Welcome to
The unknown gem of Indonesia
When people go to Indonesia, they usually mention Bali, Gili, Lombok etc. which are all beautiful places in their own right, but we were looking for something more tropical, more unknown and more bounty-esque. We are so thankful that we found Anambas, and if you want to see the real Indonesia like most people haven't, then you have to come here.
Let yourself go while walking through the soft white sand on Anambas' countless palm-lined bounty beaches. Lose yourself in the glare of its pristine turquoise waters, and camp on your own island cast-away style while watching turtle eggs hatch.
Experience the meaning of exotic
Located far away from the mainland of Indonesia, this cluster of paradise islands is one of the few true unspoiled paradises. So secluded, idyllic and unknown to tourists it is guaranteed that you can have the islands all to yourself. Be the single explorer of your own personal island.
Anambas is our secret that we will share with you.
Unfiltered photos
All our photos are without filters and editing, to capture the true natural beauty of each location. What you see is what you get.
Contents:
Let's begin our journey...
The beaches and islands
Un-named beach near Tarempa
A few minutes into our first bike trip in Anambas, we were met by one of the most perfect sights which almost surpasses the likes of Kayangan Lake in the Philippines. This beautiful beach can be reached by a 10 minute motorbike ride from the town of Tarempa (which is where we stayed and which you can read more about in the "Villages and locals" section). You will have to park your bike by the roadside and walk through a little path that leads you down to the beach. While driving we saw the small path from the roadside, and decided to explore it. Such a simple hidden grass path with no post signs that leads to such an incredible place, is the essence of what Anambas is all about. Undiscovered beauty. We spent a couple of hours swimming in the warm water and laying alone on the beach, before returning to our bike and continuing our drive. The beach has soft white sand as well as many small curious fish in the shallow blue water. Absolutely gorgeous, isolated and devoid of people.
Pulau Penjalin
Pulau Penjalin is Anambas' gem. It is the place the locals talk about, and it has the most insane beach we have ever seen. The best part is: you will have it all to yourself! It is one of the farthest islands from Tarempa, lying secluded in the north east. When you reach the island, you sail all the way around it to the opposite side facing the open ocean, and reach a huge crescent-shaped beach. This beach is the most perfect beach you can imagine (yes, the beach itself is more perfect than Nongkat's beach our favorite place in Anambas, which you can read about below). It has white totally fine sand. Probably a grain finer than Nongkat's, and thus the best sand our feet has ever betrodden.
stretches out forever because the water is so incredibly clear even when you are far away from the beach line. The snorkeling is some of the best in Anambas, with several huge coral clusters at the left side of the beach which continue all the way around the corner and into the ocean. The fauna is so varied and fish are everywhere along the reefs.
On this island we decided to spend the night camping in a tent. We had the beach, and actually the whole island, 100% to ourselves from we came till we left. Not a single other tourist was in sight and no locals live there. This was OUR island that day. Camping on the island was an amazing experience. The sky filled up with thousands of stars at night, and we had our fresh fish cooked on a bonfire. It was a tough sleep though, since we had only thin mattresses, and the sound of something trying to get into our tent kept freaking us out until we discovered that it was harmless (giant) crabs.
The crystal turquoise water
is so incredibly smooth and pure that we started smiling and laughing as soon as we jumped from our boat into Penjalin's white dunes. It stretches from the beach and out over the entire ocean floor. The ocean floor is just as soft and pure as the beach itself, it is almost like it has been swept and cleaned to remove all rocks and weed. As you can see on the two photos, the sand on the beach is just as perfect as the sand on the ocean floor. The visibility is incredible, and you can see farther than 100 meter in front of you when under water. The visibility from above water is insane. From the surface you can see all the way to the bottom on depths as deep as 20 meters.
The soft white sand
Spend the night camping
Chill all alone on the crescent shaped beach
This beach reminds us a lot about the beach from the Leonardo DiCaprio movie "The Beach", but Penjalin blows it totally out of the water! Huge rocks lie in the left side of the beach and are great for chilling on and drying your clothes since they get very warm in the sun. The whole beach is covered by the surrounding hills, so it is not as windy as many other beaches are. If you need a break from the sun, you can retreat to the tree line at the back of the beach consisting of hundreds of lush coconut palms. Amazing island.
Have the island all to yourself
Swim, snorkel, run around naked, sunbathe, camp, harvest coconuts and enjoy the stars. This is your private island. Due to Anambas' remote location and unknown status you will have this paradise all to yourself. The view from the beach is an endless open ocean. Place your tent on the beachfront, get in and gaze out at the magnificent sight of the open sea.
