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Hi all, Ive wanted to see the world since I became fascinated with History, which has been for a long time now. Im a bit iffy about flying but Im sure once I get up there Ill be fine, anyway two of my most desired destinations are Japan and China.
I plan to eventually see both of them but Im wondering which would be better for a first time traveller, Im planning to go on a scheduled tour to make it easier in terms of accomodation and such.

Ive always wanted to see Japan, its one of the most unique cultures in Asia, indeed the world. I have always wanted to visit the Peace Memorial and many other features of Japan like MT Fuji, the Shinto Temples, Tokyo etc etc.
I only issue with Japan is cost, I hear Japan is very, very expensive and as someone who does not earn more then minimal wage I think it would be a while before I could afford to do Japan properly.

I have also always wanted to see China, my only worries are the medical outbreaks occuring at the moment, the unsanitary water supply and the high rate of petty crime. Besides these however I find China fascinating and hope to one day see the likes of the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Terracotta army, not to mention Shanghai and Beijing which i hear are beutiful.

Any advice would be great.

Ive been to Japan 5 times, i loved the place, and I also heard horror stories before i went over, but I didnt think it was any more expensive than England?

Maybe its just expensive here too.

It's expensive here in England.

That said, everything isn't expensive in Japan, you just need to know where to go and what to avoid. You can get a good lunch for under a fiver, for example.

It depends on your currency's exchange rate.

To be fair i only price things via the medium of pint, and a pint cost me about the same as here.

I lived in Japan for a little over 2 years and visited China several times. Japan's a better place if you're wanting to backpack or go it alone and China's better for a group tour of the historic places IMO. Hong Kong was kind of a let down for me but Shanghai and Beijing were wild.

Hotel rates in Japan may make your jaw drop as you'll be paying over $100 (USD)/night for accomodations the size of your closet at home. A cheaper alternative is guest houses which are also a good way to meet fellow travelers.

If you've got the time, take the slower trains as the shinkansen (bullet train) may cost you an arm and a leg to get from the major metro areas.

My recommendations:
Start in Hiroshima and see the peace memorial and Miyajima (a small island with a fantastic temple complex).

Nagano is beautiful this time of year there's a major temple there and then you can take a train and hike out to Jigoku Dani which has the bathing monkeys.

Hit the train again and head out to Kyoto so you can see the historic districts and maybe even catch a glimpse of Maiko (apprentice Geisha) walking around. The temples like Kinkakuji are fantastic.

Train or bus to Tokyo area for the usual giant city oggling and easy bus ride to Mt. Fuji.

All of that would cost you some fat loot but if you could possibly save money by taking sleeper trains from city to city and hitting public baths to clean up (provided you don't have any tattoos).

Either way, China or Japan, you're going to have an experience that'll stay with you the rest of your life. Have a great time.

If you are going to travel by train in Japan (which is highly to be recommended) the Japan Rail pass is a bargain.

http://www.japanrailpass.net/

I lived in Beijing for a couple months, so I say China. As for disease, if you have your shots you are good to go. Also for petty crime, if you are white or black, most pickpockets will leave you be unless you are making yourself an obvious target. Also a shirt with some inside pockets to put your passport and wallet in are golden. China is a pretty cheap, the hotels range in cost from cheap to expensive, but I would suggest trying some of the hostels, they are cheaper and give the experience of meeting more interesting people.
The water, boil it or just drink bottled water which is easy to find.
Beijing is awesome, my advice is do not look like an obvious tourist and explore the hutongs and the western part of the city which is the less western and modernized part.
In any case have fun.

Japan! china = double expensive.

Japan and England are both expensive places to visit and are roughly around the same price. However, the service in Japan is superior to service in the UK.

If you do choose to visit the dreaded Archipelago of Cipangu, do get the JR Railpass. It will allow you unlimited travel on the Bullet Train. Finding the desk in Tokyo Station is always a lot of fun too. Without any accommodation, you'll probably go through money like nobody's business. You can do stuff on the cheap, but if you can't figure out the Japanese it could be rather difficult to find. If you studied a bit of Japanese before, you'll probably be able to get by. Hardly anyone speaks Engrish. And if they do, it is generally a mish-mash of what they think is English i.e. Do you Ome-rice? "Beer" is beer, so that's easy.

The Swede who lived in town here had couch surfers come a few times. Most of them were Swedes, but there was a Frenchman who came too. They came for the surfing. That is probably the cheapest alternative for somewhere to stay. There is a website. A business hotel, which is nothing fancy, but clean, will be about 6000 yen a night. That's probably around 80 or 90 AUD.

China is OK, but I found the people hassle you non-stop compared to Japan. They always seem to be trying to sell you something and they get pissed off when you said 'No'. It's way cheaper than Japan. Coming to Japan to the first time was like taking a trip into the future. Going to China for the first time was like going to Mexico full of Chinese people.

There is always Bali...

Japan fo sho, I've been there once and my cousin has been to China. She wasn't too fond of China, her biggest complaint was how much people pointed how different she and her friend was. Then again she's brown and he's black so...

Japan has so much different stuff going on you can enjoy it if you're into tech, anime, history, quiet mountain villages, bustling cities, awesome food, and just general culture shock. So much seemingly paradoxical contrasts in the culture, like porn EVERYWHERE juxtaposed to austere shrines.

Also make sure you have a good amount of background in the language or know someone who does. Get a rail pass, it'll let you go near anywhere in the country. Stay in hostels, keep it cheap. Eat lots of sushi.