Bali

Bali is not a version of Phuket, and buyers who arrive expecting one are usually surprised in both directions. The nature is the real thing here — the volcanoes, the rice terraces, a west coast that surfs properly — and it feels like an island in a way Phuket does not. What comes with that is less infrastructure and a great deal more traffic. Without a scooter you are stuck, and the roads between the southern villages can turn a twenty-minute journey into an hour with no warning at all.

Phuket is the more organised of the two: fewer bottlenecks, more of the everyday things already built, and international schools within reach of most of the island. That matters more than it sounds. If you are bringing children who need a school, or moving into the villa full-time, Phuket is the steadier choice. Bali suits the buyer who wants the island and the nature above everything else, and it suits surfers particularly well. Put plainly: Phuket is the safer default, and Bali is the one people fall in love with.

Ocean Worldwide has sold property in Phuket since 2004 and does not sell in Bali. What we can do is introduce you to a broker who works there properly, and that introduction costs you nothing. Our honest advice comes first, though: go for a few days, get out into the nature, and see how the island and its traffic actually sit with you — especially if you surf. The people who buy in Bali are the ones who fell for it, and it is better to know what comes with that before it happens than after.