In Reply to: bali vs thailand posted by maxim v on Wednesday, 16. February 2005 at 18:31 Bali Time:
Well, if it's raining, a hammer won't keep you very dry, but just try banging in a nail with an umbrella and see how far you get.
You forgot to tell us what you like to do when you're on holiday, and how long you have to do it. Also, you've asked us to compare an entire country with a small island. And to judge the 60 million (?) Thais against the 4 million Balinese.
I doubt anyone is qualified to make a reasonable judgement on all of that.
As far as costs go, taxis and hotels are about the same in terms of $$$ and quality. Food in Thailand is better quality and just as cheap (but in both places you can pay as little or as much as you like, depending on where you choose to eat). Squid on a stick in Thailand... oh, man... about a buck a squid... unbeatable. I don't shop, but some of my Balinese friends get excited about going to Thailand to do some shopping, and they say it's much cheaper.
In late November, the weather was perfect in Thailand. About 27 degrees every day, not as humid as Bali. Trees in the jungle kind of look the same in Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia (to me, anyway). And large cities tend to look the same, too, until you stay long enough to learn the ins and outs and find the dark alleyways and meet the people properly. I didn't see the rice fields of Thailand, so I can't compare them to Bali's, which are unarguably spectacular.
The pester factor is much lower in Thailand, except in red-light districts (which, contrary to popular belief, are NOT everywhere), where you will be asked every three steps to buy DVD's guaranteed to boggle your bits.
I haven't been to any of the major tourist places like Phuket (which sounds to me as though it would be similar to Bali). And I only spent six days in Thailand, so I have a lot more to see. But I will definitely go back, hopefully for much longer. The Wats are spectacular.
As far as the people go, the ratio is much the same as anywhere: 95% good decent people, 5% A-holes.
My gun-to-the-head decision goes a bit like this: (though I'm going to change the metaphor)
If I had a week to live, and could chose to spend it in either Thailand or Indonesia, I would choose Indonesia. But if the choice was between Thailand and Bali, I would choose Thailand.
I agree with Carlos. You've seen Bali a few times already. Give yourself something to compare it with. I doubt you'll be disappointed with Thailand. And there's a lot more of Indonesia to see, too (which can easily be combined with a Bali holiday).
But before you get any really useful advice, you need to tell us what you are looking for in more detail.