early to bed, early to sunrise; island life in the riau archipelago
Cempedak Island is a natural paradise of calming seas, wide-sky blues and every shade of rainforest green. Guests share the sandy paths, bamboo villas and forest trails with geckos and butterflies, cicadas and hornbills, and sightings of the wonderful monitor lizards. Wake early, soak up the relaxed vibes, add a little snorkelling, a village visit or a spa treatment, and of course eat, drink, sleep. And repeat. The perfect antidote to city living.
A blissful awakening
Drifting out of sleep, eyes still closed, it’s the soundtrack that floats into my consciousness first – the call of the hornbill, a high top note, sounds above the gentle rhythmic base of the waves. I arrived last night in the dark, so it’s a revelation to open my eyes to the dawn view of calm, pale blue ocean, granite boulders and mini beach, framed by the bamboo curve of the villa and the fringe of its roof.
Cempedak Private Island is a resort hideaway found in Indonesia’s charming Riau Archipelago. A hop, skip, jump – and a world away – from Singapore, this 17-hectare island is home to rainforest and beaches, and lazy barefoot strolls connecting the pier, restaurant and bar with villas and the spa.
With sunrise looming I get up and walk through the forest, alive with the song of the cicadas as delighted as I am at the new day. Arriving at the spa I walk out, barefoot, onto the night-cool slab of granite that leads down to the water. It’s cloudy but there’s a chink in the clouds and within that small frame my sunrise happens. Glowing gold it aims a narrow band of light onto the sea and sparkles its way right up towards me as I sit and gratefully soak it up.
As nature wakes up all around me I feel my shoulders drop, my city worries fade. I close my eyes. Over the next few days this becomes my island routine; early to bed, early to sunrise.
Post meditation, I return to my villa for a cleansing dip in the sea. My villa has a little semi-private mini-bay and the water is translucent, warm and silky on the skin. I sit on a boulder and look back at the curvy design of my villa. No TV, no air-con, total bliss. Downstairs is a spacious living room with windows that concertina back to open up to the pool. Upstairs, no walls, no windows, the breeze wafts in and over my mosquito netted bed and the bathroom beside it is full of deliciously fragrant natural Cempedak amenities – even the mossie spray smells divine.
I wander barefoot to the restaurant for breakfast, stepping down to an alfresco booth overlooking the sea. A series of plates follow me, full of local fruit, house-made granola, Indonesian sweets and baskets of pastries. I tuck in, feeling indescribably lucky.
Luxury meets sustainability
The day brings island walks, my favourite discovering how much thought and effort goes into the sustainability here. I meet arguably the island’s most important residents, the maggots, who enthusiastically turn food scraps into compost for the organic garden – a full circle of life in wriggling action.
I visit the ‘energy room’ where the oomph from the solar panels and the generators are juggled to keep us in lights and wifi, and I hear about how the wells and the rainwater keep our taps and toilets flowing. It’s a delight to see how enthusiastic the back-of-house staff members are about leveraging as much alternative power as possible in the island’s heartfelt journey towards sustainability.
Lunches are unhurried, punctuating easy days with blissful rest and digest. The restaurant’s system of sharing the next meal’s menu choices ensuring anticipation for the next feast. While the western dishes are expertly created, my favourites are the local dishes and ingredients, with just-picked veggies, free-range and organic ingredients cooked up with local spices.
Discover or take cover
The pool and its cabanas and lounge beds are ideal for post-lunch naps between swims and the odd ambitious activity. Stirring myself to move, afternoon trips include a speedboat zip out to a reef to snorkel, ending up on a sandbank island around which we dived down to try to find a boat wreck.
An excursion to a nearby island walked us through the village and to the former dugong (sea cow) fisherman’s house. We learned about his career, and how Cempedak has been instrumental in supporting him as he finds alternative ways to spend his days now the sea cow is an endangered species.
Back on the island, tropical Mother Nature has somehow been tamed into creating a beautifully groomed grass tennis court and croquet lawn between the palms, streams and wildlife. I could hardly believe it. And so my number one recommendation is not to miss a game of late afternoon croquet with the staff.
It’s ‘Cempedak rules’, and they are demons, focusing on knocking competitors off-course while incredibly accurately navigating the hoops. The laughter rings out as the crack and thump of mallet and ball echo, punctuated by the sound of ice crackling in your cocktail glass.
Winding down
The spa is another of the island’s many places of sanctuary. On wooden stilts set on my favourite meditation rock, the soaring spa lobby leads to inside-outside spa rooms that gaze out at the bay. After an alfresco foot wash, you can choose the breeze or air con for your treatment. The massages are beautifully performed – unravelling weeks of deadline pressure, physically as well as mentally.
As the sun sets, it’s time for a pre-dinner cold beer up high in the Dodo Bar, served with delicious local crisps made of cassava and an addictive spicy sambal style salsa. Then dinner, winding down the day. I eat, relax and marvel at my surroundings, listening to the waves, feeling utterly content. And it’s just a short, sandy walk back to the villa before I’ll be drifting back into wave-cossetted blissful sleep.
- Cempedak.com
This trip took place, courtesy of Cempedak, at the end of 2019. The island has been in my thoughts so many times since, while travel has been suspended, and I would recommend this beautiful resort without hesitation.
How to get there
It takes around 2.5 hours to get to Cempedak from Singapore in an easy journey of ferry from Tama Ferry Terminal to Bintan Island, pick up and drive across the island to the pier and speedboat ride to the island. And it’s worth every minute.
