TOTAL PRICE: Complete the form to calculate price
Features
- Good house reef
- Calm beach
- Sandy Beach
- IDR 600,000 to 700,000
- Western style toilet
- Near village
- Has ensuite bathroom/toilet
- Has private bungalows
Details
Batanta Panorama Homestay is on the beach, a ten minute walk from the Batanta village of Marandan Weser. Marandan Weser is commonly called Yennyar, and it is one of the last villages in Raja Ampat in which all the homes are of traditional construction.
Batanta Panorama Homestay offers two VIP bungalows with…. panoramic(!) ocean views.
The bungalows sleep 2. One room has a mattress on the floor. The other has a raised bed. (Homestays don’t provide any way to book specific bungalows, so, if a raised bed is non-negotiable, then it would be best to book at a place that has them in all bungalows.)
Mosquito nets, sheets, blankets, and pillows are provided. Both rooms have power outlets and room light switches.
Both bungalows have ensuite bathrooms with western style toilets and dip mandi (bucket) bathing.
Meals are served in a beachside dining room which also has great ocean views. Free drinking water and tea and coffee making supplies are provided there for guests.
Electricity is provided by generator and is available from sunset to around midnight. The generator can be started at other times if required. A charge may apply for the extra fuel used.
Only a weak and variable phone signal is received at the homestay. An unstable data connection is sometimes available, but you should expect to be offline while at the homestay.
Very little English is spoken at Batanta Panorama Homestay. Bringing a phrasebook or offline translation app is recommended if you don’t speak Bahasa Indonesia.
You will need to come fully stocked with all the consumeables you consider essential, as only very basic supplies can be purchased in Yennyar’s small home kiosks.
As everywhere else in Raja Ampat, safe waste disposal and recycling is unavailable, so please take your inorganic trash away with you when you leave. Lack of effective waste disposal and recycling means that trash left anywhere in the islands will end up polluting paradise.
Transport / Getting there
Batanta Panorama Homestay transfers are by longboat. The boat used can carry up to four passengers. (if there are more than four of you, then a larger boat will be used, and an extra fee may apply.)
The prices below are per trip, not per person.
- Waisai transfer IDR 2,000,000
- Yensawai transfer (to meet public boat): IDR 400,000
- Sorong transfer: IDR 5,000,000
Public Boat to Batanta
If you have plenty of time, you don’t mind a bit of discomfort, and you want spend as little as possible on transport costs, then there are cargo boats that you can use to get to Batanta. (Obviously, if you are going to arrive on the cargo boat, then you don’t need to request a Waisai pickup when submitting the booking form above.)
Here’s what you need to know about getting the cargo boat to Batanta.
Activities
You probably won’t find another village like Yennyar in Raja Ampat. All of the village houses are traditionally constructed from local timber and natural materials. There are no phone or internet services and the pace of life is one which is fast disappearing from the world.
The village was founded by members of the Seventh Day Adventist faith, so their day of rest is Saturday, not Sunday as elsewhere in the islands. Note that (excepting Waisai transfers) boat trips and other activities dependent on your hosts may not be available on Saturdays. There’s plenty to do though: Long walks along a fine sandy beach, birdwatching, jungle trekking or simply relaxing in the shade and enjoying a quiet escape from online life.
Snorkelling
Be sure to bring snorkelling gear, as the reefs that extend all along Batanta Panorama Homestay’s beach are excellent. Marine life is vibrant and dolphins, turtles and dugongs can all be seen if you are lucky. Your hosts can organise any snorkelling or sightseeing trip that you’d like to do.
Waterfall visits and jungle trekking
Batanta’s central highlands create a lot of rain, hence the island’s lush rainforest and many waterfalls. The ancient forests behind Yennyar are home to huge numbers of birds, including Wilson’s Bird of Paradise and Cassowaries. Batanta Panorama Homestay is a great base for birding, or if you want to do some serious tropical forest trekking. Just tell your hosts your interests, or show them a picture of any particular species you’d like to see. Always go with a guide, and be sure to wear appropriate clothing and footwear, and to carry plenty of drinking water – it’s a jungle out there!
Batanta
See our Batanta page for an overview of Batanta, its neighbouring islands, and their attractions.
