to 6.00pm.
- Best place to view sunset is at Kelong Restaurant and Calypso Floating Bar.
- Shuttle bus at every 30 mins interval. E.g. 6.00PM, 6.30PM.
Top Things To Do In Nirwana Gardens Resort
Like other Bintan Resorts, there are a list of activities that you can get into when visiting Nirwana Resort Hotel. Here are a few of them.
- Swimming in infinity pool with beautiful beach view.
- Mini zoo filled with tropical animals and birds.
- Engage in water sports and activities like snorkeling, water skiing, surfing, kayaking, diving, sailing and motor boating.
- Play beach volleyballs or sun tanning.
- Go for some tours. e.g eco tours or go town.
- Mountain biking/bicycle rentals, buggy rental
- Chill & relax beside the pool or beach with cocktails, wine or coffee.
- So many more
Buying the Ferry Tickets
We bought our ferry tickets through Bintan Resort Ferries website. Booking was easy and we made our reservation just a week before our travel date. However, there were only a few seats left for the ferry boat. We had to opt to buy two emerald class tickets as economy class were fully booked. This was a much more expensive option and we did not feel it was worth the $$$$ for a 55mins ferry ride.
Tip: book early so you don’t have to do this!
Birthday Promotion in Nirwana Resort Hotel
Remember to take advantage of the birthday promotion if you happen to be there for your birthday month. We used a birthday promo code when we booked and here are some of the additional birthday perks we received.
- 25% off on Best Available Rates.
- Free Birthday Cake.
- Free upgrade to hi-speed internet.
- Free upgrade to next room category OR early check-in/late check-out (subject to availability).
- Free return private land transfer between Bandar Bentan Telani and Resort (weekdays only).
Birthday Treat Booklet* that comes with a list of free activities and fantastic discount vouchers of up to 50% off. Visit http://www.nirwanagardens.com/ for more information.
Transfer to Hotel
We made our way to the Nirwana Gardens booth after we reached the Bintan Ferry Terminal. It’s not hard to spot since all Bintan resort booths are set up outside of the customs area. Once we cleared our arrival, we were directed to the shuttle bus that took us to the hotel in less than 15 minutes.
Welcome Ceremony
You know you have arrived at Nirwana Resort Hotel as you are greeted with an Indonesian dance performance and refreshing drinks. Check-in was at the members’ lounge and to be honest, their staff were extremely warm and friendly! We arrived pretty early (around 9.20am) but we only had to wait for a few minutes for the room to be ready. Great customer service.
So after we were settled in and dropped our luggage in our rooms, my sister and I (Nicole) went for a stroll around the resort. We had heard it had rained a lot for the past few weeks, but fortunately for us, the weather was really good and we managed to have a great view without being showered by any rain.
As you can see, the main entrance of Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel. Found these elephants on the pathway and decided to take a photo with them. #jumpshot
We then proceeded to go walking around the resort to get some photos before we had lunch.
Lunch @ Spice Restaurant
We had a hankering for some local Indonesian food so we had lunch at Spice Restaurant. We took the internal shuttle bus which was really easy as it was only three stops from the main resort hotel. It was on the expensive side, but it was still worth the try. After a few cocktails, I felt quite dizzy but didn’t stop us from having some grub. What I do not recommend is their chicken rice which was about $20 SGD in price. Pretty steep for their local chicken rice but Nicole did say it tasted good though.
But because we had our birthday vouchers, we managed to get 15% off on the overall bill. Always helps for a cheaper meal. If I had to pick a point of improvement, it would have to be the flies. Terribly many of them!
After our filling lunch, we made our way back to the main resort to dip into the pools! Look at this cool photo while waiting for the shuttle bus.
Look at the shuttle bus. Not bad right?
Swimming Pool @ Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel
We spent about 2 hours swimming and lazing at the infinity pool. So relaxing and their pool bar is right in the middle of the infinity pool. Just a nice dip. The deep end of the pool is about 1.5 meters.
You can also see the beach in front of the swimming pool. Look at how beautiful the beach is! Blue waters and white sands!
Horse & Elephant Riding
You can even ride a horse and elephant by the beach if you are interested. Look at them below.
The highlight of the evening was to catch the sunset at Kelong Restaurant. We missed the shuttle bus but a very nice Nirwana staff member even drove us there. #supernice. We gave a tip of $4 SGD for his trouble.
Sunset @ Calypso Floating Bar
Of course, we did not miss the sunset and it was just absolutely breathtaking. I highly recommend you to get a drink and chill at Calypso Floating Bar for the full sunset effect before heading to dinner.
Check out the sunset photos…
Dinner @ Dino Bistro
We had our dinner at Dino Bistro before heading to our complimentary bowling at the Resort Centre. The pepper steak was so delicious! We just devoured the whole thing. Shame that I did not take any photos as it was rather dark.
Complimentary Photoshoot
We also had a complimentary photoshoot session with Nirwana Gardens Resort Hotel photographer, which was pretty nice. You even get a frame photo which you can pick up when you leave. Note: you will need to book the photography session before hand to ensure a slot.
As a part of the birthday promotion package, we were able to leave the hotel with a private coach transfer. What is really nice is the staff actually collected our ferry tickets before our departure so it was all fuss-free!
Final Thoughts
All in all, we really enjoyed our stay at Nirwana Gardens. We found their staff to be extremely kind, friendly and willing to help. Just fabulous customer service throughout the entire trip. I would certainly return and stay at Nirwana Gardens in the future if we get the chance as we would love to visit the other beach resorts and villas within Nirwana Gardens.
- Cleanliness - 8/108/10
- Location - 8/108/10
- Facilities - 9/109/10
- Room comfort and quality - 8/108/10
- Value for money - 8/108/10
- Breakfast - 6/106/10
- Service - 9/109/10
Summary
I enjoyed my short 2D 1N stay in Nirwana Garden. I am there for my birthday and Nirwana Garden even have birthday discount vouchers for me. The staff are also super friendly and rendered us a lot of assistance. Great place, great facilities, at super affordable prices.
Hi! Came across your blog and read that you went to Nirwana resort in June. May I know if you encountered high tide at the beach? Was the sand always white and soft and not wet sand? The reason for asking this is that we are planning to hold a beach wedding there around June. TIA!
Hi there! Nope, we did not encountered high tide at the beach. For me, I would say the sand is not white, but a-bit brownish. It depends on weather, it’s pretty wet for me when I was there.
Great! Congrats on your wedding in advance. Let me know how i can help. 😀