North Sulawesi is located east of Borneo and south of Philippines. It is one of the 32 provinces of Indonesia with its capital city - Manado.
It's Sam Ratulangi international and domestic airport (Airport Code - MDC) provides daily flights to Jakarta and major indonesian cities as well as regular flights from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
There are several ways of getting to Manado but we are going to give the information by air travel as it is the most common among travellers today.
The 3 main gateways to manado are Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Connecting via Kuala Lumpur, Singapore or Jakarta will depend on your city of travel origin though via singapore is strongly encouraged as delays and cancellation of domestic flights are very common.
Those looking for budget air travel, there is a way by using Air AsiaX from either Australia or London to Kuala Lumpur and connect with Air Asia's Kuala Lumpur-Manado flight at the budget terminal. Do check on connection time allowance as you will need to clear immigration, collect your luggage, pass customs, and subsequently check-in at the Manado flight counter. For those arriving in KLIA (Kuala Lumbpur's main international airport terminal), please note that you will also need to take a shuttle (or taxi) to the budget terminal.
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Via Singapore
Silkair is the regional airline of Singapore Airlines. It is full service carrier with attractive airfares to popular holiday destinations. The Manado route is serviced by A319-100 and A320-200 aircrafts.
With the introduction of Electronical Ticketing (E-Ticketing) you don't have to worry about collecting your ticket and sometimes it can be a cheaper option to check online on www.silkair.com ~ Look under Hot Deals > Singapore > Indonesia Specials or click here. Please feel free to drop us an email should you require more information.
Flight Frequency - Turn Around Flights
Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays
Flight Times
SIN - MDC : 0925Hrs >>> ETA MDC @ 1305Hrs
MDC - SIN : 1350Hrs >>> ETA SIN @ 1710Hrs
Silkair offers an additional 10-kilograms, for Scuba & Photo Equipment luggage allowance. Be sure to indicate to the Silkair Personnel during check-in at the airport.
Flights arriving to Singapore from Europe and Americas will have a better connecting arrangement. Arrivals to Singapore from major asia cities will find that the connecting time is not ideal and may choose to stay for overnight in Singapore.
You would require a minimum of 6 hours transit in Singapore if you are flying in from Hongkong, Taipei, Bangkok, Tokyo and Shanghai.
As Singapore is a shopping and food paradise, you could maximise your transit as an extension of your holiday. If you are flying with Singapore airlines and stopping over, remember to ask for special hotel rates that are for stopover passengers in Singapore.
If you are interested in staying over and looking for a comfortable yet economically viable hotel, here are our recommendations:
Hotels close to Electronics, Photo Equipment, Computers and Peripherals - Sim Lim Square
 Perak Lodge |
$$ |
Hotel81 Bencoolen |
$$ |
| Bencoolen Hotel |
$$ |
Albert Court Hotel |
$$$ |
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Hotels close to Major Shoppiing Centers - Orchard Road, Scotts Road, Orchard Boulevard
| Supreme Hotel |
$$ |
YMCA Singapore |
$$ |
| Hotel Asia |
$$ |
YWCA Singapore |
$$ |
All hotels listed are in no relation of any nature to Odyssea Divers - Euro Divers International. We are not linking them but you can google to find their sites or relevant sites. Singapore is small and taxis are cheap to engage, so no matter where you stay you will not travel as far as 45mins by car (unless is one end of the island to the other).
If you are looking at a cheaper alternative, please visit www.betelbox.com - A Hostel with a chic personality that has dormitories (great for dive groups) as well as 1 twin room. Tony is a great friend of Odyssea and a guru in providing his guests the knowledge of Singapore - history, nature, food and shopping. Betel Box's website also offers a wealth of information regarding Singapore.
Via Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia
Currently, Air Asia flies 2 times a week (Saturdays and Tuesdays) from Kuala Lumpur's budget terminal. For more information, please visit www.airasia.com
Via Jakarta & other International Airports in Indonesia
Direct Flights to Manado from Jakarta and Bali are limited and flight delays and cancellations are no surprises but they still offer options to getting to Manado.
Domestic Airlines serving Manado are the following
Batavia Air • Garuda Indonesia • Lion Air • Mandala Airlines • Merpati Airlines
For more information on connecting flights, please contact your travel agent or the airlines directly.
If you need more information on ways you can get to Manado, you can visit the official North Sulawesi Tourism site.
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