How do you think Switzerlands tourists and expats compare to Philippines?

When a newcomers first Filipino experience is a taxi trying to charge them 4x the Grab price leaving NAIA you drive away good tourists.

When you have near daily brownouts you drive away good tourists.

When your (restaraunt) food costs twice as much as Thailand but has the nutritional value of a wet noodle you drive away good tourists.

When you need security guards at every business you drive away good tourists.

When your hotels cost twice as much for half the experience as other SEA countries you drive away good tourists.

You drive away all the normal people then complain when you are left with the LBH and people looking to date 30-40 years younger. ​.

Even more importantly you've driven away most of the talented and ambitious Filipinos to seek work in other countries.

Hi all,

Moved here from Los Angeles four years ago. Currently late 20s/early 30s with dual income and no kids. Before moving, all I read on Reddit was how you can live like royalty on $1500/mo. Now that we're looking at our costs and planning for a child, we're confused. We're currently spending around $5K/mo in Makati CBD, far from the $1.5K number people keep talking about.

If we moved back to SoCal tomorrow, maintaining our exact standard of living would run us around $8k/mo, which we’re totally fine with. I guess I just didn't expect the 'Philippines discount' for a true Western baseline in Makati to only save us $3k/mo. It makes you wonder where the people claiming to 'live like royalty on $1.5k' are actually getting their numbers from.

After four years, I don't see how anyone is doing that without dropping their quality of life off of a cliff. My partner and I aren't trying to ball out, we're just maintaining a basic, comfortable SoCal baseline with walkable streets, breathing space, continuous AC, clean food, and some help around the apartment. Looking at schooling was rough too; sending a kid to school in the Philippines will add another $20K/year to match Western education standards.

Our monthly burn in Makati for 2 people (and no, we cannot move since we work):

• Rent: 130K (123sqm, 2bed, 2.5bath in Makati CBD) We needed centralized AC for our sanity
• Electricity: 16K
• Internet and Water: 4K
• Groceries: 40K (Santi's, Kitayama, S&R, Marketplace, Wet Market)
• Grab Food / Delivery Services: 20K
• Dining Out, Drinks, Coffee: 25K
• Live-out Helper: 8K
• Fuel / Tolls: 6K (Don't drive a lot, just errands and occasional trips)
• Health Insurance: 30K (Comprehensive for two)
• Car Insurance: 5K
• Misc: 10K

Total burn: 294K PHP / mo or around $5K USD

To be clear, this is just reproducing our life back in Los Angeles, and not extravagance.

When people claim they 'live like a king on 1,500' what does that actually look like? Are you all crammed into 28 sqm studios in Quezon City with a window type AC rattling on your face, eating street food, and taking tricycles through gridlock?

Where are you cutting costs without ruining your baseline comfort?

Where's the disconnect?

I heard that '80s song today on the internet radio and I thought, yeah, my future is bright too.

And before you think I'm too cool, I actually had eye surgery on both eyes about 25 years ago and since then I've been super sensitive to light and can't really drive at night. Actually when I was back home it was even worse with all of that snow on the ground so I'm happy to be here.

Either way, let's enjoy where we are.

And for that reason, not viable.

One of you is about to become my husband. i dont know who yet, but im sure he is somewhere here 🤗

I've been reading some posts lately here in This sub and honestly it's quite funny how expats can get delusional with their expectations and entitlement. Like the Philippines is an actual nation with its own problems just like their own. Did expect a developing nation to have first world level of accommodations and complain about it being different. It's a different country mate what did you expect a free sex fest where your currency decides what happens with cheaper accommodations nope. It's an actual nation struggling with its own problems both good and bad.

And before you go here just to complain do your research and it will save you a lot of time and money. Instead of going to Reddit and complaining.

Knowing that the Philippines is on the ring of fire, and the level of general corruption, how confident are you that the condo you reside in is up to code for earthquakes?

​We were so tired from shopping yesterday and didn't know where to eat in greenhills. decided to try this place out and the beef marinade is actually really good.

​Instead of spending so much on one big dish for the family, getting korean style bbq with all the free banchan here felt way more worth it for us. the meats are seasoned perfectly. just sharing in case you need a spot that can fit a big group!👍

Title

Lately there's been some hardcore inflammatory expat posts and now there's multiple ph expat subs.

A lot of these accounts have super generic names and hidden post histories. It makes me wonder how much of it is authentic vs troll/botting. If I was a hostile foreign nation I'd probably want to poison people's opinions of eachother with bots.

Anyway, I love the Philippines. No where is perfect, but I absolute love it. Overall I love PH and I like making people's days better here.

That's part of the responsibility as a traveler or retiree. You have extra time and patience to have perspective. Every interaction makes someone's day a little better or worse which changes their emotional state and when people are in better emotional states it passed moved forward.

