General Info

If its your first time then my suggestion would be Manila, as you have all the options burgos st, online, LA Cafe. Others may differ, but for me Manila worked well as a first timer.

[QUOTE=Youonme;3042854]Now I am in serious consideration in a trip to Philippines, it will be my first time as a monger honestly, any advice on what is the best place to start? I am torn between manila and Cebu, I think I will try some bar but just out of curiosity, I am 35 years old and don't mind using apps. Thank you![/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Yendappu;3042919]If its your first time then my suggestion would be Manila, as you have all the options burgos st, online, LA Cafe. Others may differ, but for me Manila worked well as a first timer.[/QUOTE]I agree. The bars in Manila are much better than Cebu. If the OP is only 35, then he could also go to the normal clubs around Poblacion and likely score there too.

Remember that Burgos is fun but it's not the only option in Manila.

Enjoy. G.

[QUOTE=Youonme;3042854]Now I am in serious consideration in a trip to Philippines, it will be my first time as a monger honestly, any advice on what is the best place to start? I am torn between manila and Cebu, I think I will try some bar but just out of curiosity, I am 35 years old and don't mind using apps. Thank you![/QUOTE]I think it depends on what kind of adventure you want too be on. Normally I recommend AC for point and click all drop down menus for new adventurers. Then there is the time issue, if you will be there for a month or longer, then you can start anywhere and be fine, but if you are there for a week or two, then the big city may end up wasting your precious time.

[QUOTE=Youonme;3042854]Now I am in serious consideration in a trip to Philippines, it will be my first time as a monger honestly, any advice on what is the best place to start? I am torn between manila and Cebu, I think I will try some bar but just out of curiosity, I am 35 years old and don't mind using apps. Thank you![/QUOTE]The answer is simple, and I don't know why everybody is pointing in other directions, more expensive, time consuming, and actually dangerous for a newbie, especially under time restrictions: go to AC, stay in Royal Amsterdam, just step outside and they will fuck you, no need to know or do nothing, just have cash. Do other places in your next trip, after you're accustomed to the place.

Also I'm wondering why all the newbies have Cebu in mind? Manila has the most options, not the cheapest or easiest compared with AC, but Cebu?

It must be something they all see on Tiktok or some other bullshit like that.

Please tell me about it, I'm not joking I want to know.

[URL]https://theinternationalinvestor.substack.com/p/policy-report-which-southeast-asian[/URL]

A look at tourism spending in Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Philippines. Data for 2024. The report keeps itself small, a few pages, by considering only Return On Investment. It uses each country's tourism revenue (in billions of US dollars), divided by its tourism spending. Any ROI number 1 is good, any ROI < 1 is bad. Picture attached. For example, Vietnam tourism took in $33 be, and spent $17 be; meaning it took in nearly $2 for every $1 spent, a ROI of 1. 94.

Five of the six countries had ROI greater than 1. 0 (took in more than they spent), and only Philippines was lower, at 0. 57 (took in less than it spent, by about half).

From the article:

"[B]In the case of the Philippines, the Duterte and Marcos administrations allocated approximately US $23 billion over several years to tourism infrastructure and promotional programs. Yet in 2024, total tourism receipts were only about US $13.1 billion, implying a RoTI of approximately 0. 57 meaning the country earns only 57 cents for every dollar invested. This suggests inefficiency in execution, whether due to poor infrastructure, weak branding, or administrative hurdles"[/B].

And:

"[B]Infrastructure: Modern airports, seamless public transportation, and integrated destination management help raise RoTI by improving visitor experience and increasing average spend per trip. The Philippines suffers from airport congestion, limited inter-island connections, and patchy road networks.

Ease of Travel: Visa waivers, digital entry platforms, and regional connectivity boost tourist flow and reduce friction. Vietnam and Malaysia have adopted aggressive visa liberalization, while the Philippines remains comparatively rigid"[/B].

There is a list of suggestions at the end of the article for Phils.

Seamless public transportation. Imagine!

[QUOTE=WestCoast1;3043064]This suggests inefficiency in execution, whether due to poor infrastructure, weak branding, or administrative hurdles".
[/QUOTE]Let's not forget the elephant in the room: how much of the $23 Billion actual got spent on improvements?

One of the biggest problems is that other areas are improving while PH is standing still or even getting worse. That's why the gaps are growing.

I still enjoy the PH and there is something for everyone but many other countries are offering more while costing less and being easier to get to.

G.

[QUOTE=Goferring;3043136]Let's not forget the elephant in the room: how much of the $23 Billion actual got spent on improvements?

