General Info

[Nightrider1]

As far as things to bring home. I just came back from 3 weeks there and I was told the Tanduay Rum is good so I brought 5 bottles of that home for souvenier presents for my kids. Was advised to get the 5 year Gold Seal Dark. Could'nt believe the price. 21 pesos at the Robinsons liquor store in Manila for 375ml. The guy saw them in my carry on at the airport and asked what was in the 5 bottles and I told him I had 5 children and they all like to drink so thats why there were 5 bottles. He just smiled. LOL.

[Fastpiston]

Agreed, there is not much to buy in the Philippines. Two things may interest you. Books are quite cheap. I bought a 2004 US printed Que book on Microsoft XP for 495 Peso at National Bookstore; book showed US price $19.99 / Canada $ 30.99 / UK £14.50. Also Batangas coffee is excellent value and great quality. Of course, the women...well you know already.

[Faust Joe]

Juniour, I see you do not buy the cd's or DVD's, how come. I went to the PI and brought a ton of good quality dvd's. I made sure before I brought it the DVD's were not the kind which were filmed with a camcorder. I agree, I would not mess with V since I do not know what it is they put inside or if its reallt V at all. I do plan on buying a ton of shit while I'm over there, but I do not know if customs will allow dried friut to enter the country, do you?

[Member #1005]

Domino

Outside of hookers, viagra and its generics, rip off CDs/DVDS, clothes, is there anything worth buying in the Philippines for personal consumption/use?

I would certainly recommend the dried mangos, personally I don’t touch the Viagra and as for the DVDs/CDs or electronic stuff, etc I buy them elsewhere but the dried fruit stuff is good quality and worthy presents to bring back home.

You may also consider the handicrafts of bamboo trays, etc they make excellent presents at Christmas time; oh and don’t forget a bottle of Banana ketchup it always raises a smile.

Juniour

[Domino]

Outside of hookers, viagra and its generics, rip off CDs/DVDS, clothes, is there anything worth buying in the Philippines for personal consumption/use? It feels a shame to go there, where everything seems so cheap and return home with an empty suitcase/backpack? I did buy a bag there with a 3 year guaranteee; I got 3 days out of it. I have noticed some electronics are markedly cheaper (and, most likely, markedly inferior) to what is on offer in Japan. But, as my choice of women attests, I like a bargain.

2300: I have gone to dentists in the Philippines and Thailand and I will go again. Minuscule risk for a clean I think.

Small Butterfly: I guess you will have to go to find out. I posted some information on Davao when the bomb or bombs went off; don't sweat the small stuff. The yahoo chat babes are not p4p, though there is an increasing tendency with some of them tyo go to a private room and jerk off or whatever for you for a small fee. Hookers are too busy for that.

[JadedMD]

My aunt died of hepatitis she got from a Dentist in India. Don't make any jokes about how she got it. She was elderly, wasn't involved in the business. I would warn mongers and travelers that unfortunately even "good" medical practicioners in the 3rd world don't necesarily take what physicians in the US call 'universal precautions." Personally I would aviod medical care in the 3rd world unless completely necesary becuase you could potentially get a deadly disease.

[Small Buterfly]

After 4 travels to the beachgirls of Pattaya I went to Malagasy and Dominican republic, but was disappointed; pain in the ass doing anything in Malagasy with girls I met more pro than GF, still worse in RD because of rough and gready girls asking me 60USD for a ST (with no picture and no possibility to bring them in my hotel, so I took none!...).

I noticed lot of cute talkative Philippina ladies on the net, however most seem only looking for husband. Some claim they only want to be friend ; are they likely to be hookers as you can find somany in Thailand?

I feel closer to them because they speak better american , so I would be rather tempted to go to PI.

Angeles seems close, will I find freelancers as on Pattaya beach? will they allow pictures? (malagasy girls were very reluctant); and as I'm not a great monger (2 ST a day), what other leisure or trips are available during the day in AC?