We have been to almost every country in south east Asia and seen some of the best beaches the world has to offer. This is the best beach of all of them. When people go to Indonesia, they usually mention Bali, Gili, Lombok etc. which are all beautiful places in their own right, but we were looking for something more tropical, more unknown and more bounty-esque. We are so thankful that we found Anambas, and if you want to see the real Indonesia like most people haven't, you have to come here.
Pulau Tenggiling can be reached by speed boat in around 20 minutes from Tarempa, depending on the waves. It is a very small island with soft white sand and good snorkeling all around it. Lots of different small fish can be seen, as well as sea urchins which you must be careful not to step on. There is a small cave along the left side of beach, which you can swim into. Our favorite thing to do on this island is to lie in the shallow waters close to the edge of the beach, while the gentle waves bring in refreshing water to cool us down. If you ask us, this is the best of the islands in close vicinity to Tarempa. It is very small and you can walk around it in a couple of minutes. It is picture perfect, and looks like the island from the movie Madagascar. Winds are a bit stronger here compared to the other islands we have visited, because it is more exposed and not very sheltered. It is a very good place for wind surfing. Even though it is a tad more windy, the waves are still really small and gentle, and you can easily pack a picnic and chill out on the beach.
Pulau Tenggiling
Selat Ransang
Selat Ransang can be reached in a little over an hour by pompong (slower and bigger wooden boat) from Tarempa. It is a lagoon with all shades of blue, green and turquoise. As you can see in the photo above, the color of the water close to the palm line is almost white, while it becomes more emerald green further out, and all the way to the far left the water is turquoise blue. We have never seen water with so many different shades of blue and green. It is a must-see. This lagoon has very shallow waters on each side, and you can sail through it for an out-of-this-world amazing sight.
The water is very calm and warm, and there are several different beaches inside the lagoon which you can swim to and do some sun-bathing. As with all other places in Anambas, you are guaranteed to be the only tourist there. A couple of wooden rafts lie in the water which serves as great beds for chilling. The lagoon is surrounded by small and tall palm-filled landmarks, each with their own beach. The sand at Selat Ransang is not as fine as Penjalin's, but the scenery is really different and more lush and 'jungle-y' compared to Penjalin's straight up bounty vibe.
Completely alone in paradise
On the photo below, you can see the other side of Selat Ransang's lagoon as well as our boat. Some locals are living in a couple of huts on a nearby beach, and they gave us fresh coconuts for us to drink on our way back. Absolutely stunning place, although this is not a place for snorkeling since there are no corals.
Selat Ransang is probably the most 'tropical' looking place in Anambas.
On our way back we enjoyed the fresh coconuts and the amazing sight of Selat Ransang's lagoon disappearing in a blue blur behind us. This was definitely a favorite and an amazing experience, although the next place we went to (Pulau Nongkat) was hands down the most perfect place we have ever seen. Read on and see for yourself why.
Boatman preparing fresh coconut as we leave
Pulau Nongkat
Pulau Nongkat is hands-down the most beautiful place we have ever seen. We have always talked about how no island has surpassed the beautiful Malcapuya island in the Phillippines which we visited a couple of years back. But we stood corrected as we approached Nongkat's lagoon. It has a magnificent white beach with ultra soft sand, lined with coconut palms. Its waters are the craziest shade of bright turquoise, so bright that it looked like it was being illuminated by lamps below. We admit that this time our cameras could not capture the real looks of this beauty and the photos do not do the island justice. Still, our pictures give a very good idea of just how beautiful this place is (just know that it is even more beautiful in the real world!).
The reason why we call the waters in front of the beach a "lagoon" is because it is surrounded by huge beautiful rocks popping out of the water. This means that you are inside a calm and protected big pool, with absolutely no waves. This also means that the water is really warm since you are protected from the colder surrounding sea water. The snorkeling is really good, with nice reef all around. Plenty of different fish of small to medium size can be seen, as well as beautiful underwater hills and drops filled with corals.
Placed in the back of the beach is a beautiful white villa, with an almost American southern-colonial style look. The villa was empty, and apparently a caretaker of the beach stays there sometimes. Our boatmen told us that we were allowed to use the outdoor shower that accompanied the house, so we could freshen up after our swim. We made a small bonfire on the beach on which we grilled fresh fish and steamed some rice using our boatmen's equipment. Delicious!
