Asia / Destination guide
Philippines
Plan your journey city by city. Explore destination facts, arrival planning, and practical travel guides.
Editorial preview · factual review pending- Capital
- Manila
- Currency
- PHP
- Languages in source
- English, Filipino
- Geographic region
- South-Eastern Asia
Source-imported reference data; not an entry or visa guide. Source & verification notes ↗
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Cebu City / Money & payments
Cash or card in Cebu City and on Mactan
Where cards work around Cebu and where pesos are the only sensible option, plus what to do about island and beach areas where machines are scarce.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Day trips
Planning a day trip out of Cebu City
How to judge whether a Cebu day trip fits in a day, why activities get suspended without warning, and what to settle with an operator before you book.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Shopping
Buying Philippine Mangoes and Bananas Where They Are Grown
Philippine mango and banana production is regionally concentrated and export volumes are unequal. Where each grows, and which forms you can carry home.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Transportation
Taking a ferry from Cebu City: how the ports work
How the Cebu port system is organised, what to check before booking an inter-island ferry, and why the right pier matters more than the right ticket price.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / First-time visitor
Your first 24 hours in Cebu City
A calm first day in Cebu: working out whether you are staying on Mactan or the mainland, sorting money and connectivity, and setting a realistic pace.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Transportation
Getting around Cebu City without a rail line
Cebu City has no metro system. Here is how jeepneys, buses, taxis and ride apps actually cover the city, and what is being built for the future.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Itineraries
Why Philippine Island Hopping Takes Longer Than the Map Suggests
The Philippines has 7,641 islands and 90 airports, but 51 of its 312 official RORO routes are unserved. Why the hub structure decides how many islands fit a week.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Airports
Getting from Mactan-Cebu Airport into Cebu City
The airport is on Mactan Island, not in Cebu City. Here is what that means for your transfer, which bridge you cross, and how to choose between taxi and bus.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Late-night travel
Landing at Mactan-Cebu Airport late at night
What to expect on a late arrival in Cebu: getting a ride across the bridge, sorting cash and connectivity, and the decisions worth making before you fly.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Practical information
Does Tagalog Work in Cebu, and Where English Stops Being Enough
Tagalog is spoken at home by 39.9 per cent of Philippine households and Bisaya by 22.5 per cent. What that means in Cebu, and what the constitution actually says.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingCebu City / Weather & what to wear
When Typhoons Hit, and Why Cebu's Rainy Season Is Not Manila's
Manila gets 476mm of rain in August, Cebu 158mm. Cebu's wettest month is January. Around 20 cyclones enter Philippine waters a year — what each signal means.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingDavao / Airports
Arriving at Davao airport and getting into the city
How the taxi queue at Davao's airport is regulated, what other transport exists, and the local ordinances visitors notice within their first day.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingDavao / Day trips
Planning Farm and Producer Visits Around Davao City, Philippines
Davao's agri-tourism sites mostly require advance booking and publish little. What is confirmed about access, and which tours are currently suspended.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingDavao / Practical information
What Stops Working Outside Metro Manila: The Davao City Test
Grab lists 23 Philippine cities and 254 municipalities have no bank at all. Davao's liquor ban runs to 2pm. Which assumptions break outside the capital.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Money & payments
ATMs and changing money in Manila
How to get Philippine pesos in Manila, where the airport counters and ATMs are, and the currency rules on how much cash you can bring in or out.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Money & payments
Cash or card in Manila: what to carry and why
Where cards work in Manila and where pesos are still the only practical option, plus what the peso itself looks like in circulation right now.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / After checkout
Checkout day in Manila with a late flight
How to spend the hours between hotel checkout and an evening flight out of Manila without dragging luggage through traffic or cutting the airport run too fine.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Itineraries
What Spanish and American Rule Left in Manila, and Where to See It
Intramuros walls went up between 1590 and 1825, San Agustin is UNESCO-listed, and the National Museum is free. A visit list built from official records.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Transportation
Taking a domestic flight out of Manila
How to plan a domestic connection through Manila: finding your terminal, allowing for the transfer between buildings, and what disrupts island flights.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / SIM & internet
eSIM or local SIM card for a trip to Manila
Philippine law requires SIM registration, and tourist SIMs are valid for only 30 days. Here is how that changes the choice between an eSIM and a physical SIM.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Practical information
Why the Philippines Asks for eTravel, and What It Really Costs You
eTravel is free and etravel.gov.ph is the only official site. Scam sites charge PHP 3,000 to 5,000 for a QR code that fails at the airport. What the system is for.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Practical information
eTravel registration before you fly to the Philippines
What eTravel is, who has to register, when to do it, and why the only site you should use is the official government one. It is free, and there is no payment step.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / First-time visitor
Your first 24 hours in Manila, in the right order
A calm sequence for a first day in Manila: arrival formalities, money, connectivity, getting to your accommodation, and what to leave until day two.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Transportation
Getting around Manila: trains, buses, jeepneys and rides
How Metro Manila's rail lines, EDSA busway, jeepneys and ride apps fit together, and which one to reach for depending on where you are going.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Transportation
Using Grab and taxis in Manila without the guesswork
How ride-hailing and metered taxis actually work in Metro Manila, what you can pay with, and the small habits that keep a ride uneventful.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Practical information
The Philippine Holiday Calendar: Which Weeks Stop the Country
Holy Week 2027 falls 25 to 27 March and Undas 2026 runs 1 to 2 November. The proclamations, the regular-versus-special distinction, and what each does to travel.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Food
Which Manila Chains Are Filipino and Which Only Look It
Manila's restaurant and convenience chains split oddly between Filipino and foreign brands. What company filings say about Jollibee, Shakey's and 7-Eleven.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Luggage
Where to leave your bags in Manila before check-in
Options for storing luggage in Manila when you arrive before check-in time, including what the airport itself offers and what to ask your accommodation.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Weather & what to wear
Travelling to Manila in the rainy and typhoon season
What the Philippine weather agency actually says about the seasons, the typhoon peak and storm signals, and how to plan a Manila trip around them.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / First-time visitor
Is Manila Worth Any Time, or Are the Philippines Only Beaches?
