If you want the best bargain when shopping, speak their language. Food is very sweet there, so you better buy and taste first before you buy more.

A dump!! But need to travel through it as a gateway to and from Singaopore! Overland anyways :-) Smells vile!!

The Night foodmarket in Kota Baharu is very good, but don't be suprised if nobody is there when it is time for a prayer

don't miss to visit the beaches - there you will find also beer-bars from the chinese owners...!

Try out the Backpackers Inn KB on Jalan Kebun Sultan in Kota Bharu, if you are looking for something cheap and decent. The rooms are clean, and a bed in a dorm (10 people) costs on 10RM per night. Showers and western toilets are on the corridors. The guy who runs the hostel speaks quite decent English, but has quite an accent. In the Backpackers Inn KB you can also book your tickets for Minibus to Kuala Besut and boat tickets to the Perhentian Islands, if that's where you headed. I think you can also book buses to Kuala Lumpur and Taman Negara.