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Coronavirus: Indonesia plans ‘one-way’ travel bubble for Singapore tourists to visit Batam and Bintan
- Planned corridor could enable Singaporeans to visit the white sandy beaches of Batam and Bintan as soon as April 21
- But Indonesians will still not be allowed into Singapore
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Soh Yi Da misses his monthly trips to Batam, an Indonesian island that is a 45-minute ferry ride away from his home in Singapore. So when Indonesian officials hinted at the possibility of a one-way travel corridor there, he was thrilled.
“The draw is of course the ability to get out of Singapore and feel the fresh air in a foreign place,” said Soh, 32, who works in the financial industry.
Before the coronavirus pandemic brought the world to a halt and shut international borders, he would travel to Batam at least once a month to play golf with his friends and feast on fresh seafood.
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“Heading back to Batam will be refreshing,” said Soh, who last visited the island in January last year.
Soh and other Singaporeans might be able to visit the white sandy beaches of Batam and neighbouring Bintan Island as soon as April 21 if plans by Indonesia to open a safe travel corridor for tourists from the city state pan out.
Unlike typical travel corridors, however, this bubble only goes one-way – Indonesians still would not be allowed entry into Singapore.
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