Bali or Saigon ? ? ?
 

Will be in Singapore shortly. I am debating whether to head south for two (2)days in Bali or to head north for three (3) days in Saigon. Neither I am sure is long enough; but, would appreciate feedback regarding a choice. Please feel free to include any other choices as well.

Saigon...no brainer
 

Go to Saigon and you'll have a great time.....Much cheaper, better goods to buy, and OOOOOOOOh Yes, more fun!

Well, it depends what you're looking for. If you want history, go to Saigon. If you want beaches, go to Bali. If you want handicrafts and cool souvenirs, go to Bali.

Are you looking to sightsee, to relax on the beach, or what do you have in mind?

I hear SGN is less prone to explosions.

I personally won't be going to Bali anytime soon. I'm also a little biased towards SGN. I've been 3 times now in the past year, and I'm looking forward to my next time sometime this summer. The food, the culture, and the exchange rate is what does it for me.

Bali is not nearly as dangerous as you would believe.

And in terms of culture, food and exchange rate, Indonesia can keep up with Vietnam, believe me. And if there's a place that ever needed tourists, it's Bali right now. The local population (95% Hindu) is suffering because a bunch of extremist Muslims from off the island (and in the case of the last bombings, not even from Indonesia but from Malaysia) decided they did not like the idea of planeloads of Westerners exploring the paradise that is Bali.

I visited both Saigon and Bali in September of last year and would not hesitate to go back to either.

But as I stated in my earlier post, it's a matter of what the OP is looking to do.

What ???
 

Although I enjoy a good beach, I am more likely to bounce around and see what makes a place so special. if I encounter a nice beach along the way, well . . . bonus!

Regarding "incidents" I don't even bother. It was far more likely that I would be onboard TW800 (TW F/A at the time) than Bali for a bombing, or any of the other 10,000 explosions, kidnapings, riots, unrest across the globe any given time.

I would rather run down central Bagdad with a 10' US flag than take the bus through Newark after midnight :) Since I choose to do this (Newark) frequently, I could call it preparing to deploy.

On subject, I am leaning towards Bali.

Might I suggest Hanoi? ;)

Seriously. I havent been to Bali and only spent of short time in Saigon. But I thought Hanoi was a lot more interesting than Saigon. History, beautiful French Colonial buildings, very friendly people and great food. One of my favorite places.

More choices:

Angkor Wat (No beach but hey so is SGN)

Ahh, perhaps an even better choice than Hanoi!!

We loved it there this past December. I liked Hanoi a bit more but my wife's favorite on our RTW was Siem Reap (Angkor Wat).

One thing to remember about Vietnam is that you need to get a Visa prior to arrival. If you fly to Seam Reap (Angkor Wat), they will issue you a Visa at the airport.

So the OP is looking to cover local points of interests, things that distinguish this destination from that. I'll submit that you can cover those in Saigon in 3 days-- as long as you have three full days and the Presidential (Reunification) Palace isn't closed during your visit. Mr. Megatop and I decided that 3 days sufficiently covered what the city itself had to offer: the colonial and wartime buildings, the Ben Than Market (sp?), the shops and galleries, etc. We had four days and scheduled a trip to the coast, which gave us an opportunity to see the countryside but the coast itself was unremarkable. With still more time, we might have done a trip to the Mekong Delta, the Cu Chi Tunnels, or a resort farther up the coast.

Two days is not enough for Bali, not even close. We had five days and that wasn't enough. Bali is a HUGE island. Shaped like a big diamond with a little diamond attached at the bottom, it is about 70 miles N/S and 110 miles E/W at its widest points. Kuta can be skipped, but exploring the other coastal towns like Legian and Seminyak can take the better part of a day. Uluwatu Temple at the western tip of the Bukit Peninsula on the south (the little diamond) should not be missed for a good sunset and traditional dancing--that's the better part of an evening, perhaps followed by seafood on Jimbaran Bay. If you did a whirlwind tour in a speeding car for a day, you might cover a handful of the interior artisan villages but you wouldn't see much, and the artistic heart of the island in Ubud would be a blur. For all that, you haven't really gotten into the countryside to see the fields and volcanos, much less taken advantage of aquatic offerings or what your resort itself might have. Mr. Megatop and I had five days in Bali last May. We spent one day enjoying our resort to the fullest, then the rest sightseeing. We felt like we'd barely scratched the surface, as I said. So we're going back for another six days this May. Last time we stayed in Jimbaran. This time it will be Ubud and Seminyak, which will give us better access to the interior.

Of course, it all depends on what kind of holiday experience you want. But I'm sure that in selecting Saigon and Bali as your options, you've considered how different they are. In the time you've got, you can cover Saigon. You can't do justice to Bali in that time.

Bali it Is
 

Thank you everyone and MegaTopLover for the wonderful breakdown. It ended up being Bali by default :) The flight schedule from SIN gave Bali the nod as the service to Saigon would not work.

So, I arrive on the 26th and depart the 28th. I have inquired into a driver and will be staying at in Sanur. I would love a list of the absolute "MUST DO'S" for Bali.

I wish I could stay longer. I even tried to expent my trip on the front end by a few days and just could not work it out. I could not extend on the back end as I land stateside at 11:35AM and depart for Cairo at 6:15PM!!

For must-do's in Bali, I would say sunset at the temple at Uluwatu, accompanied by an exhibition of traditional Balinese dancing. Just beware the monkeys at the temple-- they are theiving little devils who will take your eyeglasses right off your face and either hold 'em for ransom (bananas for the monkeys, rupiah for the locals) IF you're lucky or just break 'em if you're not so lucky. I'm not kidding. Seriously.

I would also say a car ride through some of the little villages that specialize in various arts and crafts-- just focus on the ones you like: silverware, batik silk, painting, woodcarving, masks, whatever. I have a beautiful painting in traditional Balinese style, and I'm planning to look for another one next time. Then spend some time in Ubud, the inland village at the artistic heart of Bali. It has a number of smart stores and quite a remarkable temple right in the middle of town. If you can squeeze it in, a sighting of some river gorges and terraced rice fields would be very Balinese.

Skip Kuta. On such a short trip, the only thing worth seeing there, really, is the site of the 2002 bombing. Though a simple memorial, it's quite moving.

The other coastal towns are a bit less backpackerish that Kuta and might be worth a stroll if you have time. You might get lucky, as we did, and see a mid-day procession of townspeople in traditional dress carrying a litter with offerings to the gods.

If you're a planespotter, do what you can to get alongside the runway at Ngurah Rai. A search in airliners.net for photos taken at DPS will quickly turn up images showing you exactly how close to the big birds you can get.

Above all, do your best to get in touch with the Balinese people. They are some of the warmest and most genuinely friendly I've met, right up there with the Thais.

A search for "Bali" and "driver" should turn up info on two drivers who come very highly recommended by FTers. We plan to use one of them in May.

Awsome
 

Awesome Information and thank you!

I have contacted two of the recommended drivers and they are both available. So, I mujst choose between Wayan and Dewa without having the pleasure of meeting either. The only difference so far is that Wayan is 500,000IDR higher in price.

Wayan!!!!!!!!!!