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I just wanted to reach out to DakkaDakka land and see if anyone has been to either one of these places on holiday and to hear their experiences. I know a lot of Aussies go to Bali and quite a few Europeans go to Thailand, so this being the most international forum I haunt from time-to-time, I reckoned it would be a good place to get a few other perspectives.

I've got some holiday time coming up in March/April and since it is pretty cheap to go to either place from Japan, I've decided I'm going to one of them. I'll only be there a week as I do I have a bunch of gak I'll have to do here. Currently, I'm leaning more towards Bali than Thailand. A Japanese friend of mine is heavily recommending Bali, but...

I would also go to Bali, if only because the chances of it raining/or being over 38C and ruining your vacation in Thailand are high, the best time to visit Thailand is Nov to Feb since the weather is nice and mild.

I've never been to Bali, but Thailand is awesome.

That is, depending on what you're into. I'm kind of like to party, you know what I'm saying?

Pattaya can either be the most awesome place in the world, or the most horrifically decadent depending on your politics.

Looking for boy-girls? Then Thailand. If not go for Bali.

Unkind!

There's one or two actual women down there, if you know where to look.

Ahtman wrote:Looking for boy-girls? Then Thailand. If not go for Bali.

LOL. QFT


All of these are men...

I'm more concerned that you have the ability to pull up pictures of trannys at a moment's notice... XD

I've been to both, though it was some time ago (about 10 years?), so I don't remember everything exactly.

From what I remember Thailand was much more cultural (with plenty of places to see and things to do), and Bali was kinda less interesting. Though there are a few good places to dive.

But I was relatively young when I went (about 14-15), so I don't really know what the nightlife was likeI'm afraid.

I'm not going on vacation to hook up with He-Shes. LOL. The nightlife aspect is pretty important as I have accumulated a good 2 years worth of 'non-partying' credit I'd like to blow in a week. I'll probably end up sleeping from about 8am to 2 pm everyday while on vacation, or just going without sleep fueled by Vodka and whatever local produce the gods just happen to provide while I am there.

The diving sounds interesting in Bali. Also, I heard you can get your picture taken with an Orangatuan, the living ancestor of Dr.Xeus. I'm kind of apprehensive about the weather in Thailand. This will be a package tour deal for about $1000 US ish, so I don't want to drop all that cash only to end up watching MTV Asia in my hotel room because it's p!ssing rain the entire time.

I guess the Aussies aren't up yet...

I haven't been to either, but I hear from very reliable sources that Vietnam is awesome. A lot of people are saying it's going to be the new 'Thailand', but as yet it's still unspoiled by mass-tourism. A few of my mates have been a couple of times, and they all LOVED it. Sorry if suggesting a third option throws a spanner in the works!

I'm considering going there on holiday myself at some point.

I went to Thailand in November, and it was spectacular. If you're looking to party and lie on a beach, then you have a lot of nice islands to choose from.

Also, apart from occasional "is that person a man or a woman" conversations, the fact that there are a lot of Thais who would rather be women didn't impact our trip at all.

I've never been to Bali though. Also, it's worth noting that march/april are the start of thailand's rainy season, which could be hit or miss.

Bali , it has lots of culture to offer.

and less he-shes

@ khornholio, Are you in Kobe? If so, I have a friend there, maybe you could look up for me.

I'm not in Kobe nor the Kansai region. I'm a 2 hour express train ride and a 3 hour Bullet-train ride from Shin Kobe. I'm in the Khornhole of the Chiba Dog...literally.

Never been to either, but Bali bases about 80% of its economy on tourism. So its bound to be a more Westerner friendly sort of place. At least as long as you ignore the whole terrorism thing.

Bali is basically a tourist town, everything is geared towards you. This means its easy to get a decent room, get a decent meal and all that. It also means the place might end up feeling artificial, if that kind of thing bothers you.

Thailand has a lot of beautiful sites, but the weather isn't always kind and you need to keep your wits about you.

But it sounds like you're looking to just cut loose for a week or two. Honestly, both places are about as good - but just about everywhere is if that's what you're after. The whole world has clubs and they all look and sound the same. I'd probably pick Bali if I was you, as you're less likely to get screwed by the police.

