I was both caned and strapped with a tawse in the 70s. Caning was most attended on trousers or hands, but our headmaster administered the strap most of the time on the bare bum,and that hurt like hell. He used a wide, heavy tawse,which hung always behind his offices desk.He called it “the correction master”.I sometimes got more than 20 whacks. My father used to spank me with his belt, the last time when I was 19 in 1982.
The bottom is definitely worse, particularly on the bare bottom, because they can swing harder. I think the flesh of the buttocks is more sensitive than the hand because it is exposed less. Our teachers were only allowed to cane through trousers, but the head made us strip naked for caning. 6 was the worst punishment, but he gave as much as 12 if you were really due for it.