Philippines
Philippines10 guides across 2 destinations — where to go, when, what it costs and what to eat.
Destinations in Philippines
Practical essentials for Philippines
Philippine peso (PHP)
Filipino and English are both official; English is used in government, business and signage and is widely spoken.
Type A/B/C, 220V 60Hz — US-style plugs but double the US voltage
In Metro Manila the LRT, MRT and EDSA Carousel buses take a rechargeable beep card; jeepneys and Grab fill the gaps, and Boracay is reached by domestic flight and ferry.
Modest and common — most restaurants add a 10% service charge, and loose change or a small note on top is normal for good service.
Metro Manila's mains water is treated, but visitors normally drink bottled or purified water, and outside the capital it should be assumed unsafe.
Right-hand side; a valid foreign licence is accepted for up to 90 days, so an International Driving Permit is not needed for a short visit.
911 (unified national hotline)
Country-level guidance, checked against official sources. Currency, fares and entry rules change — confirm anything time-critical before you travel.
Recent stories from Philippines
Boracay essentials: getting there, getting around and doing it right
Boracay is small and simple once you understand the chain of hops that gets you there — here are the seasons, the stations, the costs and the things worth skipping.
Calamansi muffins, mango shakes and front-row sand: café life on Boracay
Boracay's cafe culture is still barefoot, but since the island's rehabilitation it happens a step back from the sand — here is where the calamansi muffins, mango shakes and sunset tables actually are, and how to build a day around them.
Green Boracay: hilltops, palm groves and the island beyond the beach
Behind Boracay's four-kilometre strip of white sand rises a green island of hills, palm groves and jungle-backed coves — and reaching it takes minutes, not effort.
Cheap Eats in Manila That Punch Well Above Their Price
Silog breakfasts, rice porridge at midnight, skewers off the grill and the world's oldest Chinatown. A dish-led guide to eating brilliantly in Manila for very little money.
Where to Sleep on Boracay, and What Each Station Costs You
White Beach runs four kilometres and splits into three stations, and the one you book decides your week. A practical guide to Boracay's sleeping geography, from the cove resorts of Punta Bunga to the cheap wind-blown rooms behind Bulabog.
The Manila Neighborhoods Most Visitors Never Reach
Metro Manila is sixteen cities stitched together, and the districts worth the traffic - Escolta, San Nicolas, Quiapo, Santa Ana, Marikina - are almost never on the itinerary.
Nothing on Boracay Is Beachfront Any More. Book for the Walk Instead.
Since the thirty-metre easement pushed every wall back from the sand, a Boracay hotel sells you a walk rather than a doorstep, and across six shorelines and three budgets that walk is what you are actually paying for.
Four Days on Boracay, Ordered by Which Way the Wind Is Blowing
Boracay is a four-day island, and the order of those four days is decided less by your list of attractions than by the monsoon.
Manila, Ranked: 7 Experiences You Can't Miss
A walled Spanish city, the oldest Chinatown on earth, jeepneys, halo-halo, and the most famous sunset in the Pacific — Manila's essentials, in order.
What to Eat on Boracay — and Where
Beyond the postcard beach lies a proper eating island: chori burgers at sunset, pick-your-own seafood markets, chicken inasal, and the milkshakes of legend.