Inside The Sanchaya, the Location of the Recent Singapore-Indonesia Leaders’ Retreat in Bintan

While it was not confirmed, it is likely that during the retreat, the leaders stayed at The Sanchaya, even though the retreat was only a day long. 

The Sanchaya boasts an award-winning series of 13 villas and 17 suites which spreads across the impressive 9.6 hectares of tropical greenery, in which the resort is situated.

The cool morning breeze, coupled with the serene tropical wonderland sets the perfect ambience for an evening jog or a morning stroll about the estate. This is probably why both leaders were pictured strolling along the beach and taking selfies together in the midst of the flurry of activity. 

The accommodations themselves range from grand suites coupled with private verandahs, to bamboo villas overlooking the estate’s tranquil lagoon.

The resort also boasts a plethora of fun activities such as an Olympic-sized infinity pool as well as three championship golf courses. Unfortunately, our leaders were clearly too busy signing off on big political agreements to enjoy the amenities. 

Don't miss: Singaporeans Will Soon Be Able to Travel to Batam and Bintan

The Sanchaya is home to two restaurants—the Tasanee Thai Grill, which is a restaurant that is inspired by Thai street food, and The Dining Room which serves contemporary European and Indonesian delicacies.

At many of these large-scale meetings and retreats, food tends to be pre-prepared by hotel staff and served to the leaders, their staff, as well as the accompanying media. This was most likely the case with food coming in expertly prepared from the hotel’s restaurants and chefs. 

Typically, staff will work overtime to ensure that all parties are catered for. With Covid-19, it is possible that the leaders were also given a timetable for when they could have their meals to ensure proper social distancing. 

With the amount of work that went on at the retreat, it is unlikely that any of the leaders had a moment to enjoy the resort per se, but it was definitely a gorgeous and neutral ground for the day-long meeting, which was last hosted in Singapore in October 2019.

If you are hoping to explore the grounds yourself, the good news is that Indonesia has just announced that it will be opening a safe travel corridor to allow Singapore residents to travel into Batam and Bintan.

While a date has yet to be announced, it looks like it will take place shortly especially since the retreat expedited talks related to a travel bubble between the countries. 

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