REVIEW: Hotel Indigo Bintan Lagoi Beach
CONTENT: Yiew Kai Jie
Hotel Indigo Bintan Lagoi Beach might only be a year old, but it already feels like the resort everyone is talking about—stylish, cleverly thought out, and quietly packed with details that make a weekend escape feel far more interesting than the usual “sun, sand, spa” formula. Part of IHG Hotels & Resorts, the property draws inspiration from Bintan’s seafaring heritage: it can be seen in the kelong‑inspired arrival pavilion, the vintage maritime touches in the rooms, and the way the whole resort is facing towards the water, as if one is perpetually on the verge of setting sail.
The experience will begin upon arrival at the Bandar Bentan Telani (BBT) Ferry Terminal, where hotel guests will be able to rest and relax at a private waiting area and enjoy complimentary transfers between the properties and the ferry terminal, along with access to a long stretch of private beach and the neighboring Holiday Inn Resort Bintan Lagoi Beach.
Among its 120 rooms and suites, the 147 sqm One‑Bedroom Suite Garden View with Private Pool is the standout accommodation for any guest who likes the idea of a villa‑style stay without sacrificing hotel convenience. Set amidst a private landscaped greenery, the suite opens onto a private plunge pool framed by loungers and foliage, giving one a quiet cocoon for morning dips or late‑night soaks. Inside the suite itself, the generous living space makes the room feel like it’s your own residence rather than “just a big room”: with a separate living area for lounging or room‑service suppers, a bedroom with a plush king-sized bed oriented towards the view of the pool, and a bathroom with a walk‑in shower and generous vanity space. For couples, it’s an tempting upgrade that turns a simple weekend into a mini‑honeymoon; for small families, the layout and private pool make it a relaxed home base between the beach and other activities to do in the resort.
The resort subtly offers more varieties of food than one would usually expect from a relatively young resort. SugarBEATS is a beach‑club‑style restaurant and bar that looks out over the pool and sea. Breakfast leans on an à la carte approach supported by a local buffet: Western options such as steak and eggs are still finding their footing, but the Indonesian dishes on the buffet are where the kitchen really shines, with robust, well‑seasoned flavours that hold up even at scale. Lunch and dinner here is casual and convenient between dips in the pool, even if the menu could use one or two signature standouts; for now, it’s the easy choice when guests want something unfussy with a view.
Come evening, head to STIX, the resort’s satay‑focused restaurant that plays like a tropical izakaya. The starters set the tone: the seared tuna is clean and precise, while the Kepulauan Gong Gong ceviche, built around the local sea snail, had great potential but needs more refinement, with the texture of the gong gong being tougher than ideal and the dish begging for more acidity and heat to truly lift it. The skewers, however, are where STIX really delivers. The Ribeye Stix is the best kind of simple: well‑marbled beef, kissed by charcoal smoke, seasoned just enough to let the meat’s richness do the talking. The Tenggiri Stix brings Jimbaran‑style seasoning to Spanish mackerel, its spice rub hugging the fish’s natural sweetness and only really missing a punchy sambal on the side. The Prawn Stix arrives with a confident spice that doesn’t drown out the seafood, and the Snapper Stix arguably steals the show—juicy fillets grilled to the point, topped with a straightforward garlic‑ginger paste and XO sauce that evokes, in the best way, a stingray stall back home.
For many beach resorts, the drinks menu is an afterthought; here, it’s one of the biggest reasons to stay on the property. The Voyage Bar—a swim‑up pool bar—runs its own happy hour from 2pm to 4pm. It’s the spot to hover in the shallows with a cold drink in hand while working on one’s tan and watching the sunset over the South China Sea. The cocktails are consistently well executed—a detail that becomes more impressive the longer you’re there.
The Piña Colada is a great litmus test: blended with fresh local pineapple and coconut daily, it lands creamy but not cloying, the fruit tasting bright rather than syrupy.
At the Tiki Bar, the house signature, W‑onana, is a tropical riff on an Old Fashioned, folding banana milkshake notes into the structure of a serious whisky‑forward drink. It sounds like it shouldn’t work; it absolutely does, with banana lending roundness and aroma without tipping it into dessert territory.
What stands out most is how similar each cocktail tastes from day to day—the flavour profile and balance remain stable, which says a lot about the bar team’s training and pride. Service matches the drinks: staff are warm, attentive, and quick to remember preferences, which makes returning for another round feel like visiting a local bar rather than a transient resort counter. The buy‑two‑get‑one‑free cocktail happy hour from 4pm to 6pm turns afternoons by the pool into an easy ritual, and live music on Friday–Sunday from 6pm to 9pm adds a relaxed, social energy without turning things into a rowdy party.
The resort also punches above its weight on activities. Guests receive daily WhatsApp updates summarising what’s on, everything from weather conditions to promotions and scheduled experiences—which makes it easy to plan without constantly checking boards or calling the front desk. A standout perk is 30 minutes of complimentary double‑kayak use and 30 minutes of stand‑up paddleboarding per day (conditions permitting), letting you glide along the coastline and take in Bintan’s greenery from the water without extra cost.
Adrenaline junkies can book add‑ons like ATV rides or jet‑ski sessions, which make full use of the estate’s beachfront setting and wider surroundings. The resort also clearly communicates sea conditions; coloured flags by the beach give at‑a‑glance guidance on whether watersports are safe, and staff are quick to advise when there are strong currents or if it might be wiser to stay on land.
In an overcrowded regional resort landscape, Hotel Indigo Bintan stands out not because it shouts the loudest, but because it gets the fundamentals right and layers in thoughtful extras. You’re getting a suite product that feels genuinely special, cocktails with both character and consistency and watersports and beach time that feel embedded rather than bolted on. The resort also has plans for expansion to add more dining options and amenities, such as a Chinese restaurant, a rooftop bar, a sports hub, and even a wellness centre, which should further round out the stay experience and dissuade guests from leaving and remaining on the property between the beach and excursions. It’s easy to imagine a near future where this corner of Lagoi feels like a complete mini‑destination.
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Hotel Indigo Bintan Lagoi Beach Resort is located at Gurindam Street 12, Plot B3-01, Tourism Area, Bintan Regency, Riau Islands 29155, Indonesia.
