Talk:Philippines

7+2
Other destinations has 10 entries violating the 7+2 rule, I've never been to the country and do not which should be removed so can someone else remove one. Tai123.123 (talk) 22:54, 3 October 2021 (UTC)


 * I think has a lot of experience with the Philippines, and so does . I've also never been here, so I also can't really comment. SHB2000 (talk | contribs | meta.wikimedia) 22:59, 3 October 2021 (UTC)


 * I agree the list should be trimmed. Certainly Boracay, El Nido, Puerto Galera & Panglao Island should stay; those are some of the country's major resort areas. Not sure about the rest.
 * To me, linking to Tagatay here seems like a mistake; it is a city so should not be under "Other destinations" & it is not even an important city. A direct link to Taal Volcano, which is a major tourist attraction & usually reached via Tagatay, would make sense, though. Pashley (talk) 05:15, 4 October 2021 (UTC)
 * If I had to choose, I'd remove Batangas. I'm living there & it is an interesting province, but so are lots of others. Also, it is hardly a single destination & the interesting places within it can be mentioned elsewhere. Pashley (talk) 05:30, 4 October 2021 (UTC)
 * I added Taal Volcano under Philippines so perhaps it could be deleted here, though I'd be inclined to keep it. Pashley (talk) 06:17, 4 October 2021 (UTC)
 * I’m in favor of replacing Tagaytay with Taal Volcano. Batangas can go. Mayon Volcano can be listed in place of Camarines Sur.-TagaSanPedroAko (talk) 18:59, 4 October 2021 (UTC)
 * ✅ Done. Pashley (talk) 23:10, 4 October 2021 (UTC)

A Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion
The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion: Participate in the deletion discussion at the nomination page. —Community Tech bot (talk) 09:37, 15 November 2022 (UTC)
 * Bacolod City Hall at night.jpg
 * Used at the Wikidata page, no FoP. Seems to be a clear case that doesn't affect us. –LPfi (talk) 10:56, 15 November 2022 (UTC)

City names
We currently have this text:
 * With the possible exception of Manila, it is fairly common for Filipinos to add the "City" suffix to the city name, but Wikivoyage rather avoids that practice as unnecessarily redundant, except when disambiguation is necessary. Cities sharing a name with a province (including former ones) are generally named in Wikivoyage as [city name] (city) (e.g. Cebu City is Cebu (city)), especially when the predominant local usage is generally the simple but ambiguous name.

I disagree. I just moved Cebu (city) to Cebu City. My rationale is at Talk:Cebu_City. I'd move Iloilo (city) & Batangas (city) as well; there are likely more but none leap to mind just now. I see we have Quezon City, which I think is correct. In general, I'd use the "X City" form wherever there is a city/province ambiguity. As far as I can tell, locals invariably use either that or just the bare name.

For Zamboanga (city), the ambiguity is more complex; Zamboanga Peninsula has three provinces, all with "Zamboanga" in their names. I'd like to move the city article to Z City, but am less certain here.

On the other hand, we have articles like Bais City which use that form when I cannot see any need for it since there is no ambiguity; I'd move it to just Bais.

Other opinions? Pashley (talk) 03:40, 24 November 2022 (UTC)


 * I think that text dates back to the time when the article about New York City was "New York (city)." We need no other standard than whatever name is most commonly used in English, as per Naming conventions. Ikan Kekek (talk) 04:19, 24 November 2022 (UTC)


 * "As far as I can tell, locals invariably use either that [X City] or just the bare name." I think that in cases where "X" is the name of a province and "X City" is commonly used, we could use "X City" even when "X" is more common, to avoid the "(city)" disambiguation suffix. Only when the for "X City" is uncommon to the point of confusing locals, I think we need to resort to formal disambiguation. This is analogue to New York, where we use "New York City" even though "New York" is the more common name. –LPfi (talk) 11:36, 24 November 2022 (UTC)


 * New York is the more common name only when there is no likelihood of confusion between the city and state. New York City is the most common name when there could be any ambiguity. And the formal name is "City of New York." Ikan Kekek (talk) 20:00, 25 November 2022 (UTC)


 * I removed the paragraph. Pashley (talk) 01:02, 25 November 2022 (UTC)


 * Support renaming all that you think are appropriate per Naming conventions and the policy to use the most common name. -- SHB2000  (talk &#124; contribs &#124; meta) 08:36, 25 November 2022 (UTC)


