# Modern City With Nice Beaches Nearby?



## sinsinbad (May 10, 2021)

I plan to return to the PI whenever travel resumes and looking for a modern city with fairly fast/reliable internet, good places to eat, and without heavy traffic, and with nice sandy beaches with clear and fairly healthy water to swim in nearby to live in. Example: Cebu would fit this description, but traffic is very bad there.

Right now I am not planning to buy, but just rent. Perhaps a condo or townhome.

Back story, I lived in the PI for over 5 years, but left in 2011. I lived in three different cities: Dumaguete, SBMA (old Subic Navy base) outside of Olongapo, and Angeles. The beaches near Dumaguete and Subic weren't very nice in my opinion. I also visited Panglao Island and Tagbilarian City, but at that time, there didn't seem like much was there.

I haven't visited Boracay, but I am sure that it is beautiful, but I think that it is too small an area for me. I love to take motorcycle rides, and I would be very limited there.

Some cities I was wondering about are Davao, Cagayan De Oro, Iloilo City, and San Fernando in La Union. If you have first hand knowledge of any of these, I would appreciate hearing it.

If you know of others that I might be interested in, please let me know.

Thanks and stay safe.


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

"Modern city with nice beaches nearby"

Are we talking adout the same country?


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

sinsinbad said:


> I plan to return to the PI whenever travel resumes and looking for a modern city with fairly fast/reliable internet, good places to eat, and without heavy traffic, and with nice sandy beaches with clear and fairly healthy water to swim in nearby to live in. Example: Cebu would fit this description, but traffic is very bad there.
> 
> Right now I am not planning to buy, but just rent. Perhaps a condo or townhome.
> 
> ...


Hi sinsinbad, welcome to the forum. Being a former resident you should know better, living here, there are always compromises and then some. Realism works, your asks and wants will be difficult to find in any country.
Only a suggestion but if you are single and can move around why not start with Palawan, you can google.

You mentioned SFC La Union. We live here (30/40 minutes drive north but only 20kms distance) in a nice quiet semi cove, beachfront, no yapping dogs, very very distant roosters crowing, dead end road so no traffic 4kms to Puregold and the small town proper of Bacnotan, 20/25 mins from a good private hospital, Internet, phones, sat tv all work perfectly. Power? Generally perfect but the last month or so about 4 blackouts. Far enough away from the outlaws and 5,000 relatives, 45 mins drive.

It's nice to live here but honestly? We both compromised for the good and bad. I wish you luck with your search mate.

BTW. SFC is not a modern city and no domestic flights from the airport. Clark or Manila for internal and international links.

Cheers, Steve.


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## fmartin_gila (May 15, 2011)

Iloilo/Panay Island does fill your requirements depending upon how loosely you apply the term "nice sandy beaches. The sand here is not white, but almost black grains. Mostly are nice beach areas but the normal overcrowding both north and south of Iloilo proper. Very nice beaches on the west side of the Island with some good motorcycle riding over the mountain to get there, I have only driven to the other side by my van and then only north as far as Culasi. Decent Internet and quite reliable power with only an occasional outage. They do seem to be improving and it is much better than it was only a couple years ago. Quite a few beach resorts over on Guimaras Island with a short ferry or short RORO ride there. Also short ferry or RORO to Bacolod on ****** island. There are some motorcyclists here(expats) who do a ride from Bacolod to Dumagete now & then. Don;t know anything about it, have only heard it mentioned. Quite a few expats living here(I've been living permanently here for almost 7 years and do not plan to move from here).

Fred


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## fmartin_gila (May 15, 2011)

I can't believe they censored ****** Island ! ! !! How stupid PC can they get!!!!!!

Fred


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

Nothing is consistent here in the Philippines, you may think you have found paradise for it to go down the tube a year or two later. We built a house a year ago, brown outs were rare and the fibre internet great. One year on and on our return we have brown outs every other day and the internet goes from mediocre to unusable most of the time.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

fmartin_gila said:


> I can't believe they censored **** Island ! ! !! How stupid PC can they get!!!!!!
> 
> Fred


Let me know the Island in PM Fred, sounds interesting.