For those of you who live outside of Manila do you guys still get swarmed by local children? I was at the mall to get my cell phone repaired when I got ambushed by these highly curious little titans. Haha

I’m an American, happily married to a Filipina for nearly 14 years, and we’ve lived in the Philippines for four.
When I happen to share an elevator or have some other brief encounter with another American man here, we rarely speak. And I mean rarely. Even when we seem to recognize each other as fellow Americans, there’s often barely any eye contact.

Have other Americans here noticed this?

I ask because when my wife and I are in the US, especially San Francisco, her encounters with fellow Filipinos can go quite differently. Once someone recognizes her as Filipino, they’re perfectly comfortable getting right into her business:

Are you Filipino?
Is this your husband?
Where do you live?
How many children do y’all have?
How long have you been married?
Where do you work?
What are your plans while you’re here?
And the list goes on.

Meanwhile, back on the elevator with my fellow American…

Crickets.🦗

I’m curious about the difference. Is it cultural? A preference for privacy? Something about Americans living abroad? Or is my experience different from yours?

What have you noticed, and why do you think it happens? TIA!

Hi everyone! 👋

I’m conducting a small market survey to understand the preferences of non-native English speakers currently living in Cebu who are interested in improving their English through ESL classes.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the following questions:

1. Preferred class hours: Would you prefer 4, 6, or 8 hours of English lessons per day?
2. Budget: How much would you be willing to pay per month for English classes only?
3. Learning goals: What would you like to study? For example:
   • Beginner English (A0–A2)
   • Intermediate English (B1–B2)
   • Advanced English (C1–C2)
   • Conversational English and speaking confidence
   • Business English
   • English for work, travel, or daily life
   • Grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, reading, and writing
4. Preferred schedule: Would you prefer morning, afternoon, or evening classes? Weekdays, weekends, or a flexible schedule?
5. Class type: Would you prefer one-on-one lessons, group classes, or a combination of both?

A few important details:

• This survey focuses on tuition fees for English classes only.
• Accommodation and meals are NOT included because the target participants already have their own places to stay in Cebu.
• The goal is to understand what foreign residents actually need and what prices they consider reasonable.

Your feedback would be greatly appreciated and would help in planning ESL programs that suit the needs, schedules, and budgets of people already living in Cebu.

Feel free to comment below or share your suggestions. Thank you so much for your time! 😊

I love dict! I really do. Even when it's small and barely reaches, most of the time that's all i really need. Anytime I go out into the provinces, i can't get enough dict. Like when I need to stop in Tacloban, there's really good dict to connect with outside city hall. Where I'm staying right now, the wifi isn't working and i don't need it. There's dict outside for me to connect with, i don't know where it's coming from but i'm putting it to use. That's what I love most about dict, you never know where you'll find it. I don't need load drama, forget that headache. Sometimes all you need out there is a little dict wifi to get through the day and right now it's a big help.

I’ve never watched his content because it’s always been focused on how the Philippines is this perfect paradise without really showing a balance of the negatives (although that’s changed recently)

But he seems to have really gone downhill lately. His dad was allegedly scammed out of ~$1 million USD and is now looking for a Filipino job, he posted about being beat up by a security guard without providing a lot of context, and now his girlfriend has left him and he’s demanding money back from her and humiliating her online by posting about how her private parts smell (the audio attached to the story). From the girl’s post, it sounds like he was the reason she abruptly left.

Of course none of us can say for certain what happened, but I’m starting to get weird vibes from this guy.

Lastly, I’m not a lawyer, but this is a good reminder for us foreigners that we need to be careful about what we post online while in the Philippines. The cyberlibel laws here (RA 10175) are stricter than what we may be used to.

Hi everyone! I'm a 44-year-old digital nomad, currently spending some time in Manila, and I'm looking to connect with people in the local poly community.

I'm bi, male, open-minded, and interested in getting to know people, making friends, and hopefully finding a sense of community. I'm open to connections developing naturally, whether that's friendship, something romantic, or something else. I have been non hierarchical poly for most of my adult life (and teens)

I'm also kinky, though I'm just as interested in the social side of things. Have been to a couple of munches. If there are any regular meetups, gatherings, or groups you'd recommend, I'd really appreciate hearing about them.

Thanks, and nice to meet you all!

AMERICAN FACING TRAFFICKING, RAPE RAPS

LOOK: A 59-year-old American national, who is a retired investor, is facing several criminal charges, including human trafficking, rape, illegal detention, and drug possession.

This was after a 15-year-old girl, who was allegedly held for sexual exploitation, and 8 other women were rescued by the police inside the American's rented condominium unit in Barangay Kamputhaw, Cebu City, on Wednesday, Oct. 14.

Police said they would file the cases against the American today, October 15.