Bawah Reserve began with a bang-or several. Decades of dynamite fishing had damaged the reefs and marine life of Indonesia’s six-island-strong Anambas archipelago when UK-born businessman Tim Hartnoll first sailed into the lagoon in 2008. Having weighed anchor in Singapore, Bawah was the last stop on his route, but it turned out to be the beginning: nine years later, he rallied eight investors to transform the area into a marine conservation site and 35-bedroom hotel. This month, as Bawah unveiled a private island you can take over as your own, I flew to Singapore, sailed on a ferry to Batam, boarded a seaplane to Bawah and took a boat ride no longer than a deep breath to be one of Elang’s first guests.
Given that it’s named after the eagles that nest on the island, it’s fitting that I’m greeted by a welcome party from the wild: a baby blacktip reef shark, a prehistoric monitor lizard and a giant blue moon butterfly. Read more…