Pulau Durai
Pulau Durai is the turtle island. Its sole inhabitant is a 90-something year old man who lives a solitary life on the island, taking care of the many sea turtles that lay their eggs there. Pulau Durai is perfect for camping, and you will be guaranteed to see turtle eggs hatch on the beach and watch small baby turtles scurry to the sea. It was something we had looked forward to immensely, but unfortunately it was too windy to go there on the day we had planned it, and consequently this is why we don't have any pictures of this island. Just like Pulau Penjalin you have to cross a stretch of open sea to reach Pulau Durai, and it is not safe to go there when the waves are too big. If you go to Anambas we definitely hope you are able to experience Pulau Durai and its turtle hatching!
The villages and the locals
The towns in the island group of Anambas are, as you would expect for such a remote place, not very developed. Most of the people live in small houses or cabins made of tin roofs and wood. There are absolutely no western influence there, and no 7-elevens and there aren't any Indonesian or Asian convenience stores either. Everything is 100% local. The people there are poor, but they are totally honest and would never ever steal from you, or trick you into paying more than what is fair, as they do in some other poor places.
The people of Anambas are probably the most friendly and sweet people we have met on our travels. They are not used to western people and tourists, and we suspect that some of the very young children had never seen a westerner before, by the looks on their faces when we rode by on our motorbike. This means that everywhere you go, people will wave at you and yell "Hello mister!" (also if you are a girl) with big smiles on their faces.
... about the same age as us. We ended up eating dinner at their home for 4 days straight (on their invitation). We also went on a motorbike trip with them, where they took us to see all the local hidden spots around Tarempa including a gorgeous waterfall and a secret cliff where we could watch the sunset. One day we were not able to rent a motorbike anywhere, and we talked to our new friends. They had a spare motorbike with a broken battery and the husband quickly went to buy and install a new battery on the bike, so we could use it. Needless to say, they were some of the kindest and most caring people we have ever met. We asked them on the last day if we could pay them for having cooked us all this delicious food for so many days, but they wouldn't take our money. They refused completely. The morning we were supposed to leave with the ferry, they met us at the dock and had prepared a big lunch box for us to bring, and they cried and said they would miss us. Needless to say, the people of Anambas are amazing.
We became great friends with a local couple...
Some will stop and ask you for a picture as well. They are extremely helpful, and each time we asked locals for directions, they offered to ride us there on their motorbike, which we gladly accepted, and they never asked for or expected any payment.
The locals are, as most people in Indonesia, Muslim. This means that most of the women wear hijab, and they have several mosques in each village, which will broadcast prayers at several times of the day. The prayer broadcasting only woke us up on the first night, and you get used to it really quickly. The locals don't expect foreigners to wear hijab and follow the Muslim tradition as they are totally open minded and welcoming. Some of them speak English to some degree, and some of them don't.
There are small villages scattered around the islands. The one we stayed in, which is the "capital" is Tarempa. You only have a couple of different options when deciding where to stay, but we definitely recommend Tarempa as this is a great hub from which to begin your adventures from. The villages are really small and can generally be traversed on a motorbike in a couple of minutes.
The boats you can charter for island exploring are speedboats and "pompongs". We really advice you to book a captain and a boat in advance, since most locals don't speak english and you simply can't walk into the harbor and hire a random local with a boat. Our local contact is english speaking and very kind, and he can help you out with your boat bookings. You can read more about this in the "How to get there"-chapter.
The speed boats will be able to go to many of the nearby islands, while the bigger wooden "pompongs" will be used to go to more distant locations such as Pulau Penjalin, where stretches of open water have to be crossed. Both are piloted by experienced captains and come equipped with life jackets. This is the reason why we recommend that you book via our local friend (see the chapter"How to get there").
Accommodation and food
In Tarempa we recommend staying at hotel Sakura. It is extremely cheap and lies in the center of the village, with easy access to the sea. You should not expect western accommodation standards when going to Anambas, since it is a place not discovered by tourists yet, and the hotels there are primarily designed to serve the local people who might be visiting family and so on. Thus, the cleanliness is not always so good, and we recommend choosing the most expensive room at Sakura (which is still incredibly cheap) if you want a clean room. You have a few other accommodation options around Tarempa. One of them is Anambas Lodge (also sometimes known as Anambas Resort). Here you can rent a nice big room and it is a very clean place. The price is higher than Sakura, and it lies in a bit more remote place outisde Tarempa. After two nights there, we chose to go back to Sakura because it is a bit more convenient.
