Hilton and PT. Sabang Raya Investama Sign 199-Room Hotel Development in Batam, Indonesia

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) has signed an agreement with PT. Sabang Raya Investama to develop the Hilton Garden Inn Batam City Centre, a 199-room hotel that will mark the company's first property on the Indonesian island of Batam. The signing was announced Sept. 3, with the hotel expected to open in 2028.

The project adds to Hilton's growing footprint in Indonesia, where the company currently operates 18 hotels with another 16 in the pipeline across the country.

Project Details and Amenities

Hilton Garden Inn Batam City Centre will be situated in Batam's core Central Business District, offering access to major commercial and administrative hubs including Lubuk Baja and Batam Centre, as well as ferry terminals with direct connections to Singapore and Malaysia, nearby industrial estates, and Hang Nadim International Airport.

The 199-key property will include standard rooms, family rooms, and suites. Planned amenities include an all-day dining restaurant, bar, fitness centre, and swimming pool. The hotel will also offer more than 900 square meters of meeting and event space, comprising a ballroom and six meeting rooms, positioning it to serve the MICE segment alongside corporate and leisure travelers.

The hotel will participate in Hilton Honors, Hilton's guest loyalty program, which counts more than 260 million members globally.

Developer and Strategic Rationale

"Batam continues to grow as an important business and leisure destination, supported by its close proximity to Singapore and Malaysia, strong connectivity and expanding visitor economy," said Maria Ariizumi, vice president, Development, South East Asia & Australasia, at Hilton. "The signing of Hilton Garden Inn Batam City Centre marks our debut in Batam and reinforces our commitment to growing in high-potential destinations across Indonesia."

PT. Sabang Raya Investama's President Director, Sukirman Djohan, described the partnership as a milestone for the developer. "Partnering with Hilton represents an exciting milestone for us as we bring an internationally recognized hospitality brand to Batam," Djohan said. "We believe Hilton Garden Inn Batam City Centre will cater to the needs of modern business and leisure travellers while supporting Batam's continued growth as a regional destination."

Hilton Garden Inn is the company's approachable upscale brand, with more than 1,100 hotels across 65 countries and territories. The brand targets business and leisure travelers seeking consistent, amenity-rich accommodations at accessible price points.

Batam Market Context

Batam, part of Indonesia's Kepulauan Riau province, functions as both a manufacturing and logistics hub and a short-haul leisure destination for visitors from Singapore and Malaysia. The island welcomed approximately 1,613,202 international visitors in 2025, a 22% year-on-year increase, reflecting strong post-pandemic recovery in cross-border travel demand.

Demand drivers in the market span several segments. Corporate and industrial travel is supported by Batam's established base of manufacturing operations and proximity to Singapore's supply chains. The island also draws MICE business as a lower-cost alternative to Singapore for regional corporate retreats and conferences. Weekend leisure visitors from Singapore and Malaysia are attracted by competitive pricing for hotels, food and beverage, and entertainment. Golf and wellness tourism, along with medical-related stays — where cross-border visitors seek lower-cost procedures while staying at international-brand hotels — round out the demand profile that Hilton cited in its rationale for the signing.

Star-rated hotel occupancy in Batam Municipality stood at 48.36% in February 2025, compared with 53.45% in January 2025, while Riau Islands province recorded average occupancy of 42.01% in February 2025. Nationally, Indonesia's star-rated hotels averaged 54.81% occupancy in 2025, up from 53.56% in 2024, with average daily rates rising approximately 6.4% year over year.

Hilton's Indonesia and Southeast Asia Expansion

The Batam signing reflects Hilton's broader push to scale focused-service and mid-market brands across Southeast Asia, a region where the company has been accelerating development activity. Indonesia is characterized by Hilton as one of Asia Pacific's fastest-growing hospitality markets, and the Batam deal extends the company's geographic reach within the archipelago beyond its existing 18 operating hotels.

The Hilton Garden Inn Batam City Centre is designed to capture demand from multiple traveler profiles — corporate, MICE, leisure, wellness, golf, and medical — that converge on Batam given its position as a gateway between Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. The property's location within the CBD, with direct access to ferry terminals and the international airport, is central to that positioning.

Sources

Hilton Stories: Hilton Signs First Hotel in Batam, Accelerating Growth in Indonesia