In Reply to: really really cheap posted by pdesterke on Monday, 15. November 2004 at 02:52 Bali Time:
I didn't think they had direct flights on that route.
Costing that route by the listed prices (not including any specials or discounts) I get (in approximate Australian dollars):
Singapore - Batam... AU$15 (ferry)
Batam - Jakarta..... $80
Jakarta - Denpasar.. $110
Total............... $205
But it might be possible to get better prices midweek or off-season. What quotes do you have on Lion air, pdesterke?
An alternative route with approximately the same amount of hassle would be to take a bus to Johor Baru, then a train or bus to Kuala Lumpur (four hours), then catch a direct flight on Airasia to Denpasar. Obviously a lot depends on how much time you have to play with. But the potential breakdown is this:
Bus/train to Johor Baru... AU$3
1st class train to KL..... $22 (2nd class $11, bus $7)
KL to Denpasar............ $65 (Inc. departure tax... based on advertised 'from' price... most likely mid-week only)
Total..................... $90
Obviously, to get that price, the arriving flight in Singapore would have to gel nicely with cheap flight days out of KL, and the travelling times in between. But there are three trains a day and (I think) three or four busses. It might be necessary to spend a night or two on accomodation to reap the bargains, but on the other hand, he'd get to see a new place or two along the way.
Why go to Johor Baru (in Malaysia, just across the bridge from Singapore), when the same trains/busses run from Singapore? Because from KL to Singapore is 68 MYR, whereas from Singapore to KL it costs 68 Singapore dollars (about 3 times the price). You save about $40 by going to JB first.
I don't think there's departure tax between Singapore and Malaysia if you cross by land, but don't quote me on that.
Anyway... either of the above ways will probably be cheaper than Singapore airlines.
Oddly enough, Airasia's prices from Kl-Bali are slightly less than from KL-Jakarta (which is about 1000km closer). You can also fly from JB to Jakarta for about $65 (though I managed to get one the other way for less than half that). The reason I mention that is that if you're thinking of the sing-batam-jk-bali route, you might want to compare your best ferry/flight to JK quotes with the best quotes from JB-JK.
I hope this has actually helped, rather than just added to the confusion.