Is it safe to visit Bintan?
Answer Sir: It is very hard to get accurate information about anywhere in Indonesia from the US. The people at About.com have recently warned us about giving advice that is contrary to things like government warnings and so I must demur. When you get to Singapore you should ask several people about going. You cannot necessarily trust the people in the hotel where you will stay since they will not want you to check out, but travel agencies, business contacts, etc. will usually give you good info. The last time I went, they were just beginning to build the resorts. They definitely chose the nicest beaches they could find and other than a few small towns, the islands were mostly empty. The only people there were simple village people living in shacks built on stilts above the water. They looked quite unlikely to take part in any protest. The thing is that you just don’t know about Indonesia because you don’t know where the workers came from. You are right that Bintan is a long way from Ja