Yep even here our sands are not white but grey white and the water is not turquoise but simply green and blue. Many beaches in the area are black or dark grey sands and more seem to be rocky though a little further north from is on the Luna road is the black pebble beach and for the life of me can't remember its name,,,,,,,,,My trusty friend google tells me its called:









LA UNION BEACH: 17 Best Beaches and Resorts to See 2022


Planning for the most memorable getaway these coming holidays? Check out these beautiful La Union beach, many of which remain pristine.




danielsecotravels.com





My Bad.

I love my beach here because I see 20 or 30 walkers/runners exercising at 5:30/6:00 am and then 20 to 30 , at times 40 bathers/walkers from 5 to 7 PM. Middle of the day? Nada. Only the waves and birds. The odd fishing boat in the morning offshore and after dusk 20 to 30 Banka boats with lights fishing most nights,,,,,, like a starry night on the ocean. Even holy week little happens here, turned out to be a good choice. Looks like the last vacant for sale block here has been sold, next door, saw, this morning a sign stating the block was not for sale and keep out on the rudimentary gate.
That might be good or bad as we want a new fence to keep the goats out, let's see what happens.

In the interim the better half is getting one of the bikes rego done, last year took 2 days, this time the emission test was done when he walked into the local shop here in Bacnotan,,,,, big surprise, inspection and LTO today??????? Who will place a bet on that one.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

Generally the larger the city, the worse the ocean/beach. The Philippines is no different. Iloilo is a great city for living and shopping, but you have to go a bit North of the city to get a decent beach. Boracay is by far my favorite beach (we lived there 5 months last year), but is lacking in anything 'city' related.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Gary D said:


> Nothing is consistent here in the Philippines, you may think you have found paradise for it to go down the tube a year or two later. We built a house a year ago, brown outs were rare and the fibre internet great. One year on and on our return we have brown outs every other day and the internet goes from mediocre to unusable most of the time.


I'm sorry to hear that Gary and BTW welcome back to the brave new existence here, sounds like it's not going well. I'm sure my turn is coming but in the mean time we will simply enjoy and deal with the peripheral rubbish daily as we do. As you have done. Hope things come back to what you are accustomed to.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

bigpearl said:


> Let me know the Island in PM Fred, sounds interesting.
> 
> 
> Cheers, Steve.


Bacolod is on ****** Island. And in case that is censored... here is a wikipedia link... ****** Island - Wikipedia probably also ridiculously ensored, but hopefully the link still works ha ha


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## Gary D (Oct 28, 2013)

bigpearl said:


> I'm sorry to hear that Gary and BTW welcome back to the brave new existence here, sounds like it's not going well. I'm sure my turn is coming but in the mean time we will simply enjoy and deal with the peripheral rubbish daily as we do. As you have done. Hope things come back to what you are accustomed to.
> 
> Cheers, Steve.


Cheers Steve, yes 14 days quarantine then 1 week of freedom then lockdown until the end of the month. Why they stop vaccinated senors going out during MECQ is beyond me. Reregisting the truck was a breaze, just rocked up at the local emissions centre and away 20 mins later, picked up the OR two days later. Not an LTO in sight.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Gary D said:


> Cheers Steve, yes 14 days quarantine then 1 week of freedom then lockdown until the end of the month. Why they stop vaccinated senors going out during MECQ is beyond me. Reregisting the truck was a breaze, just rocked up at the local emissions centre and away 20 mins later, picked up the OR two days later. Not an LTO in sight.


Well about time something went your way Gary with the rego.

Sorry to all for wandering off topic.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Shadowman (Apr 20, 2020)

Tukaram said:


> Generally the larger the city, the worse the ocean/beach.


