It takes a special guest like you to appreciate our resort for its natural simplicity. Your holiday contribution will go a long way... here is why:

Green, eco & sustainable are now being favourite topics in the news. So have carbon footprint, reducing-recycling-reusing, corporate social responsibility, tourism’s environmental impact, mangrove protection, biodiversity, fair trade…

If one takes a closer look, we at Mutiara Beach Resort in Bintan have been addressing most of these issues since the opening in 2005, in our own modest ways, at a small scale, without publicizing it and by infusing a strong ethical belief into this venture… For instance:

Our resort team has 18 members, all but one are Indonesians… Our activity therefore supports 17 extended families in Bintan.

All construction work is done by the Telokdalam villagers, led by the head of the kampung, using only locally purchased materials.

The never-ending quest for ultimate perfection & bespoke luxury often comes with a huge carbon footprint… We opted out of it.

As an equal opportunity employer, we value good attitude & willingness to learn, on par with school certificates & work experience.

Nature is our main asset; as such, it is also our best partner, whom we respect by looking for the best possible solutions to its challenges.

We follow all government regulations, particularly for our team’s welfare (salary packages, social security, skills certification).

Dear guest, this is our big thank you for:

Accepting our imperfections as a token of relaxed serendipity.

Understanding that raw nature is a bundle of beauty & nuisance.

Contributing with patience to the ‘on-the-job’ training of our crew.

Learning how to slow down, to enjoy the luxury of doing ‘nothing’…

Supporting our vision & development with your generous spending.

Sharing your happiness online, but your concerns directly with us.

Telok Dalam, the area where Mutiara Beach Guesthouse started in 2005, means ‘deep bay’ in bahasa Indonesia ~ this exceptional site was selected in the 1930’s by migrants originating from Dabo, on Singkep island, south-west of Bintan ~ they established their fishing base here, and started planting coconut trees, some of which are still standing today ~ the pioneers got friends & family to join them in the 1950’s and the village is now home to 85 households.

Interesting evidence of earlier settlements was found on our land, like for example a jar of 18th century Dutch coins ~ another highlight was during the 1960’s confrontation years, when some of the troups of the young Republic of Indonesia were camping in Telok Dalam, getting ready to invade Singapore & Malaysia ~ the familiar name ‘Trikora’ given to this coastline originates from that episode (Tiga Komando Rakyat = ‘the three commandos of the people’), from which we recently found disused rifle cartridges ~ and in 1975, hundreds of Vietnamese boat people landed here, setting up temporary shelters before being resettled by the UNHCR.

Going even deeper into history, we discovered that the land was probably used during ancient times as a sacred place, for its very special grid of earth energy lines ~ some areas of the land have been identified as having healing powers, and as such they can be visited for personal spiritual practices like yoga or meditation ~ for a more accessible dimension of wellness, we have opened a spa on the Alor Merah river (‘red river bed’), which has become very popular among our guests ~ it has been featured in several international medias and is also often visited by tourists as a day trip.

Friendly staff at Bintan Spa Resort – Mutiara Beach Resort

From the beginning of the Mutiara adventure, our aim was to blend professional expertise with available local resources ~ as such, our resort team consists of a carefully selected group of 20 local associates, with a senior manager in charge ~ Pak Rumma, our manager, has more than twenty years of hospitality experience, having worked as an executive chef in Batam, Bintan and Singapore ~ he is assisted by 5 supervisors who are mostly coming from other Indonesian islands, bringing with them their specific experience ~ the staff is from nearby villages, and has been trained on the job.

Welcoming team at Mutiara Beach Resort, Bintan Spa Resort

Mutiara Beach Resort started first with the River Spa, at the end of 2005, as a day trip destination for the tourists staying at the Bintan Resorts hotels, in the north of Bintan ~ some of our spa therapists have been with us since these early days and have been loyal contributors to the excellent reputation of the spa ~ all the therapists were recruited from the the village next door, and have been groomed by spa trainers from Taman Sari Royal Heritage, the famous Indonesian brand of natural spa products we have been using exclusively.

Pet friendly stay at Bintan Spa Resort – Mutiara Beach Resort

The resort is pet-friendly, due to the soft spot the owner has for man’s best friends ~ Bintan dog owners often keep the male puppies and dump the little females by the roadside ~ if an abandoned puppy is seen in a miserable condition, she gets picked up and brought to the resort, where the team and the house vet do a wonderful caring job ~ when old enough, our house dogs get vaccinated and sterilised, and hopefully learn a bit about discipline ~ please help us by not feeding them ~ our house dogs love kids.

Resort host welcome at Bintan Spa Resort – Mutiara Beach Resort

Marc Thalmann, born 1957 in Geneva (Switzerland), arrived in the Far East in 1982, for a first job with Schlumberger on Brunei's oil rigs after studying engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich ~ a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, his oilfield career path brought him to India, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam ~ during his assignments, he developed a keen interest for the cultures where he lived, seeking more insight from litterature and collecting antiques, increasingly focussing on the Malay world and its language.

Warm greeting from host at Mutiara Beach Resort, Bintan Spa Resort

Marc first discovered the Riau Archipelago in an airline magazine feature ~ little did he know then, that he would end up dropping his bags on one of these islands, Bintan ~ first in 1988 as dive cruise operator on his MV. Mutiara, then as turnkey project manager & coconut plantation owner, and since 1995 as investor and sponsor of local ventures, for example a book on Bintan

Friendly host experience at Bintan Spa Resort – Mutiara Beach Resort

Two Swiss and a group of Indonesian partners joined him for developing the Mutiara land ~ Marc's self-assigned mission is to share his ‘off beat’ island knowledge with guests, and to bring the 'real' Bintan closer to tourists staying in the five-star Bintan Resorts hotels ~ he is currently an executive member of BiTB (Bintan Tourism Board), of the Bintan Resorts Council and of PHRI's Bintan chapter (Indonesian Hotel & Restaurants Association) ~ once a year, he enjoys a return to nomadic life while touring the archipelago on his Kawasaki Ninja...

Hospitality Pledge

The Land

"Mutiara" means "The Pearl" in Bahasa Indonesia

The Team

Inclusive, local, professional

Your Host

From petroleum oil to massage oil...