Manila, the giant city, also called the Pearl of the Orient, has a lot to offer the traveler who wants to break out of the box. It is a mix between skyscrapers and suburbs, between poverty and luxury, between history and modernism, the elements that will make your vacation unforgettable and that will encourage you to discover it.
It is a living, tireless, crowded, chaotic city that never seems to sleep. It is Asian color and flavor. With narrow streets, with smells hard to bear for a European or American, with imposing buildings and suspended highways, with people sleeping under the open sky or with huge malls, Manila will challenge you and make you come out of your comfortable world at home. Manila itself is an adventure and not a destination for every tourist, you have to want to see the world as it is without judging it or better yet, leave your fears at home to be amazed by the diversity of the world.
Essential to know:
- The Philippines is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire and earthquakes and typhoons occur frequently here.
- It's a safe place as long as you don't go out on the street with jewelry or other valuables.
- It's not good to venture down the side streets after dark.
- The national currency is the peso – 1 euro = 57.2 pesos, 1 dollar = 54.6 pesos. It is advisable to change a small amount at the airport on arrival to have for the taxi, the exchange rate is not great, and then change at the authorized exchange offices in the malls, where you need your passport and all the details, including number valid phone and where you stay in Manila.
- Also at the mall, we got our Philippine Internet number card. It costs 550 pesos from Globo/10 USD.
- There are security checks in every public building. You will be checked in your bag or backpack.
- The sockets are 220 V and you need an adapter. It's no problem if you don't have any, you can buy them at any store and they're very cheap.
- Have mosquito cream. There are still cases of Zika and Dengue fever.
- From the airport, if you don't have a transfer, the best prices are for the yellow tourist taxis, which you can find on the second lane from the airport exit. You don't have to pay more than 400-500 pesos (10 USD) for accommodation. Ignore the people who approach you at the exit of the airport and offer you a transfer for 2000 pesos. It's a lot.
- A subway ticket, depending on the distance and stations traveled, costs around 13 pesos.
- Anything is negotiable, especially if we're talking about tuk tuks. If he tells you a price, you tell him about half.
- In the Makati area, tuk tuks are not allowed, only taxis, because it is considered a residential area.
What do you eat in Manila? Where do you eat in Manila?
Filipino cuisine is known for its delicious pork and chicken delicacies. Try pork silog, da silog, tap silog, long silog, to silog, bamboo spring rolls, chicken abodo, but especially lechon – rotisserie pork belly. For dessert, definitely leche flan and halo halo. All dishes come with a side of rice, but for a special taste ask for rice with garlic. At street food, a portion costs around 2 USD, in luxurious restaurants, it costs around 5 USD.
We recommend you try the craft beer and good food at The Perfect Pint. Try, without hesitation, the street food as well. It's fabulous and really, really good. Ask beforehand what you will eat, because we had the surprise of eating pork belly without knowing it. And if you're not a fan of spicy food, tell them ahead of time. Otherwise you will end up with very spicy piri piri peppers in any dish.
What to do in Manila. Manila tourist attractions.
- Fort Santiago;
- Rizal Park;
- Intramuros – Historic Center of Manila;
- Manila Cathedral;
- Coconut Palace in Manila;
- Quiapo Church;
- Dolomite Beach;
- Manila Chinatown.
Where do you see the most beautiful sunset in Manila?
There are many sky bars in Manila where you can admire the sunset. You can try a high rise building and could see the sunset from the 71st floor where there is a gorgeous sky bar.
There are nice and kind people who help you with anything you might need. Even in the poor suburbs, where we ended up sheltering after a torrential downpour, they invited us into their modest homes, set us at table and gave us umbrellas. The infrastructure of Manila is good, they have suspended highways, they have bridges and overpasses and even though it looks like a busy metropolis, you can get anywhere quickly. In any place, people know English, road signs or street name plates are in English.
