Batam city administration secretary Jefridin (second left) welcomes a foreign traveller arriving at Batam Centre International Port from Singapore in Batam, Riau Islands, on Jun. 15, 2020. - Antara
BATAM (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): The Batam Tourism Agency held a ceremony on Wednesday (June 15) to welcome the first travellers from Singapore’s HarbourFront Center arriving at Batam Center Ferry Port in Batam, Riau Islands province, after more than two years of the pandemic.
Singapore had shut HarbourFront international ferry terminal in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
HarbourFront is a waterfront district situated in southern Singapore Batam Center Port general manager Nika Astaga said that starting with the reopening of HarbourFront-Batam route, the port had returned to full operation.
Nika said normal operations saw 49 ferry trips between the two ports each day, with average weekend travellers of more than 5,000 people.
Ticket prices from Batam for a return trip to Singapore have doubled from around Rp 450,000 (US$30.53) to the current price of around Rp 900,000. Tourism agency chief Ardiwinata said the prices had increased due to pandemic challenges.