 * I renamed Bais & fixed all the links pointing to the old name, though I left it in place as a redirect.
 * Renamed Batangas City & Iloilo City, did partial link fixes. Other fixes do not seem urgent. Pashley (talk) 04:41, 26 November 2022 (UTC)
 * For Zamboanga, I asked at Talk:Zamboanga_(city). Pashley (talk) 04:46, 26 November 2022 (UTC)
 * Only one comment after several months & it was in favour, so I have now done the move. Pashley (talk) 14:29, 12 March 2023 (UTC)

Senior ID?
There are senior discounts for many things, perhaps most important to travellers restaurants, at least some hotels, & most domestic transport. You may not need ID for some of these (I've never been asked on a bus or ferry) & some restaurants will accept the ACR card which any foreigner who stays longer than two months must get. Most will not accept any foreign ID, not even passport.

Ideally one would get the Philippine Senior ID Card, but I am not sure what we could say about that:
 * One government web site says it is only for citizens.
 * When I asked at a local office, they said citizenship was not an issue but only those with residency visas were eligible, not available on a tourist visa.
 * Some barangay officials came to visit on my birthday & seemed shocked that I did not have it. They said neither citizenship nor visa type mattered, only that I lived in their barangay. They said they could get it for me, & did.
 * Some people on Facebook claimed that a foreigner using that card could be fined & deported.

I'm confused. Has anyone got better info? Pashley (talk) 02:18, 5 March 2023 (UTC)

COVID advice
The COVID box at Philippines says:
 * Entry to the Philippines is open to travelers who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 ... Such travelers must test negative for COVID-19 within 48 hours of departure ...
 * Foreign nationals that are not fully vaccinated will be denied entry into the Philippines.

Embassy in US says vaccination certificate is no longer required. I'm not certain testing ever was; I last entered the country in October 2022 and did not need it; neither the airline nor border officials asked. Pashley (talk) 04:44, 16 November 2023 (UTC)
 * The information in the article is probably out of date. If so, it should be removed or updated. —Granger (talk · contribs) 15:18, 16 November 2023 (UTC)

Bridges?
There are news stories about a possible Cebu–Bohol Bridge & I've seen some about bridges from Cebu Island to Negros and Negros to Panay. Likely there are others that I have not heard about.

Are any of these real possibilities? Likely to be completed soon? My guess would be not this decade, but some news stories had President Marcos promising some would be done during his term, i.e. before 2028. Pashley (talk) 02:23, 19 April 2024 (UTC)

Questionable addition
recently added:
 * Ethnic Chinese are often the target of kidnapping for ransom due to the stereotype that Chinese people are rich (many of the large Filipino companies are owned by ethnic Chinese). In many cases, the victims are killed after the ransom is paid.

I want to revert. It appears to refer to Filipinos of Chinese ancestry, in which case it has little to do with travel.

Certainly travellers perceived as rich -- I think mainly Westerners & Japanese -- are targets for scammers, thieves, women who want a rich boyfriend, and legitimate but overpriced businesses like some restaurants and resorts. However, I've never heard of them being kidnapped. How could a kidnapper collect the ransom if they grabbed a tourist?

Other opinions? Pashley (talk) 14:15, 6 July 2024 (UTC)


 * There was a recent case of two Chinese businessman being kidnapped for ransom, then killed after the families paid the ransom. Have a look at this: . The article also talks about a spate of kidnappings of Chinese people in the Philippines. Unfortunately this is behind a paywall but if you look at this old NYT article:, kidnapping of ethnic Chinese in the Philippines has long been a problem. It's not something that started recently. And have a look at this page as well. The dog2 (talk) 14:54, 6 July 2024 (UTC)
 * The point is, how is that relevant to travel? Ikan Kekek (talk) 15:07, 6 July 2024 (UTC)
 * The more recent spate of kidnappings seems to mostly have targeted visitors from China. One of the two who were killed after the ransom was paid in the most recent incident was from China, and the other was a Chinese-American. I won't go so far as to warn Chinese people not to visit the Philippines, but it seems that some extra vigilance is warranted if you are Chinese. The dog2 (talk) 15:33, 6 July 2024 (UTC)
 * So then state that. Ikan Kekek (talk) 23:05, 6 July 2024 (UTC)
 * ...but do so before your [The dog2] topic ban is enacted. -- SHB2000  (t &#124; c &#124; m) 23:21, 6 July 2024 (UTC)