Working on a plan to work remotely from the Philippines for up to 6 months at a time and am wondering where the best places to settle would be? The obvious three would be Davao, Cebu and Manila although I've also heard Dumaguette is a good spot for foreigners. My girlfriend is in Western Mindanao which I understand isn't the safest of places so I'm looking at alternatives, my job would require decent internet access and I'd like there to at least be some infrastructure nearby (malls/medical facilities etc). Also to those who have moved there, how do you handle health insurance? Any companies that are recommended? I think 6 months may be too long for travel insurance to typically cover.
Most of the Phils has decent Internet providers and speeds now. I live in rural Pangasinan, and have PLDT fibre, which usually gives me a steady 200+ megs, and no interruptions. p1999 a month.
Oh, you think I should move back to the UK then ? How much is a beer there now...or a McDonalds, or a full bottle of Spirits , or a house rental, or a taxi or bus ride ? A trip to a tropical beach with coconut palms and 80F water ? .
Are you getting a steady 200 megabit per second? I pay £60 a month for 500 mbps plus landline phone in the UK, I was quite surprised to see 200+ mbps speeds on testing a fortnight ago on our fibre connection in Las Pinas our contract was for a lot lower speed. In Metro Manila at leas in our bit you get some very odd behaviour sometimes the download will be 5mbps with an upload of 300 mbps and then a short while later it will be reversed 300 down and 5mbps up but I have seen it stabilise at what would almost be synchronous DSL at 200 up and down.
Manila is big, crowded, dirty very poor air quality but has access to everything western that you could desire, I'm nearly 65 I had to visit the doctor just after Christmas I had the flu and wanted antibiotics, consultation cost 500 peso and the drugs (antibiotics and antihistamines) cost 290 peso total 790 or about 11 quid. I was only there for a fortnight for Christmas so I just relied on my bank travel insurance had something more serious occurred it would have been a problem but I'm basically expecting to die if anything serious happens to me while I am there, I don't expect either me or the family to be bankrupted by medical bills, I just expect to die health insurance would cost more than I would be willing to pay. I've only been in Cebu once and that was a very long time ago, 18 years ago and I didn't like it, never been to Davao, I do have a lot of experience of Metro Manila, Manila has pluses and minuses, it's not cheap but you can get a good place to live that should have all the amenities you need.
Yeah, but health service is free in the UK, Cost me a small fortune over here on medical bills. Going to the beach this afternoon, got my Beers chilling in the freezer, snorkel ready, food, wife's sorting that out.
no--not at all--i was simply comparing broadband costs...surprisingly similar. i'm pleased for you that life in the philippines suits you so well.
I suggest that you spend a short time in the four cities that you have mentioned, three are comparable the fourth not comparable at all. Manila, except for it being the place most filipinos go to find work, I have yet to meet anyone that would live there out of choice, my wife dislikes the place as do I, Cebu we like to call it mini Manila for obvious reasons, Davao would be my choice out of the three major cities that you mentioned, by the way my wife is from Bukidnon not very far from Western Mindanao, and yes I would not be very comfortable living somewhere west of Bukidnon. Whatever you heard about Dumaguete is probably correct, it would be my place of choice to settle, very easy to move around, lots of good eateries, good Universities, and a reasonable number of ex pats, I can,t comment on Internet speeds, nor Healthcare but I suspect there is no shortage of both, I recall there being a Robinsons but I dont remember if they have an SM or such like, however if you really need a big shopping mall there are plenty of cheap flights from the airport (very centrally located) to Davao, Cebu, Manila, or wherever you wish to go to, yeah Dumaguete would be my choice. If i am right I believe @Jim lives very close to Dumaguete.
I don't have health insurance either, if something serious happens I'll either bite the bullet here, go and see the local witch-doctor or head back to the UK. If you're working I'd choose Manila for the travel links, the fact they have everything on your door step, and in contrast to Cebu, some wide pavements you can walk on. If it works out ok then you can look around for a more idyllic location later... Have to say if it was me, first I'd start by looking for the the country in SEA with the most reliable infrastructure/services: transport, health, maybe education, water, power and internet... Probably Thailand would be 1st - you're partner might even teach English there... Not saying it's not possible from Philippines just... things happen here... stupid things... Classic example: Foreigner emergency case, with good health insurance, being taken from one hospital to another by ambulance... Doctor accompanying the guy wants to go to the Mall to do some shopping, where do you think they go first? You get the picture
Some good beeches too, going south from Dumagete been snorkeling today with the wife and some friends. Internet I pay 2000 peso for 300 Mbps sometimes I get over that speed but usually more like 200 Mbps. PLDT Home fiber includes Landline.
Thanks for the advice so far. I spent a few days in Manila and much like London I didn't especially like it, very busy, noisy, smog filled. Cebu was ok but I found transport to be lacking, may have been the area I was in but it was annoying that only taxis and mopeds appeared to be allowed, we did take a ride on an bus down to CarCar though, wasn't the most comfortable. I found Davao to be a good mix of both, I've heard its the safest city due to strong police/military present, remember being stopped at a checkpoint and handed a form with the details of the taxi I was travelling in and a number to call if the driver tried to overcharge, they didn't but it was reassuring. Not been to many other places, perhaps on my next visit I'll check out some of these areas you guys have mentioned. Moving to another SEA country could be an idea but I haven't looked into that, curious whether they are as restrictive with foreigners owning property as the Philippines is.
Probably Vietnam if property ownership is your concern... friend of mine went there and told me it was very nice
