Pakuwon Batam
Batam’s largest mall with tax-free shopping, Pakuwon Batam, is already under construction and will eventually open for us to visit.
With the new hovercraft-like fast ferry to Batam shortening your commute to just 30 minutes, it might be even quicker to drop by Pakuwon Batam for your shopping than sitting through the Causeway jam for your usual JB shopping malls.
What is Pakuwon Batam?
Image credit: Benoy
Pakuwon Batam is set to be Batam’s newest and largest mall, taking up a whopping 12.4ha of land and having a total gross floor area of 286,000sqm. To give you a sense of its scale, this is bigger than any mall in Singapore and is around 3 times the size of ION Orchard.
Just Phase 1 of construction alone will include a 3,700sqm multipurpose plaza, 6 floors dedicated to delicacies and fresh seafood, 2 hotels with a combined 506 rooms, as well as 1 serviced apartment with 161 rooms .
What can you expect at Pakuwon Batam?
Local & international cuisine, plus gourmet seafood
Image credit: Benoy
Food will be a major part of Pakuwon Batam, starting with the basement’s River of Flavours marketplace, where you’ll find a mix of local Indonesian eats and international dining options. Seafood lovers can also make a beeline for Seafood Paradise on Level 2, a dedicated dining zone focused on gourmet seafood.
Retail shops
Image credit: Benoy
The ground floor will be home to international retail brands, making it the main shopping zone for fashion, lifestyle, and other global labels. You’ll also find family, entertainment, and sports offerings on the upper floors.
Entertainment options
Beyond shopping and dining, Pakuwon Batam will also have spaces dedicated to entertainment and more active experiences. One of the main highlights is the Adrenaline Zone on Levels 1 and 1M, which will focus on high-energy activities for visitors looking for something more exciting than a standard mall run.
Event spaces & design features
Image credit: Benoy
The mall will also feature an airy, shaded plaza and flexible indoor-outdoor event spaces on the main ground floor for pop-ups, social events, and community gatherings.
Image credit: Benoy
To make the space feel a little less generic, there’ll be alfresco dining decks set amid lush greenery and water features, as well as standout design elements like a gourmet tower, a large LED screen, and a canopy.
Accommodation options
Image credit: Benoy
With a mall that huge, you can’t expect to finish exploring within a day. So you’ll be glad to hear that the development will also integrate luxury hotels, all connected via Batam’s 1st skybridge – meaning you can make one of its rooms your home base to explore the mall and the rest of Batam.
Image credit: Benoy
To show you what they really mean by “luxury”, the hotels will have courtyard garden rooms, private balconies, a banquet hall, as well as a pool deck from which you can even spot Singapore.
When will Pakuwon Batam open to the public?
Construction of Phase 1 began in late 2024, but no official opening date has been announced yet, although unofficial sources have indicated that the mall may open in late 2026 or in 2027.
Look forward to the opening of Pakuwon Batam
We’re keeping our eyes peeled for more updates on the mall, so that we can be the first to hop on a ferry when it finally opens its doors.
Find out more about new or upcoming malls:
Cover image adapted from: Benoy