This is a website mainly focused on Thailand, but little is said about the difference between Thailand and the Philippines.
I recently spent a month in Thailand: three days in Hua Hin, ten days in Kanchanaburi on the River Kwai, fourteen days in Pattaya and now I'm in the Philippines for another three weeks. There are still nine days left before I return to Belgium. I have been coming to Thailand for more than 35 years. Before my marriage to a Thai woman, I traveled all over Thailand and learned the language in the meantime, so I know Thailand quite well. I turned 76 last December.
I am now in the Philippines for the 7th or 8th time, and after three years of Covid interruption it was very disappointing for me, especially the very expensive taxi ride from the airport to my very good Wow Budget Hotel (a newly renovated hotel with a good price quality ratio) in the center of Manila on Aurora boulevard. I brought 800 pesos in cash from my last visit and thought this would be enough. But no, 4.000 pesos on the meter! The price of gas here has skyrocketed lately, as my driver told me. That is approximately THB 2.500. Last month I paid about the same amount for a taxi ride from BKK to Hua Hin, which is about 300 km, compared to maybe 10 km here.
The next day I traveled to Angeles City, 90 km away, in another expensive taxi. Angeles City is the equivalent of Pattaya, but maybe 10 times smaller. Another disappointment… Covid has hit here hard. Many well-known hotels are closed; mid-range hotels where I used to stay are full and usually no longer have a restaurant or breakfast in the morning. So in the morning I take a tricycle or, if possible, a jeepney to go for breakfast 2 or 3 km further and back, and those drivers now charge 100 pesos as standard. There used to be three good restaurants within a distance of 1 km, but they are all closed now, probably due to lack of staff due to Covid. Fortunately, after a few days I discovered that one of those restaurants has moved in the other direction and is now within walking distance of my hotel.
I have my steady girlfriend here with me, so the nightlife in Thailand and here means nothing to me anymore, fortunately, because otherwise there is not much to do here. Then why am I still going to the Philippines? If you compare hotels, transport and food, which is important for a tourist, Thailand is now even cheaper than the Philippines and of much better quality.
If you want to live a modest life, you can do so in the Philippines, far away from the nightlife and hustle and bustle of the big cities. Here you can buy a farm with a lot of land for dirt cheap and live self-sufficiently on very fertile land, just like in Thailand with three harvests a year. Of course you will need your own transport, which can also be arranged cheaply.
About 7 or 8 years ago I once went to visit a girl at her home in the countryside. Unfortunately she wasn't home, just her mother and a very shy bakla, the equivalent of the kathoey, but the place where they lived was beautiful! A detached house made of bamboo, no neighbors, on a small river, incredibly sweet and beautiful, with a view of Mount Arayat, a volcano about 15 km away I think. If you like silence and don't need much contact with other Westerners, this is paradise, about 10 to 15 km from bustling Angeles City.
Another advantage is that you can work in the Philippines, unlike Thailand where you can be deported for working. They are much less strict here than the bureaucracy in Thailand. If you are enterprising, not lazy and have some business sense, you can still become rich here, or at least build a good life.
I am writing this contribution on my own responsibility and feel free to correct me if I have made any mistakes. For anyone it might help...
Submitted by Jan
Nice piece sounds to me, if you retire to Thailand, you still have to go to the Philippines for the necessary years.
I have visited both countries several times and they both have their pros and cons, but I would like to stay longer in both, unfortunately my work does not allow that.
I would like to give my experiences in this comparison in the period 1990 to 2008.
There is a great sense of insecurity in cities and heavily populated areas in the Philippines. Lots of small to large crime. I have never felt unsafe in Thailand.
I know 3 people who were successful in business in Belgium and wanted to repeat this in the Philippines. Two have returned from a barren journey. One had modest success. Here I have no basis for comparison with Thailand.
According to the figures, the climate is a little more humid in the Philippines than in Thailand. Thailand is usually warmer, but the sultry air turned out to be very unpleasant for me in the Philippines.
Stefan, I agree with you about insecurity because there is a security agent at every store (7-Eeleven), bank or hotel (large cities) which is not the case in Thailand, but in my experience that is not the case in the countryside. Fortunately, all the times I have been in the Philippines I have only experienced 2 small thefts on the street, which is of course due to the very poor population. I once slept for 2 hours on the island of Almagro in a small banka (boat with those side floats to prevent capsizing) off the coast of Calbayog Samar, a large island below Luzon Province with Manila.
Had a great time. Just one night and in the morning around 6 o'clock we went swimming in the sea with the already warm sun and in the company of at least 20 children who of course don't see a white man every day...
In the afternoon back to the mainland to do some shopping, of course at my expense haha. Brute bad luck; slipped on strings of seaweed and fell with my back on a concrete step. Out with the fun! 3 days at the clinic where the electricity only worked occasionally and so did the air conditioning in the room. Fortunately, an X-ray was taken before the breakdown, but the quality in such a hole in the south was too poor to make anything of it, but I did not feel unsafe there either. I must say that some of the family stayed on the floor in my room, perhaps for my safety. Sorry for this extensive response to your concerns.
