Ray/Anne Marie

We are planning a trip in January. We are presently leaning towards Bali because of the cultural things to do. We're considering a package with a fixed hotel in Phuket. Does Phuket and surrounding area offer safe and interesting single day experiences?

KAZ

I lived in Thailand for a year when I was 13 and travelled to Bali for a 2 week holiday. <BR> Although I was last in Phuket 5 years ago and Bali 3, I will offer some insight. <BR> Phuket has a tendency to be very..touristy. There are things to do, but I suggest you rent a motorbike or jeep and find them. We were in our jeep checking out some waterfalls and stopped by the side of the road to talk to 2 elderly women cutting coconuts down from the trees. We had to pick up on Thai quickly, living in a small Thai village. They gave us a coconut to drink and eat the meat of (green ones are the best, by the way!) and we caught pics of a baby elephant tied to a tree in a rubber tree grove. Side adventures are a plenty. <BR> I loved Phi Phi Island...we went there for 2 weeks once. We rode a ferry, then hopped a small boat to ride around the other side of the island. Luckily, we arrived as the Japanese cruise boat left! Wonderful private beaches, basically, clear clear water. Not much else to do though..very cut off from the rest of the island and such. <BR> Bali is...incredible. We were there in January as well. I didn't care much for Nusa Dua beach...very VERY touristy and compact. Good if you are the Hard Rock Cafe tourists, as I like to call them. Ubud was my choice. Infact the whole family wished we had stayed there longer. Cultural, shopping galore and wonderful side trips. I also liked the (although very basic) north beach. We stayed at a huge hotel...basically there were only 10 other guests in a 100+ villa hotel. We saw dolphins on a boat and had adventures with monkeys in the rooms and trips up the mountains. We rented a jeep for the week we travelled out of Nusa Dua and I definitely recommend that. <BR> Phuket...good for beaches and wonderful seafood. <BR> Bali...good for shopping, culturalism, some beaches. <BR> Both are quite safe, but again, watch for nasty street hagglers and the like. Bali, (Nusa Dua in particular) is bad for hair braiders, and the north beach for shell sellers. <BR> Just some suggestions. E-mail me with any other questions!! <BR> KAZ

KAZ

ACK! Thinking about the trip got me to reading parts of my journal, and I realized I mixed up the areas on Bali. The bad touristy part of Bali would be Kuta, Nusa Dua is the quiet northern beaches. <BR> <BR>KAZ

Melissa

<BR>I have never been to Bali, but I went to Bangkok and Phuket last Oct, and I would go back in a heartbeat. <BR> <BR>I highly recommend The Chedi in Phuket- pay the extra and get bungalow # 106. The Chedi is a cluster of bungalows on a private beach shared with the Amanpuri. We only went into the main town once- we stayed there and had great food, hour long massages on the beach for about $9.00 USD and never wanted to come home! We were in low season, so it was really inexpensive for the luxury we got. The people were wonderful, it was VERY safe where we stayed, and you could rent a "long Boat" at the end of the island for the whole day for about $20.00 to go snorkeling. Any questions, please email - and good luck!