That's not true at all, I'd say all the great beaches on the East and West coasts of the US, which are right next to the biggest cities, are why Americans assume they'll find the same in the Philippines.



Tukaram said:


> The Philippines is


the opposite; the further away from big cities you get, the better the beaches.


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## Tiz (Jan 23, 2016)

My idea of a great beach is one where its only me and my partner there... So far away from the cities is always going to be best.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

Tukaram said:


> Generally the larger the city, the worse the ocean/beach.


 in Metro Cebu a septic tank emptier service driver found it a good business idea to charge to transport sever poo to cleaning station, but he found it cheaper to dump all in a close river... 



Tukaram said:


> Bacolod is on **** Island. And in case that is censored... here is a wikipedia link... **** Island - Wikipedia probably also ridiculously ensored, but hopefully the link still works ha ha


 It same word as in several languages just mean *"black*" and as both that island and one of the biger ethnic 
groups in Phils is named.

A sokker refereree in an international match got in big problem when he used that word is his language just meaning "black" while some players found it so insuilting so they refused to play until that almost just backup referee had been replaced, so the TV send game got delayed hours until any other international qualified referee got there 🤣


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

Shadowman said:


> That's not true at all, I'd say all the great beaches on the East and West coasts of the US, which are right next to the biggest cities, are why Americans assume they'll find the same in the Philippines.
> 
> 
> 
> the opposite; the further away from big cities you get, the better the beaches.


Not in my experience. The water in LA, San Diego, and Pearl Harbor was pretty bad (too many ships, too much trash). You had to get out of town a ways to get clean water. Same as the PIs. 😎


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## grahamw57 (May 27, 2018)

This is my local beach (7 miles from my home) here near Dagupan, in North Luzon. (My pic). Clean...for the Philippines, and peaceful.  Dagupan has all the usual facilities...including a very friendly and efficient Immigration office, plus all the shopping malls, etc, and very good road communications to both north and south.
.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Nice Graham, looks inviting and whiter sands than here, nice to hear local immi are normal, pretty well the same here in SFC.
This is what we see every day here. The first pic is on the beach with my Canadian neighbours Banka boat, the rest are from the house on the verandah including the collared kingfisher in the last pic. Pics from the better half.

We are only 50 metres off the high tide mark and about 7/8 metres elevation so look out with global warming.
20 clicks from the traffic lights of SFC but 4 clicks to the local supermarket and a town of some 42,000 people.
We like it but as said there were compromises and I'm probably the winner as the better half does most of the running around keeping me away from the wombats that won't wear masks.

You are not too far from here Graham so one day a catch up would be good once things settle, stay safe and healthy.

Cheers, Steve.


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## grahamw57 (May 27, 2018)

Oh that looks really beautiful Steve ! 

Yes...we're not too far from you (near San Jacinto), and yes...maybe meet for a beer when better times arrive. All the best to you and your loved ones.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

I dont know if you count Puerto Princesa, Palawan, as modern  
but it was very clean (at least before covid when voluntaire groups gathered) 
and it has several nice beaches e g Honda Bay


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## Shadowman (Apr 20, 2020)

Lunkan said:


> I dont know if you count Puerto Princesa, Palawan, as modern
> but it was very clean (at least before covid when voluntaire groups gathered)
> and it has several nice beaches e g Honda Bay
> View attachment 99798


Best beach, worst everything else (internet, food, malls, etc). ^

And the places with everything else always have the worst, most polluted beaches.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Palawan is beautiful in many places and so is Melbourne Australia bayside, Manila? L.A. has some great beaches.
Home is where you make it and juggle the ups, downs and priorities for your individual needs/wants. My beach here is not perfect as the coconut trees won't grow because of the coconut Rhinoceros beetle, the sands are not pure white, 40 mins drive to a city (or what they call a city) but decent services 4 kilometres away. Priorities for me after 20 odd years on the sunshine coast (AU) hinterland on 50 acres with no close neighbours and peace carried over here except a sea change instead of the proverbial tree change. It's very quiet here.

