Telunas: The Riau island weekend with almost no Wi-Fi

The selling point is everything that doesn't work: the Wi-Fi, the roaming, the laptop.

Why go now

Telunas is for families and worn-out couples who need a real switch-off and can spare the time to get there. Choose the Beach Resort with children and the Private Island for two, and stay three nights rather than two. The compromise is the journey, two boats and an immigration queue, and the bill, since meals and transfers come on top of the room.

Batam and Bintan are the Riau Islands most of us know: golf, seafood, a resort pool. Go one boat further and the archipelago gets quieter, greener and properly remote. Telunas, on Pulau Sugi about 50km south of Singapore, is the easiest way to see what that feels like. The one change worth knowing: limited Starlink Wi-Fi now reaches the public areas. It still doesn't reach the rooms, which is rather the point.

How to get there

Two boats. First, a ferry of about an hour from HarbourFront to Sekupang on Batam, where resort staff meet you. Then, after immigration, a smaller wooden speedboat from Sekupang's domestic pier for roughly 70 to 90 minutes. Take a morning ferry out, and expect return boats from Telunas to leave in the early afternoon. Allow about three hours each way, and check the resort's website for current timings.

Where to stay

There are two Telunas properties, and they suit different trips. Telunas Beach Resort, built in 2004, is mostly over the water on wooden walkways, with no air-conditioning, chalets that sleep up to four and dorm rooms for school groups; it's the family and activity choice. Telunas Private Island, built in 2014, has about 20 more upscale villas on an island you can walk around in under an hour, some of them adults-only. Expect a two-night minimum, with ferry transfers and compulsory meals charged on top of the room; the facts box has indicative rates, and the resort has the current ones.

Want somewhere more remote again? Cempedak, an adults-only island of bamboo villas off Bintan; Pulau Pangkil, a ten-villa private island for groups; and, for big spenders, Bawah Reserve, an all-inclusive resort reached by ferry to Batam and then an 80-minute seaplane. Our details on those three date from 2020, so check them directly.

What to eat

Meals are part of the package. The Beach Resort does buffet spreads of four or five dishes, a mix of Western and local, including tempeh and fish. The Private Island runs plated three-course lunches and dinners. Water is free and other drinks cost extra, but there's no corkage on your own bottle at the Private Island, so pack one.

What to do

Very little, deliberately. At the Beach Resort there are kayaks, paddleboards, fishing, a high deck for jumping at high tide and bonfires; a waterfall trek or lunch in a local village can be arranged in advance. The Private Island adds an infinity-style pool, a sandbar, a jungle loop path, a seasonal turtle hatchery and an over-water spa.

What to skip

Skip it if you can't be offline for a weekend: Singapore roaming may not work, signal on the Private Island is patchy, and the fix is a local IM3 SIM from the Beach Resort front desk. Skip the late Friday ferry, too, and the two-night dash if you can manage three. With two boats and an immigration queue, the island really starts the next morning.

Good to know Carry a passport with at least six months' validity. Book transfers through the resort, check current ferry timings, and budget for compulsory meals on top of room rates.