Our cottage at Anambas Lodge.
The hotels in Anambas have no websites or online booking, but...
... if you want to get a quote on the prices, hear about the different room options and book your stay in any of the hotels, you are most welcome to contact us. We have personal contact to the local hotel owners as well as the local people in charge of boat chartering for when you want to go island tripping (which is the reason you would want to go to Anambas in the first place!). We can also help you get to Anambas, and our contacts can reserve ferry or plane tickets for you (these do not have online-booking either). It is highly recommended that you book your stay before you arrive, because the hotels are very small and the locals are using them very frequently. Be aware that we strive to help as many of you as possible and reply to all inquiries, but since this is something we do for free in our spare time we can not guarantee that we have the time to help all of you.
For food options, we warmly recommend the local un-named bakery. It lies on the small bridge connecting Tarempa to the surrounding hills, and you can not miss it. It is located in a relatively big house which is perhaps also the newest and most "expensive" looking building in Tarempa. They have a variety of great items such as home-baked pastry, donuts and bread as well as spaghetti and fried chicken. Everything is very clean and their pastry is so incredibly delicious and this is one of the only places where you can get some "western" food items in Anambas.
In Anambas the go-to food that everyone eats is Nasi Goreng (fried rice) and Mie Goreng (fried noodles). Those dishes are best when served with an egg on top. Delicious! The locals eat this at all times of the day, including breakfast. A local place called "La Luna" which lies just before the aforementioned bridge will be your go-to place for everything Goreng. It is extremely cheap, and a meal will cost you about 15.000 IDR which is around 1.11$. They also serve saté, an Indonesian stable consisting of skewers with different meat grilled over coal and then dipped in peanut sauce. They can also pack your meals for take-away, and we used La Luna frequently for stockpiling food to bring on our island exploring trips. They also have free wi-fi here, although it is really slow and you should not expect to be able to have any form of good connection while you are staying in Anambas.
As mentioned in the last chapter, we spent most evenings eating delicious food at our new friends' house.
But there was one more place we visited for our food cravings. It is a small restaurant located on a hilltop overlooking the bay. It is, like many other things in Anambas, nameless and it serves a variety of different dishes as well as some incredible milkshakes! The best thing about it is the incredible view, and we recommend going there during sunset.
As always when you are a tourist in Anambas, we were the celebrities that evening. Everyone at work, including the chefs and the owner came out to greet us and have their picture taken with us, with big smiles on their faces.
How to get there
Incredibly cheap and fresh food
Getting to Anambas is simple and affordable, but requires planning. You have two options. You can go by boat or by airplane, both depart from Indonesia's Riau province and lands you directly in Anambas.
The Bintan ferry sails 3 times a week and will take you around 11 hours. It departs from the Indonesian island Bintan. After sailing for 10 hours it has a stop on an island in Anambas and then it continues for another hour to reach the island on which Tarempa is located. It will drop you off in the center of Tarempa, a 2 minute walk from hotel Sakura. To reach Bintan you can sail from Singapore which will take you around 2 hours. You will then have to sleep over in Bintan and take the Anambas ferry the next day. Your journey could look like this: fly to Singapore and take a ferry to Bintan the same day, then sleep on Bintan and take the ferry to Anambas the next day. The Bintan ferry departs every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The return trip is Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The price is $55 one-way.
The Batam ferry is also an option, and sails to Anambas a little quicker than the Bintan ferry. Batam can be reached from Singapore as well in around 1 hour. by boat The price starts from $55 one-way, depending on class.
The airplane is way quicker, though also pricier, and will fly you from Bintan to an island close to Tarempa in around 1 hour (subject to delays). You will then have to find a private boat and sail about 20 minutes to get to Tarempa, which you have to arrange yourself. The plane currently only has two flights a week: monday and saturday. It returns to Bintan the same day. It departs Bintan at 13.30 and arrivas in Matak Airport, Anambas, at 14.15. The departure time from Matak is 14.40 and arrival time at Bintan is 15.45.
The ticket price is around $110 one-way.