100 pesos for a Jeepny ride of 3 km, you have been scammed, I pay 20 pesos for such a ride, I have never paid the 4000 pesos for a taxi for 10 km I did not pay more than 265 pesos
John, not with a jeepney but with a tricycle! Jeepney now costs 13 pesos a man. I think you are quoting prices from BEFORE Covid.
No, I am not quoting the prices before Covid, (sorry for the language errors in my previous post, on my phone) I paid for a taxi ride in Metropolis Manila in December 2024 265, the ride went from Pasig city to Marikina 265 pesos 10.5 km
I actually mixed up the price of a Jeepney and a tricycle, rounded to 20 pesos for a Jeepney (I always give a tip) but a tricycle is also definitely cheaper than 100 pesos, last price also in December 2024, 40 to 50 pesos, from From Pasig to Antipolo I pay 60 pesos
We bought a tricycle specifically for the delivery of our webshop items, by the way, the man who drives it works for us
I often visit Metropolis Manila, my wife (Filipina) and I have a business that exists both there and here in the Netherlands
I know that in Angeles City the prices are higher, but that is because the city has the name of a red light district
I have been to the Philippines once, the people were nice but there is more corruption. I was also scammed by a taxi driver. I solved it by writing the license plate number on my hand and saying that I would report them to the tourist police. Then I suddenly had a normal rate, ha ha.
I now have a 3 month stay in Thailand and the Philippines. December in Thailand, January in the Philippines and Thailand again in February. I am now in barrio baretto. Philippines is much more expensive than Pattaya as far as Angeles City and barrio baretto are concerned. And the quality of the hotels here is much lower. The beer is cheaper, but the lady drinks are much more expensive. Not to mention the taxi. Taxi from Baretto to Manila Airport no less than 7.000 pesos. This was my 7th time in Philippines and I have been to Thailand 85 times. This is probably my last time in the Philippines. Just give me Pattaya.
Thank you Kees for almost completely agreeing with me, although I am not really a Pattaya goer, but this year it was because there was more to do than on the River Kwai and not as far as bar life is concerned.
Well Jan, just to add, I have also seen almost the entire country since 1989. Often in Khonkaen with my ex girlfriend. From there we looked around Isaan. So really more than just Pattaya.
Angeles City is very sad, all you find there are gogos and nothing else
Jan, you are forgetting the Koreans, the Chinese and the Japanese. Past Carlton hotel there is a ghetto of maybe 6.000 Koreans. We call that Korea town. Own banks, travel agencies, hotels, bars and everything written in Korean! English isn't even spoken anymore... Disgusting!
That's right, but do you have any idea how big the country is, perhaps you should visit more than 1 town that is specifically known for that...
I really visited more than Manila and Angeles City.
Puerto Galera, Olongapo, Subic, Isabela province, Baguio, Tarlac, Tacloban in the south of Samar, slept on an island off the coast of Calbayog in Samar, spent several weeks in Tuktukan near Tipas in Manila, slept with a family in San Juan Manila Luna Street etc?
The country is about the same size but longer than Thailand, I think, with about 60 million inhabitants, roughly comparable to the population of Thailand. Itt. As far as I know, Thailand only has 3 highways for a total of perhaps 500 km and in Thailand those highways themselves can no longer be counted! There must be tens of thousands...
Unfortunately, you shouldn't expect cute things in the Philippines at some of the old churches in Manila and Angeles City. So you're stuck there.
Dear Jan
The taxi driver really pushed you around.
A month ago I paid 600 pesos for that same fare.
After 8 times you should know better.
I visited different places during a month (Manila,Palawan,Coron island,Cebu)
If, like you, you want to live a self-sufficient life like Robinson Crusoe, the Philippines can be a beautiful destination.
However, those who love delicious food, good and cheap accommodation, dirt-cheap transport, an abundance of exotic fruit and vegetables, top hospitals (not unimportant), etc... will find themselves better in Thailand.
I really missed all these things over there.
Regards,
Ron
Indeed Ron, I'm blown away, but based on my past experience, who would think that the taximeters would no longer be reliable after 3 years and yes, I should have agreed on a price. Completely wrong on my part, but it was already evening and tired from the 3,5 hour flight from BKK with far too little leg room and then you become a bit lazy and less suspicious. But don't worry; It will be my last visit to the Philippines, not that the ordinary people are not friendly and helpful, but I see no improvement in prosperity at all, as Thailand has become a rich country over the years. Poor Filipinos…
Jan,
I can't make a comparison between then and now because I've only been to the Philippines once. Because I wanted to see something different after visits to Thailand in 1983 (central and north) and 1987 (south), I booked a three-week trip to the Philippines in 1989.
It started badly. A delay of 1h30 at London Heathrow. Arriving at the chaotic airport of Manila, I had to pick up my plane ticket for my flight to Cebu the next day. No trace of the ticket and although I had a letter from my travel agency confirming order and payment I still had to buy a new ticket.
Outside the airport building there was a crowd of Filipino girls standing behind security barriers holding a sign with their boyfriend's name on it. And once in a taxi I never knew whether traffic was driving on the left or on the right. I was relieved when I got to my hotel on Rochas Boulevard.