One of the biggest problems is that other areas are improving while PH is standing still or even getting worse. That's why the gaps are growing.

I still enjoy the PH and there is something for everyone but many other countries are offering more while costing less and being easier to get to..[/QUOTE]Very true. Actual funds never make it to the intended purpose. The economy and citizens suffer again.

I just returned from 2 months in TH, literarily, like 2 hours ago, and as always, even after more than 2 decades of getting (or not getting) used to PH, is a shock. It's dirty, expensive, and complicated, the food sucks, traffic is hellish but the girls are hot, and by tomorrow everything will seem normal.

And that's the mongerer's perspective, unfortunately the bulk of travelers will get scared of all that and probably spread the word and also never return. That's good for us and should stay that way.

[QUOTE=OldAndUgly;3043151]I just returned from 2 months in TH, literarily, like 2 hours ago, and as always, even after more than 2 decades of getting (or not getting) used to PH, is a shock. It's dirty, expensive, and complicated, the food sucks, traffic is hellish but the girls are hot, and by tomorrow everything will seem normal.

And that's the mongerer's perspective, unfortunately the bulk of travelers will get scared of all that and probably spread the word and also never return. That's good for us and should stay that way.[/QUOTE]Totally agree with you. After a few hours it is like back in the saddle again. I have had some beautiful 18-20 year olds with GFE that is hard to match anywhere.

[QUOTE=OldAndUgly;3043007]The answer is simple, and I don't know why everybody is pointing in other directions, more expensive, time consuming, and actually dangerous for a newbie, especially under time restrictions: go to AC, stay in Royal Amsterdam, just step outside and they will fuck you, no need to know or do nothing, just have cash. Do other places in your next trip, after you're accustomed to the place.

Also I'm wondering why all the newbies have Cebu in mind? Manila has the most options, not the cheapest or easiest compared with AC, but Cebu?

It must be something they all see on Tiktok or some other bullshit like that.

Please tell me about it, I'm not joking I want to know.[/QUOTE]Probably because I heard that Cebu is very good for online meetup, as I said I am not interested in bars but more looking for FL or wannabe FL, I got very interested looking at goferring reports and wanted to do the same, but tell me if I you think I am wrong I won't take of personal.

[QUOTE=OldAndUgly;3043007]The answer is simple, and I don't know why everybody is pointing in other directions, more expensive, time consuming, and actually dangerous for a newbie, especially under time restrictions: go to AC, stay in Royal Amsterdam, just step outside and they will fuck you, no need to know or do nothing, just have cash. Do other places in your next trip, after you're accustomed to the place.

Also I'm wondering why all the newbies have Cebu in mind? Manila has the most options, not the cheapest or easiest compared with AC, but Cebu?

It must be something they all see on Tiktok or some other bullshit like that.

Please tell me about it, I'm not joking I want to know.[/QUOTE]Because I heard Cebu is the place with most online action, I am not interested in bars and more on finding girls through PL etc, and maybe start building some contacts for future longer trips, but maybe I heard wrong hope you can enlighten me more on The situation. I got one girl in Manila I will.

Meet which I know for 3 years but for the rest I am open to suggestions.

Traffic in Manila, objectively, in a picture. From FB user ScienceKonek.

[QUOTE=WestCoast1;3043383]Traffic in Manila, objectively, in a picture. From FB user ScienceKonek.[/QUOTE]And that's why the first thing one should do at manila is to activate a bike taxi app like Angkas. No cabs. Cuts the travel time by half.

[QUOTE=Charlies4;3043386]And that's why the first thing one should do at manila is to activate a bike taxi app like Angkas. No cabs. Cuts the travel time by half.[/QUOTE]Agreed, and I do. But there are times when a bike can't be used (hard rain or wind, or if you are with your girl). Even on a bike it can take you 20 minutes to travel the 1 mile from Burgos to the Ayala area when traffic is tight (and 30 minutes in a car). Also some of our gents are just too large to fit on the back of a 125 CC bike.

[QUOTE=WestCoast1;3043395]Agreed, and I do. But there are times when a bike can't be used (hard rain or wind, or if you are with your girl). Even on a bike it can take you 20 minutes to travel the 1 mile from Burgos to the Ayala area when traffic is tight (and 30 minutes in a car). Also some of our gents are just too large to fit on the back of a 125 CC bike.[/QUOTE]In Manila, I typically stay in Greenbelt so just walk everywhere during the day and get a Grab in the evenings. By that time peak hour traffic has died down.

I'd agree that trying to travel during the wrong time of the day can take hours. And I do mean multiple hours.

G.