Beaches, beautiful nature, tropical vibes and monsoon feels is what Philippines is all about. If you are someone who likes the feels of getting kissed by the sun and be washed by the tropical rains then Philippines probably is in your bucket list. Following travel bloggers and influencers who post their travel stories in the Philippines will surely captivate you.
Most of the reels I saw are the top places you should go in the Philippines. However, is it as easy as it seems? Do you think when you land in the Philippines, you can access those places easily? Nope. That’s why I’m here to give you all the information you need before you plan your travel.
The main airport in the Philippines is the capital for sure which is Manila. But, you should know that Manila is nowhere close to those places you probably plan on going. I’m guessing, Palawan, Siargao, Cebu or Bohol, you know those kind of places. Let’s break it down one by one so I can help you plan your trip smoothly.
Before Everything, don’t forget your adaptor!
This is a must when you are traveling. Always bring a universal adaptor so you can keep your mobiles and electronics charged. The Philippines uses plugs that looks like this.
There are some hotels who have plugs that are universal but some doesn’t. So, be ready and always have an adaptor with you.
What’s your main goal for your travel?
If your goal is to enjoy nature, I highly recommend you book a flight directly to Cebu. From there, you can travel easily by car or by ferry to Bohol and other beautiful places. However, if you decide to book with Manila, you may need another flight to your next destination.
If you prefer to be in the city, you can stay in Manila and from there, you can access some other places by car as well but they are mostly the places where locals go mostly. I mean, those places in which foreigns doesn’t visit much. I will list some of the places you should visit if you landed in Manila.
I will list some geographical information at the end of this post.
There is no Uber in the Philippines, download the apps below:
The main transportation used in the Philippines is via Grab. This is the most popular app for car and they have food delivery in there as well. In Bali, Grab works as well and the bike is available in the same app but in the Philippines, only car is available. If you want to go with bike, you can download Move It, or Angkas or Joyride. 3 apps for you to choose from, all works pretty much the same.
Another app that is starting to get popular in the Philippines is InDrive. The only thing with InDrive is that they only accept Gcash for online transfer or cash. No option for card.
Get Gcash app or Maya app for Cashless shopping
Almost everyone in the Philippines have Gcash even small stores or boutique, although not all. Gcash will help you shop cashless and more conveniently with Gcash or Maya.
To register tho, you will need a valid Philippine number. This is something you can consider specially with the data as well.
Highly Recommended Sim, GOMO.
I’m pretty sure that when you go to the philippines you will need a data for your online connection so I highly recommend going with GOMO because they offer a lot of services especially the non expiring data usually around 30GB and the connection/signal is reliable. In case you didn’t finish the data during your stay, they offer roaming services as well on selected countries where you can convert your remaining Gb to a roaming connection on the country.
The best part is, since the data never expires, you can always use your remaining data anytime when you go back to the Philippines.
Now, here are some geographical information for you.
Let’s start with the basics.
If you are in Manila, here are some closeby places you can go without the use of air transport.
- Manila, of course. Visit the Intramuros, go to BGC, Makati and shop on places like Greenbelt, Glorietta, Venice Mall, etc.
- Tagaytay for some relaxing volcanic view.
- Batangas, for some surfing and free diving activities
- Pangasinan for island hopping and ocean views.
- Zambales, for some beach and fun inflatable activities
If you prefer to go to the touristic spots, then prepare for long drives, and air and sea transports combo.