I've said it plenty of times, research, do it again and again then spend dollars and time with boots on the ground with your short list, it is a big decision. Don't just jump in, monitor property prices/rents, opportunities etc. we looked for 3 years before purchasing here 4 years ago and finally moving 2 years ago. In 4 years property prices have more than doubled here with the listed vacant block which is smaller than ours finally selling for PHP 13M I think, as that was her asking price and she never budged. Over the years her price went from 9 to 13M, last beachfront block here.

Opportunities come. We looked at this property 7 or 8 years ago priced at 12M with a 3 bed 2 bath home with large detached studio, all concrete and rendered etc. but 10 to 15 minutes drive north of the over priced rubbish in the areas we were looking, over the years this property kept popping up with lower prices, finally we looked and compromised with distance and the then 9M price tag was secured for well under 6M so reasonably priced for our area then,,,,, now who knows. Patience can be a virtue. I really hope our new neighbours are nice.

Again sorry for my usual ramble. Stay safe.

Cheers, Steve.


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## Lunkan (Aug 28, 2020)

bigpearl said:


> My beach here is not perfect as the coconut trees won't grow because of the coconut Rhinoceros beetle, the sands are not pure white,
> ...
> Priorities for me after 20 odd years on the sunshine coast (AU) hinterland on 50 acres with no close neighbours and peace


 Better not have coconuts anyway, except perhaps where not bee except when get them, because falling coconuts can be dangerous. Some years ago 7 had DIED in Phils by falling coconuts.

Concerning color of sand I bother much more about it isnt disturbed by people - except perhaps a few beautiful to look at 

Yes, quiet I find very important too. And biger lands cost much less per squaremeter normaly. If someone finding it tto quiet, then he can split and sell lots 



bigpearl said:


> we looked for 3 years before purchasing


 I "beat" youl have looked 9 years before buying now 



bigpearl said:


> Over the years her price went from 9 to 13M, last beachfront block here.
> 
> Opportunities come. We looked at this property 7 or 8 years ago priced at 12M with a 3 bed 2 bath home with large detached studio, all concrete and rendered etc. but 10 to 15 minutes drive north of the over priced rubbish in the areas we were looking, over the years this property kept popping up with lower prices, finally we looked and compromised with distance and the then 9M price tag was secured for well under 6M so reasonably priced for our area then,,,,, now who knows. Patience can be a virtue. I really hope our new neighbours are nice.


 When chosing location in my oppinion prices - and typhons andd earthquakes  - are factors too. There are huge price differences between different regions and land type. 
And some tax assessors make crazy "valuing" and the highests of such "valuing" and whats paid is the amount the transfer fees and taxes are counted at. E g in one municipaly they had made a valuing 10 times higher than similar land COULDNT be sold ffor in 4 years!!! 

Beaches and in cities there have been big prrice raises during the years, while other rural than accesable beaches had problem to find any buyer before covid too inspite of very low prices. (Although some ASK crazy high prices 

Now sellers have harder by there are less newcomer foreigners paying much to much 
E g close before covid a foreigner bought a beach lot at Palawan for around 10 times higher than there are others for in the neighbourhood and he found it cheap, and didnt bother when the lawyer SCAMED him at half the land. (It was two lots beside each other and the lawyer took one off them for himselff for free ssomehow. I dont know how he solved te documents.)
So now its "buyer s market" except perhaps where the owners are rich. 



bigpearl said:


> I really hope our new neighbours are nice.


 Yes. The biger distance to them, the less necesary though


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

Off topic, sorry.
Only in the Philippines? I mentioned in an earlier post that the vacant block next door sold, my bad and assumed as a brand new red and white banner went up on the gate stating the property wasn't for sale and keep out, that was Tuesday, yesterday the cow man came back (not seen him for 8 months or more) with 6 cows and tethered them on the block. The owner has asked him to keep his stock off the property and asked Ben to call her if he sees them back,,,,,,, perfect opportunity to find out if it's sold (chismis). Turns out it's not sold yet but she has two purchasers fighting over the lot and she is sitting back watching the price go up, no hurry while they fight she said, she also said that the sign that went up was probably put up by one of the prospective purchasers thinking they have purchased it or trying to scare off the other people. According to her, who knows but the offers are now over her asking price, no wonder she is sitting back.