Be warned: The ferry trip was extreme and really scary
The "ferry" is not a big ferry with shops and several floors like you might be used to. It is rather an old boat. It has no shops and can carry around 200 passengers. It has seats and air conditioning, as well as a tv showing horrible old Malay movies. The journey there can get really rough. And we mean really crazy rough. It is not a big boat and you have to cross open sea for 10 hours. The boat sails in most weather conditions, although not in outright storms, hopefully. This means that big waves can be encountered in this small vessel. Our journey out to Anambas was rough. The boat was constantly swaying up and down, and sideways, for all 10 hours. But our journey back was in a whole other league. It was the most scary episode we have ever had in our lives. When we left the port we could feel that the water wasn't so calm, even though the weather was fine. When we reached open sea a little while later, hell opened up its gates. The waves were big. With a constant 3-4 meter waves coming from various directions and occasional waves around 5 meters, this boat was fighting to move forward. It was a roller coaster ride out of this world, and some of the waves came slamming into the boat, each time it sounded like it would break. When the big 5 meter waves hit, the boat climbed them, and on the top of the wave the captain would completely turn off the engine of the boat, to dampen the crash landing we would experience from coming down. These were the most horrifying parts of the trip. On top of the huge wave, the engine would turn off and all sound would stop. The cabin would become completely silent as people were waiting in fear. We then plummet down 5 meters and slam into the water to the sound of outcries from people gasping and wow'ing. Local people inside the boat were puking all over and crying. To calm myself I tried to make my way to the toilet to keep my mind occupied, falling all over along the way. The toilets were flooded and toilet water was everywhere on the floor because of the big waves. To make matters worse, our seats were the only ones without a life vest underneath, and the boat was full. We notified a steward early on, and he came back with two vests around 1-2 hours later when the waves had grown really big, as he was taking a round in the boat ensuring that everyone had vests. He must have been worried. The thought of 10 hours in this hell was unbearable and we were panicking. We will never forget the dreadful moment, when we looked out the window on the opposite side and saw a huge wave, taller than the boat passing along the side of the boat and disappearing behind us. The storm-like conditions lasted around 8 hours, and the last 2 hours were more calm. If you are prone to getting sea sick, we strongly recommend you pay extra and take the plane. We don't get sea sick (thank you Viking blood), but the experience was traumatizing, and we will definitely take the plane next time. On my way to the toilet I met a local who I chatted with. He had ridden the boat many times, and he was the one who told us how tall the waves were. He said that it would be okay, and that 6 meters would be dangerous for the boat. It calmed us a bit, but 5 meters is still damn close to 6.
The trip did not feel safe at all by western standards, and we would not recommend anyone without a strong calm mind taking this option. Indonesia has a dense history of ferry accidents, many turn out to be very deadly, so this is no joking matter. The reason is that the vessels are in very bad conditions as there is poor maintenance. Also the ships sail out in dangerous weather because they often can't afford a cancellation and because the demand for sea transport in Indonesia is huge. A local told us that he had experienced that the engine on the Anambas boat broke down in open sea. On the day we were set to sail, we boarded the boat and waited for 2 hours at the port. We were then informed that the engine had broken down and we couldn't sail. We had to wait 2 extra days in Anambas for them to send a new boat. Have this in mind whenever you use local transport in Indonesia. Cancellations and delays are common, and you may have to change your plans and bookings. Nonetheless, it was an experience of a lifetime, a good story and we came out on the other side feeling like conquerors.
The most important part is getting a captain and a boat for your island hopping...
... since the reason you want to come to Anambas is to experience all the amazing islands and lagoons!You should not go to Anambas without having booked your captain and boat in advance. Not many people in Anambas speak english, and you will not be able to just walk into the harbor and hire a random stranger with a boat. Also we recommend hiring through a trusted friend of ours, since safety is important. As mentioned we have personal contact to a local man, who became our great friend, and who helped us with boat chartering and all practical things while we stayed there. He is english speaking and so kind, and will always be ready to help you with anything. He is living in the center of Tarempa so you can always find him when you need him. He will also be able to book ferry or plane tickets for you. When we were to go to Anambas, he purchased the ferry tickets for us in advance and left them for us at the front desk of a hotel in Riau in which we were going to stay the night before our trip to Anambas. When we arrived at the hotel, we picked up our tickets which were in an envelope with our names on it, and the next morning we were on the ferry on our way to Anambas. I am sure he will be happy to help you out as well. He also helped us out with camping, and set us up with a tent we could use on the islands. If you want to get a quote on prices on anything in Anambas and help with booking, including hotels, ferry, plane and boat chartering we can help you out.
We strive to help all of you and reply to as many inquiries as we can. But keep in mind, since this is something we do for free in our spare time, we can not guarantee that we have the time to reply to all inquiries. Regardless, you are always welcome to contact us and we wish you the best trip!