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Best Place All Around To Visit In The Philippines
Cebu is located in the Philippines south of Manila and is starting to become a more popular destination for business and tourism each year. Cebu Island is laid back and has a night life comparable to Manila at over half the price. The cost of hotels and resorts in Cebu City are a little cheaper than Manila but the huge savings comes from the lower cost of living. Whether you are going clubbing, taking a tour, or just going out for a nice dinner you will spend about half as much as you would in Manila.
Taxi Service
Another great thing about Cebu is the taxi service. As a tourist chances are that you do not know your way around and need to take some form of public transportation. A taxi in Manila will not turn the meter on for you and will over charge you by 600% if you are a tourist. In Cebu they always turn on the meter and most of the time they do it before you even ask them to.
Friendly Locals
A place is only as good as its local population. Between Expats and the local Filipinos Cebu has a very friendly atmosphere for the tourist and business traveler. When you are walking down the street you are not surrounded by street merchants trying to sell you something every time you turn around although it does happen in some areas. You get to actually relax and enjoy your time there without having to say the words “no thanks” or “no” a thousand times a day.
Crime Rate
There will always be crime in a city that is just a fact of life. Cebu’s population is on the rise and the crime rate will more than likely follow. So even though the crime rate is not as high as a place like Manila it still exists so you have to pay attention. Do not go in areas that you know have high crime rates and do not walk around with a boat load of money showing it off around town. Westerners are already considered walking ATM machines because a lot of Filipinos think Westerners are all rich. If you do not know where the bad parts of town are ask your hotel and they will be more than happy to tell you the places you need to avoid. Although the crime rate in Cebu may rise in the coming years with an increase in population I still feel safer in Cebu than I do in a lot of U.S. cities. Because crime rates change from year to year and sometimes month to month you will have to do some research on this yourself so you can make your own decisions on traveling to Cebu.
Beaches
The island of Mactan, accessible by bridge from Cebu, is about a twenty or thirty minute ride from Cebu City. It has resorts with nice beaches but you will have to pay higher than usual prices in Cebu to stay there. Some of the best beach resorts are farther south. Anywhere from one to two hours south of Cebu City you will find nice resorts in smaller towns called provinces. These may not have the nightlife of the city but if you are looking to spend time relaxing on the beach, diving, fishing, or boating you may want to look into these resorts instead. The price per night will be lower than the resorts in Mactan and you will get a great ocean view.
Cebu Club FortMed
This resort is about two and a half hours south of Cebu City. It was the best resort I found in Cebu. It has a nice Bar and Grill next to the ocean and the view from just ridding along the road is better than anything you will get in Cebu City. The locals are friendly and the staff at the resort is as helpful as they are friendly giving you a lot of helpful information about the Island of Cebu. If you like a specific kind of drink make sure you bring it with you though. They keep a good supply of local drinks but don’t carry a lot of imports. The food is great and has a great price tag associated with it. To get prices and contact information go to the Cebu Club FortMed website.
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