Lunkan, yes with the coconut tree danger, agree, seen it happen etc. (no deaths just falling fruit). We have an 800 M2 tax declared lot to the high tide mark in the front that we can't build on nor anyone else but we can do temp buildings like kubos, planting etc. There are already 5 or 6 large trees that work well but the 30 odd coconut trees that the previous owner planted are down to 9 or 10, some are 6 to 8 feet tall but the beetles will get them too.

I think we are pretty good for typhoons and earthquakes here on the west coast as they mostly smash the east and we have a mountain range, 2 actually running up the middle of Luzon but never say never. Rates and property taxes here are only PHP 4,200.00 per year including garbage. We'll see what happens when we put the extension plans in and the new costs.

Foreigners paying too much is always a problem, seen this happen particularly in San Juan La Union,,,,,,, surf area, trendy. Funny it turns out the 2 prospective buyers for next door lot are yep you guessed it, foreigners.
I agree with you, larger lot away from the masses but being partnered there has to be compromises, to date working fine.

Cheers, Steve.


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## KatanaDV20 (Mar 27, 2020)

bigpearl said:


> Far enough away from the outlaws and 5,000 relatives...


I just had to stop by and reply - this made me  because its spot on.

Its been 18 months since I saw my gf and I've already decided that when tourists are allowed back Im gonna rent an apartment for my visit rather than stay at her place. Its sign of things when even SHE is fed up of her sisters and their multiple offspring running around doing her head in. She pretty much fell to her knees in happiness and said "Yes yes yes" when I mentioned the apartment idea.


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## Tukaram (Dec 18, 2014)

KatanaDV20 said:


> "Yes yes yes" when I mentioned the apartment idea.


Yep. we just moved from the province to the city and my wife said it is so much more relaxing to not be directly in the drama. You know, the drama that I never saw. They get nose bleed if they talk to me ha ha 😎


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## sinsinbad (May 10, 2021)

Thanks for all the comments/suggestions. Whenever travel resumes, I plan to return to the PI and travel to some of the most promising areas for the first month or so to check them out.

I know that there is no "perfect" place. I just have to find the one that fits me the best.


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## bigpearl (Jan 24, 2016)

I gather you are single and no strings? The world will/could be your oyster not only the Philippines. From my perspective the Philippines or Asia was the last place I ever considered to retire, the south of France, Italy even Spain piqued my interests for years after my travels but working here 9 years ago I met the better half and here we are,,,,,, I am making the best of what this country can offer, C-19 aside there is plenty to do and see here, plenty of negatives and positives but at the end of the day we are together and happy.

There are members both here and plenty of other sites that do exactly what you propose, have a look around then decide,,,,,,, many, years on are still looking, 6 months here, 3 months there, a visit over in that province, a flight or ferry ride there....... Eventually some find Nirvana while some continue to enjoy the freedom and taste the country like no Filipino ever dreamed of doing. Honestly? I could be jealous but go with our decisions and the local flow, look out if we ever get out of this pandemic.

OMO.

Cheers, Steve.


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## sinsinbad (May 10, 2021)

Steve, Big Pearl, you are right on many accounts. I am single, but not by choice--recently divorced from a Filipina after 10 years. 

Also, the PI wouldn't be among my first choices either, but I am not going there for the country, but to hopefully meet someone. At 64 and middle income, I am not young enough or rich enough for women in America.

I like the PI because English is generally used and understood better than a lot of other countries. I also love the weather. I prefer to wear shorts, tee shirts, and flip flops. And last, but not least, the pretty women.


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