hi and welcome to HT
Do you want to be purely based at a beach resort or do you fancy trying a couple of places? Also are you looking for nightlife or happy to just have a reasonable selection of places?

We loved Malaysia as an alternative to Thailand- plenty of choice re the type of thing to do- beaches, city, jungle, diving, easy tog et round and cheap as well

Thanks for the replies guys....

Would be nice to be on the beach but does not have to be in one place. Not to bothered about massive nightlife but nice to have a few good bars/restaurants nearby to try out so we can go out of an evening if we wish.

With Thailand it was great lazing around the beach / pool but also having all the amazing tours available and just getting on a bike and exploring.

All ideas welcome

Ian

Have you tried Hau hin or Pattaya.

Have you thought about Vietnam, good beaches and lots to see. Prices are still quite low.

Malaysia has a different feel to Thailand, so maybe worth a visit though I think Thailand wins out on beaches. If you fancy some soft adventure in the jungle you can visit places like Taman Negara or Borneo. Malaysian resorts tend to be a bit quieter than Thai ones....mass market tourism does not seem to have caught on as much.

Mind you there's still plenty of Thailand you could consider....like the North for example which has quite a different feel to Bangkok and the beaches and provides plenty of opportunity for trips out, we often go North then hit the beaches in Krabi or Khao Lak and Bangkok at the end of our stay.

Philippines? Awesome place, amazing people, great food. Can be hard work. Otherwise consider Lombok & Bali as a 2 centre?

I would look at a twin centre in Vietnam - beach and city, which ones depend upon when you want to go.
Of course I would also recommend Bali- just look at all the threads
I thought about Penang but you don't really go there for the beaches.
If you are flexible with holiday dates and can go during our winter- then go to Goa forum and have a browse there

I would recommend Cambodia, in my humble opinion far better than Thailand, try a few nights in Phnom Penh followed by some beach time in Sihanoukville

For relaxation I would have to say Penang followed by as Shirley say's Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville we are off back to Penang in April, and then back to P P and Sihanoukville in November.

Nobody mentioned Langkawi yet and it would be my recommendation. Beautiful unspoilt island and with Duty Free status makes it slightly cheaper. Could two centre it with KL which is a great city.

why not try Hong Kong or Singapore twinned with Bali?