Posted by Rik on Sunday, 4. October 1998 at 09:59 Bali Time:
In Reply to: Bali or Thailand posted by sudha on Thursday, 1. October 1998 at 21:55 Bali Time:
I have been recently to Thailand and bali, both are great, but to me Thailand is the best.
Bangkok is hectic and full on ,very poluted but with the population density what could you expect, great shopping ,mens shirts of good brand cheap cheap,womans clothes cheap also, especially tailor made,but bargain hard.Phucket is a top spot with Patong beach being the main resort area with a good night life and great restaurants A realy good hotel is Phuket Cabana Resort ,its the only Patong beach hotel actually on the beach and is top value .The beauty of Thailand is that you dont get hasseled to buy,you just get bargains and the clothing quality is better than Bali
Bali has better scenery,
although Thailand does have some great tours from Phucket and Bangkok,but for scenic splendor ,Bali has it all,Borubodur, dont miss it,absolutely magnificent,but go twice,morning and late afternoon , if you are lucky you will have a smoking volcano,truly great as a backdrop .
Bali itself ,good restaurants good night life at Kuta but oh the constant hassel from street vendors ,but times are tough,so bare with it,best way I have found is to avoid eye contact,clothes are cheap and if you take your own cloth the tailors will do a good job. Leather coats ,belts, shoes, are the best buys .Good tours, try the East Bali tour,the mother temple tour should not be missed ,and the tour to klunkung is a good day out,the tour to miss is the volcano tour, very full on hassel
All in all each place has its unique beauty and if you can do both with Bali first Bangkok second and finish up at Phuket for a complete rest.
I hope this is of some small help to you;For the Bali lovers out there who can not tolerate critiicism , please accept that my comments are without malice .
To finish , Sanur is very quiet and relaxing.Nusa Dua is very upmarket and pricey.Lovena great for diving , if your budget is unlimited try Jimbaran bay,Ubud for scenic delight but watch out for dogs at night,
Kuta,well anything goes ,you pay your money and you take your chances,sometimes a great time ,sometimes not so good.