Bali seems to be winning all around here. I'm not too worried about terrorism, but death by Tsunami isn't to my liking either. But that could happen here too. A lot of people are pointing out that Thailand is really hit-or-miss weather wise (here and in the "real" world) and the cop thing wasn't high on my list, but now that you've pointed it out; being hassled by third world cops is pretty gakky.

Bali wins.

Thanks everyone

At least the rain is warm. When I lived in that part of the world (Malaysia), we used to wash the car in our swimming kit when it rained.

Good times

Watchout for Typhoons o_o

Tropical storms are fantastic though, way better than any other kind of storm.

One of the most amazing natural events I have ever seen.

They have typhoons in Japan anyway.

There is a Dakka user in Kobe -- Miguelsan.

I lived in S. Korea for 4 1/2 years and in Japan for 2 1/2 and spent every summer in Thailand; I wasn't too impressed with Bali and the odd chance of your chosen club being blown up by some lunatic doesn't appeal.

If you go to Thailand, book some time in Chang-Mai, it's near the golden triangle and you can take some guided tours of the hill tribes.

Don't spend more than 2-3 days in Bangkok; it's a big, dirty city but has some great night-spots. I recommend a club called, The Bed; great house music and always a live DJ from all over the world. http://www.bedsupperclub.com/bangkok/en/

If you're going out, take some pants (not jeans) and a nice shirt or two because the places that are worth visiting have a dress-code.

Get a couple, three nights of whooping it up in Bangkok and then head down to the beaches of Koh-Samui to chill. You can sit on the beach, go to a rum-distillery, rent a motorcycle and ride around the island, visit a fishing village, get your diving license and see some incredible diving. Champon pinnacle, about 45min by speedboat, has the most incredible diving and the occasion nurse shark and schools of barracuda.

Yeah, Thailand is my destination of choice.

If you go, stay away from Sukhumvit, or as my friends and I call it Scum-pit, road; very seedy but has 4 and 5 star hotels for reasonable prices. In other words, it's hit or miss but stay away from the "entertainment" districts as they're all go-go bars.

Just some thoughts. PM me if you have any questions.

I'm 99.9% Bali. (Anything but a one...ha,ha). I'm going to Nepal in the summer, so I'm thinking of hitting Thailand up in transit. I've heard that the seedier parts of Bangkok are beyond the adjective seedy, which might prove to be a lot of fun. The other bigger, larger wild-card in this is that Mrs.Khornholio may or may not be able to take time off and go with me (it's Japan afterall...) and there is NO WAY she'd let me go to Thailand by myself for a week or so.

Oh man, if you're going with your wife I'd avoid the Thai nightlife altogether.

I'd focus more on the many cultural attractions.

I've been to Bali I stayed in a nice hotel in Sanur for a week.
It's close enough to Kuta to visit in the evenings but far enough away to get the hell out of bat county when things start getting too wierd!

Don't go to Southern Thailand. Theirs a minor rebellion going on there, complete with beheadings brought to you by the usual guys who behead people.

Frazzled wrote:Don't go to Southern Thailand. Theirs a minor rebellion going on there, complete with beheadings brought to you by the usual guys who behead people.

Yeah but unlike bali, they leave the farang (foreigners) alone; the thai military would come down like the hand of god if those yokels started messing with the money that butters the whole nation's bread.

Well I figured once you behead some buddhist priests and school teachers all bets are off.

Thailand did look like it had beautiful scenery though.

Frazzled wrote:Well I figured once you behead some buddhist priests and school teachers all bets are off.

Thailand did look like it had beautiful scenery though.

It is quite beautiful and usually the people there are very friendly; during one of my stays, I was walking the beach one night and wound up sitting near some workmen having a beer after a day of building some new commerical building. We were all watching some kids play soccer on the beach and wound up laughing at them, they shared their beer with me never thinking for a moment that I made 20x the yearly salary that they do.

Scenery, the jungles up north near Chang-mai make for some good hiking and beautiful beaches to the south. If their long-stay visas were more accomodating, I'd plan on retiring there.

Monster Rain wrote:Oh man, if you're going with your wife I'd avoid the Thai nightlife altogether.

Just because you didn't say "Oh man, if you're married I'd avoid the Thai nightlife altogether." - I'm awarding you the Knights Cross of Khornholio with crossed swords and Oak Leaves. LOL