In those three weeks, I visited places in Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. And if I have to be honest, I didn't get my money's worth, culturally speaking. Unless you include some Spanish cathedrals or a Jeepney factory. But I did see beautiful rice terraces and overwhelming nature. And because I am not a beach person, I have not been introduced to the many islands and coral reefs. We ate many tasty fish dishes.
Then about safety: in Cebu I slept in an upper-middle class hotel. When registering, I was urgently requested to deposit my valuables in the hotel safes behind the counter. There was a guard at the entrance and on each floor there was a guard in the corridor day and night who had an overview of all room doors. In Zamboanga I visited a fishing village. In many places I walked there were men who were openly gambling and using drugs. I didn't even dare take out my camera there.
In the rural areas in the villages I have seen a lot of poverty and alcohol consumption. Although the people are friendly and you could communicate in English even in the countryside (compare that with Thailand), it was not an unforgettable experience and it was just that one time.
JosNT this roughly matches my experience in the Philippines. Nothing works properly and it's always improvisation. to Thailand where everything is much better organized, but of course also with more bureaucracy. .
In the Philippines it is not possible for foreigners to buy land. In addition, there is significant corruption and dangerous gangs and kidnappings. It is advisable to avoid certain parts of the country. Nevertheless, people are generally sympathetic and often show caring. Many Filipinos also work abroad.
jozef indeed, but usually you have a girlfriend if you want to settle there and you can agree on the purchase in her name. As for those kidnappings, I obviously don't speak from experience, but I think those are stories from the past because I haven't heard anything about them in recent years and yes, Thailand is much safer, but bad things happen there too and you can read that regularly here also on this site…
Areas such as southern Mindanao are indeed to be avoided with rebellious Muslims, but I knew a Bleg who always went on holiday to Cagyan d'Oro in Mindanao and who never complained about feeling unsafe. By the way, you shouldn't walk around in certain areas of major cities after midnight because of the risk of being robbed or worse...
Interesting post… I have also been to the Philippines a lot. The well-known and lesser-known islands are beautiful: Boracay, Bohol, Siquijor, Sargiao, Camiguin, Batangas, Camotes…
The people are always friendly (outside of Manila, which is a real madhouse). The last time I was there was in February 2022. I was planning to get a retirement visa. Boy, was I disappointed. I was in Cebu, people were not really friendly, food bad and expensive (it was almost impossible to find a decent meal) hotel not comparable to what you get in Thailand for the same money. And to make matters worse, arranging the retirement visa was an administrative disaster. Suddenly I was completely done with it.
I'm now in Isan in Thailand, I really like the atmosphere.
The disadvantage is that not many people speak English here.
FredRaket, learning Thai like me. 35+ years ago when I was there for the first time I bought an ENG/THAI, THAI/ENG dictionary. Really not that difficult and especially now that translation computers can be purchased for little money, as I saw with a Frenchman who sat next to me on the plane. You have to make an effort, but where there is a will there is a way. You should also not believe that the “tones” are so important in Thai. I think that's a bit exaggerated. If you listen carefully to Thai, you will learn the pronunciation automatically. I have to say that it took me 6 holidays before I could form a sentence, but now it has come in very handy. Mind you, I only understand a word here and there of TV programs or Thai songs, but I can still manage to converse well with ordinary Thai people.
Indeed, I bought them a Thai English linguaphone course 30 years ago. Particularly through headphones. You listen and then you repeat that sentence yourself. Then you listen back to see if your pronunciation is correct. So phonetically. And then it's a matter of just doing it and, above all, not being afraid of making mistakes.
Keespattaya, well done and don't give up; in fact, the Thai language is simpler than English because they work with circumlocutions and don't have conjugations and past tense like we do and in English. Because there is no connection with our language, the words are of course more difficult to remember, but some are simple and laughable, such as nam tok = waterfall; nam=water and tok=fall. Fohn tok = rain and toast, don't laugh = kanom pang ping definitely worth remembering, also because the first time I asked for the translation in Chiang Mai I was laughing so hard haha. Also be careful because the Thai language has a lot of “r” has words that are pronounced like “l”. Just think of the form of confession that almost every sentence uses at the end: “tight”. For example, I searched for a long time in my dictionary for the word “long lian”, which later turned out to be “rong rian” and means school.
The taxi prices I read here are crazy, especially if you compare them with those in Thailand.
I took the bus from Manila airport to Angeles. VIP bus, direct, no stops, air conditioning for 400 pesos. From AC to Subic /Olongapo by bus or minivan for half. The last part to the hotel then with a trike for 120 pesos.
If we compare both countries, the advantage usually goes to Thailand.
I feel safer there, the food is better, accommodation is a bit cheaper and lady drinks and barfines are also a bit cheaper, if you're interested in that.
I also think Thailand is a bit more beautiful with all the Buddhist buildings.
The Philippines is poorer, which is also reflected in all the beggars and annoying Viagra etcetera providers in AC.
Communication in the Philippines is a bit easier and I met a lot of lovely people in both countries.
I haven't traveled out yet.