Intramuros logged 5.42 million visits in 2025 and foreigners were a minority at every site. No major country's travel advisory singles out Metro Manila.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Family travel
Manila with young children: what makes a day work
Planning a Manila trip with kids around heat, traffic and long journey times, including child seat options in ride apps and how to structure a realistic day.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Airports
How to get from NAIA to Makati and central Manila
Taxi lanes, the ride-hailing hub and airport buses at Manila's NAIA, and how to pick between them depending on your terminal, luggage and arrival time.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Late-night travel
Arriving at NAIA late at night: what still works
Landing in Manila after midnight: which airport services run around the clock, how to get a ride safely, and what to sort out before you fly.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Layovers
What to do with a long layover at NAIA in Manila
How to judge whether to stay in the terminal or leave the airport during a Manila layover, and what the airport itself offers while you wait.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Airports
Moving between NAIA Terminals 1, 2 and 3 in Manila
NAIA's terminals are separate buildings. Here is how the free inter-terminal shuttle works, who can use it, and how much time to leave for a connection.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Money & payments
What Is Cheap and What Is Not in the Philippines, and Why
Manila's minimum wage is PHP 755 a day while beer excise runs PHP 48.31 a litre and inflation hit 6.1 per cent. The tax structure behind Philippine prices.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Money & payments
Why the Philippines Still Runs on Cash, and What to Carry
Remittances reach 8.9 per cent of Philippine GDP and 44 per cent of adults were unbanked in 2021. Why that shapes payment, and the coin limit nobody mentions.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Transportation
Renting a Car in the Philippines: Licence and Rules
Your foreign licence works in the Philippines for 90 days from arrival. How the IDP, Metro Manila number coding and cashless RFID tolls affect a rental car, and what to do after day 90.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / First-time visitor
Should You Skip Manila? Checking the Advice Against Official Data
Travellers are routinely told to fly straight through Manila. What the airport, rail and census figures actually show about what skipping it costs.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Safety
Staying safe in Manila as a first-time visitor
Practical habits for a first trip to Manila: using accredited transport, handling money sensibly, and knowing which official systems exist to fall back on.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingManila / Practical information
Visa-free entry and how long you can stay in the Philippines
How the Philippine visa waiver works for non-visa-required tourists, how extensions are handled, and where travel tax and terminal fees fit into a departure.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingQuezon City / Shopping
Which Supermarket Brands in Manila Are Actually Filipino-Owned
How to read Philippine supermarket shelves by ownership: which snack and canned-goods brands belong to Philippine-listed companies, and which only look local.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingQuezon City / Transportation
Getting to and around Quezon City by rail
Quezon City is served by three rail lines at different points. Here is which line reaches which part of it, and how to plan a journey there without guessing.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingTaguig / Accommodation
BGC or Makati: choosing a base in Metro Manila
A practical comparison of two neighbouring business districts as bases for a Manila trip, based on transport connections, walkability and what each is near.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingTaguig / First-time visitor
BGC in Taguig: what the district is and who it suits
An honest look at Bonifacio Global City for first-time visitors: what kind of district it is, why it feels different from the rest of Metro Manila, and its limits.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingTaguig / Late-night travel
Why Parts of Metro Manila Still Keep Office Hours at 3 A.M.
Outsourcing districts in Metro Manila and Cebu run a night shift on North American hours. What that means for where you stay and what stays open.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingTaguig / Shopping
Metro Manila's Three Mall Groups and What Actually Differs
SM Prime, Ayala Land and Robinsons Land run Metro Manila's malls on different models. What each group publishes about scale, positioning and its properties.
Editorial preview · factual review pendingTaguig / Airports
Getting from NAIA to BGC in Taguig
How to reach Bonifacio Global City from Manila's airport, which transport options make sense with luggage, and why the timing of your arrival matters most.
Editorial preview · factual review pending