Potato (1kg) | USD 0.67 |
Taxi 1km | USD 0.59 |
Cappuccino | USD 0.97 |
Tennis court rent (1 hour on weekend) | USD 5.06 |
Water bottle (0.33 liter) | USD 0.29 |
Tomato (1kg) | USD 0.46 |
Milk (1 liter) | USD 0.38 |
Mid range bottle of wine | USD 21.07 |
Since Pekanbaru has become Indonesia’s oil capital, the sleepy river port suffered from the hustle and bustle of many modern cities. Tourists usually use this as a transit point to Singapore. But since cheap flights to Pekanbaru, Singapore, and other key cities in the world became more affordable, people have skipped the sea passage. Instead, they discovered that the Pekanbaru is actually worth a traveler’s thumbs up.
Playing golf is a formidable reason that tourists make a visit. There are various golf courses that are quite popular here. There’s the Pekanbaru Golf Course Country Club, the Rumbai Golf Course, the Simpang Tiga Golf Course, and the Labersa Golf Course. Shopping is another favorite activity among Pekanbaru visitors. Malls are usually packed with a nice lineup of shops that sell just about anything – from traditional snacks to handphones to souvenirs and imported products. They also feature food marts that sell traditional food as well as fast food items. When eating out, lots of restaurants offer local fare so you get to taste what it’s like to being one of them. Tenda Biru is one great restaurant option. It serves Mie Aceh or Aceh noodles. If you want a great selection of Indonesian and Chinese food, Restoran Taman Anggrek is a nice choice. It serves the best chili crab recipe in town.
Apart from playing golf, you may also want to pay a visit to some key attractions that will make your wandering around truly enjoyable. First, there’s the Chinese-Malay Quarter. It is the city’s so called “Little Chinatown”, which hosts the Chinese New Year festival annually. Second, there’s the Sang Nila Utama Museum. It is the only museum in the city wherein cultural and historical artifacts are on display. Third, there is the Lembah Sari Reservoir Park. It is a recreational park great for outdoor activities for everyone.
There are a lot of high end hotels in Pekanbaru. If you are on a strict budget, however, you might want to walk into any of the budget hotels available, which will compliment your cheap flights to Pekanbaru. Online booking is not available for budget hotels so all that you need to do is to walk in and check if any room is available for you to occupy.