After, I want to visit Visayas 1 week with some mongering during at night; which cities are the best for that ; I look for cheap hotels with lot of GF girls around as in Pattaya. If I have to take bargirls, what are the prices? is prostitution illegal? is it safe to walk at night (in Antananarivo, it's risky).

Davao seems another option , but I fear muslims attacks , and as it's very large, can I find hotel with girls near too?

I know the pavements of pattaya too much, but after my bad experience in RD, I need to take more information , your advices will be useful.

Thanks

[Wastrel]

many travel agents within the pi are set up to do the legwork on visa extensions for a small fee. saves much time and hassle. the republic of the philippines is not widely known for ruthless speed and efficiency in the operation of government offices, to put it as tactfully as possible.

tourist visa extensions are routine for up to a year, and many thousands of people live there permanently this way, making only a brief annual "visa run" to bangkok or hong kong to re-enter as tourists again for another year of regular "extensions."

i find that recent editions of the philippines version of lonely planet are often wrong about practically everything.

cebu local is a helpful guy who's information has been trustworthy on these forums for a long time, and he happens to be a travel agent. if he sees this and feels like commenting i would trust his remarks, but i have lived there for six months at a time on extensions of a tourist visa, and found it easier than sending my clothes out to be laundered when using a local travel agent who is set up to process batches of these things.

[Ricksan]

Concerning Visa Extensions:

Most travel agents can do this in one or two business days. You pay them a fee, they collect your passport and they take it to the local immigration office, then return it back to you with a stamp in it extending your stay.

Standard stamp you get when you come in the country is 21 days. The travel agent will get additional 38 days to it, bringing it to 59 days. There is a service charge for rush service by the govt (they stand in a different line at the Board of Immigration to process it, you dont have to be there, they send a courier to do it for you), the travel agency will tack on their own processing charge. Its not much and is hassle free.

Then if you need another extension you can do it again. You can daisy chain these up to about 6 months, just go through the process when you get close to expiration. Just plan on getting an extension a week before it expires.

If you forget, you pay a fine at the airport of around 2500 pesos, but that is not the recommended way to do things. Let a travel agent get the extension the legit way. Immigration people have a way of remembering things in this country, and later you may need something and they will find this in their records just when you need it the most.

Regards,

Ricksan

[Domino]

Why not visit your local book store and read yp on the visa situation in the tour books they sell there? LP warns about problems extending the visa.

[GoodEnough]

It is usually not a problem to extend a tourist visa by visiting the Office of Immigration and requesting a 30 day extension. Even overstaying the visa is not much of a problem and requires only the payment of a fairly modest fine at the airport prior to departure.

[Member #1005]

J Boy

Butuan City is somewhere that I am very familiar with, having stayed there a couple of times in a family’s home, fifteen years ago. Personally, I enjoyed the experience and yes I did see a few guys riding around with M16s slung over their shoulders but they always had a warm smile for any tourist who comes down to the place.

You have a couple of options to get there from Cebu, flying which takes around 35 minutes on a noisy turboprop aircraft or the ferry overnight both are relatively inexpensive – but I would suggest that if you are going onto Davao, from Butuan do not travel overland.

PM me if you require any more information.

Juniour

[J Boy]

How far is Butuan City from Davao? Is Davao the nearest major city? Would any of you visit Butuan City? Is it as safe as Daveo or Cebu City? Any other comments?

[Orgasm Donor]

Some mates and I are going to PI in May. One or two of my mates are considering staying longer than allowed for tourists without a visa. Do you think there will be a problem getting the visa for extended stay while in Manila? where do you go to get this done? Fees?

O.D.

[X Man]

Hello,

Maybe I spend too much time on the photos page because I didn't realize there was such good information here in the "general" section.

I have a specific question. Last year during holiday I bought a used phone in Cebu City (based on advice I got here). Well, it was very good advice.

I live in Tokyo where we have a completely different cell phone system. When I visit the Philippines in April, will my phone and phone number still be working? Someone told me there is an expiration date on the SIMM. Is that true?

Thanks.