Cempedak Private Island

Style

Lo-fi barefoot fantasy

Setting

The Riau factor

Cempedak Private Island is an adults-only private retreat that lets its surroundings do most of the persuading. Off Bintan in the Riau Islands, it pairs light-touch service with open-air living, sea views and an unhurried rhythm of swims, spa treatments, forest walks and sunset drinks. Villas are spacious but simply dressed, with private pools; menus follow the day’s ingredients, and the mood is barefoot ease rather than polished-resort performance.

Facilities

Rooms

20 villas.

Checkout

11am, and check-in is at 1pm. Both are flexible, on request and subject to availability.

More Details

Rates don't include the compulsory S$121 daily board charge, which covers all meals, tea, filter coffee and some activities. You can prepay these charges ahead or pay locally in Indonesian Rupiah. A two-night minimum stay applies.

Also

The villas are duplex-style, and there are steps to reach the bar and restaurant, so you’ll need enough mobility to be able to contend with stairs, sandy paths and island terrain. Unfortunately, Cempedak Island is not set up for wheelchair users.

Free Internet Access

Pool

On-Site Restaurant

Spa

At the Hotel

Two natural-grass tennis courts that can also be used for croquet, archery, boathouse, snorkelling kit, kayaks, stand-up paddleboards, sailing and windsurfing equipment, and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: iPad for contacting your villa host, ceiling fan, mosquito net, cafetière, tea-making kit, yoga mat, foam rollers, bathrobes and custom bath products. Hair dryers and ice boxes are available on request.

Our Favourite Rooms

All villas at Cempedak Private Island are open to nature and embrace the resort's seamless approach to indoor-outdoor living. Beyond this, your choice comes down to two types. Beach Villas have direct access to the sand, and the sound of waves after dark is hard to beat. Seaview Villas flaunt a wider panorama, with bay and island views from a higher perch; they’re romantic and private, though their leafier setting may bring a little more wildlife theatre.

Poolside

There's an outdoor, unheated saltwater pool at the boathouse, open 8am to 5pm and with no lifeguard. Every villa also has a private plunge pool, so cooling off is never much of a commute.

Spa

Rock Spa is tucked above granite boulders in a quiet eastern mangrove bay, with three circular open-air treatment rooms and waves in place of whale music. Treatments draw on Indonesian techniques; couples’ rituals can be arranged. Book early, then surrender — even the oil choice is handled for you.

Packing Tips

Bring reef-safe SPF, swimwear, linen layers, a proper paperback and a relaxed attitude to sharing space with nature. The hotel keeps disposable amenities to a minimum, so pack your toothbrush, toothpaste and any must-have bathroom bits. Cempedak’s natural bath products are designed to help deter mosquitoes, but trusted insect repellent is still worth bringing.

Also

There is only one television screen at Cempedak Private Island, and it lives in the bar — which tells you almost everything about the intended pace.

Children

This is an adults-only island, welcoming guests aged 15 and over only. Sister stay, Nikoi Island, is your family-friendly option.

Gallery

Food & Drink

Top Table

At dinner, ask for a tree-shaded dining pod for the most private, romantic feel. For sunset, the restaurant’s balcony tables make full use of that rocky-point view.

Dress Code

Barefoot, salt-haired and just-dressed-enough: linen shirts, easy dresses, sandals and anything that can handle a sandy path and one last rosella-tinted cocktail.

Hotel Restaurant

Cempedak’s only restaurant makes a virtue of leaving the menu to the island. Hand-built from bamboo on a rocky point, it has elevated walkways, a long sunset-facing balcony and tree-shaded dining pods that feel made for two. The daily set menu is chalked up by the entrance and follows what’s fresh: local seafood, Bintan-farmed produce, island-grown herbs and whatever looks best at market. Breakfast might be Continental or Indonesian-leaning, with fresh fruit, eggs, homemade muesli, pastries, juices and pressed coffee. Lunches are generous woven-tray spreads — soto medan, pepes ikan, nasi kuning, fish curry, beef rendang, sambal and salads bright with coconut and lime. By dinner, things shift into courses: perhaps tuna naniura, barbecued meats, market vegetables and something darkly sweet to finish. Staff talk you through the next meal ahead of time and check for allergies, dislikes and dietary needs; portions can be topped up, too. The fixed-menu format feels less restrictive, more restful: the island does the sourcing, the kitchen does the thinking, and your only job is to choose the view.

Hotel Bar

Dodo Bar is Cempedak’s main drinking den, waiting by the jetty in a triple-tier bamboo tower with a spiral pagoda roof. It opens at 5pm and keeps going until the last sips are sunk, with classic cocktails, local-flavoured mixers, island-brewed beer and a favourite bespoke pour, The Dodo’s Last Sip: gin, fresh lemon and orange juices, and house-made rosella syrup. Smaller bars at the restaurant and boathouse keep daytime drinks within easy reach. Paddle to Deadman's Beach (by paddleboard or kayak), in the island's north, and you're not quite out of refreshment's way — there's a cool box on the sands that serves as an honesty bar; just help yourself and you'll be billed for your drinks at check-out.

Last Orders

Breakfast is served from 7am to 10am, lunch from noon to 2pm, and dinner from 6pm to 9pm.

Room Service

No room service here — a small nudge to leave the villa and let the island feed you properly.

Planes

Singapore’s Changi Airport is the smoothest international gateway, rather than the closest; from the airport, it’s around 10 minutes by taxi to Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal. The nearest airport is Raja Haji Fisabilillah International in Tanjung Pinang, on Bintan, which has daily connections from Jakarta.

Automobiles

You’ll have no need for a set of wheels. Cempedak itself is car-free, so once you’re there, the pace drops to footpath speed. And private transfers take care of the rest.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

At Cempedak Private Island, activity is optional rather than itinerary-shaped — though there’s plenty to tempt you from your sea-soundtracked bed. Start with the 9am nature walk, where guides talk through the island’s flora, fauna and sustainability efforts, then drift towards the sea for snorkelling, kayaking, stand-up paddleboarding, sailing, windsurfing or a jetty jump when the tide allows. Back on dry land, there’s grass-court tennis, croquet, archery, sunrise yoga, cooking classes with the chefs and moon-gazing through the hotel telescope. Or accept the island’s quiet dare and do almost nothing at all.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .