Philippines Or Thailand

[Curley]

After my recent experience with the greedy, prospective Mum in law I'm back to the same old dilemna...Philippines or Thailand for my retirement? There are pros and cons for both places and before meeting my ex I had decided on Thailand due to better infrastructure, health care and I loved the city of Chiang Mai. The biggest single drawback is having to learn a tonal language and I'm tone deaf! In the Philippines English is spoken and understood to a certain extent and any new language to be learnt would not be so difficult as at least they use the Roman alphabet. I was recommended by someone on this forum to live in Davao, I tried it and liked it but then found the Island of Samal which I really did like and its only a short ferry trip to get to Davao and all it's amenities. One of the draw backs of the Philippines is the lack of short term rental accommodation, I would much prefer to stay in an apartment/condo with kitchen facilities than an hotel. Hotels in the Philippines are of a lower standard than those in Thailand and are usually around 50% more expensive.... I wonder why? In Thailand if I want to rent for a month or two I can get a good rate from a hotel in the Philippines they never want to give a monthly rate, only 30 x daily rate. I think I'll have to become a nomad for a few months and try out various places but don't fancy paying 2,500 a night for a reasonable place to stay. I want a comfortable bed, decent hot and cold shower, aircon and fan and internet in the room. A good woman is going to be a big influence on where I settle but perhaps I need to settle first and then start my search for a new lady? I have found one website that offers a town house or condo for monthly rental but they are fully booked for May and June......perhaps a business opportunity for someone?

[brock]

I lived in Chiang mai for a while and to be honest I prefer there much more than Cebu City, Weighing up all the pros and cons,Chiang mai wins hands down in my opinion.

[JJReyes]

Since you are the person with the dowry issue, my suggestion is Thailand. You can get a one year retirement visa, which is renewable every year. If the girl is still interested, invite her to join you. Entry visa should not be difficult because of reciprocal ASEAN visa agreements. She will then be away from her mother and family. Changing the visa status in Thailand is possible without departing. If the girl says, "No." then it is time to terminate the relationship.

[KanoJoe]

For me Chiang Mai wins hands down over all destinations in the Philippines. Lovely city with a very international expat community. The only problem is that it is becoming very popular and is suffering from some growing pains as a result. Housing is still dirt cheap in Chiang Mai compared to the PI and any other place in Thailand. If you are still undecided about which locale, then rent a place in Thailand for 6 ,months, then do the same in the PI. Do this until you come to terms with where you really want to be. Importing a pinay to Thailand is not a bad idea as IMHO pinays make much better GFs or wives than poo ying.

[jode]

The SDR apartments close to mactan airport have nice fully furnished studios w/ kitchenette = huge mirrored beds western sized furniture, flat screen cable tv and good internet. They have pool, restarant and good location walking distance to Marina Mall. Rates are less than most hotels for a bigger space and can be had for day, week or month with lower rates accordingly. 24 hour office and 3 times a week room cleaning and sheet and towel change. I have stayed there for weeks off and on and liked it, but rates just too high for long term stay for me. They have web site

Edited April 11, 2012 by jode

[scott h]

I would think long and hard before deciding to move to thailand for good. Lets face it, the nationality of the gal you settle with is going to determine where you end up. There is a lot to be said for "living" in a country where english the defacto language, the newspapers and TV stations are in english, roadsigns, legal documents, water and electric bills, are in english. Now I have never been to thailand, but I am going to hazard a guess that once your away from the tourist areas or major cities, english will not be spoken. If you move to thailand and find your future partner, you will be totally dependant on her for translation and just about every transaction. I would further hazard that the only people in thailand you could really have a conversation with is another english speaking expat. Think long, think hard before giving up on the Philippines.

[Curley]

The SDR apartments close to mactan airport have nice fully furnished studios w/ kitchenette = huge mirrored beds western sized furniture, flat screen cable tv and good internet. They have pool, restarant and good location walking distance to Marina Mall. Rates are less than most hotels for a bigger space and can be had for day, week or month with lower rates accordingly. 24 hour office and 3 times a week room cleaning and sheet and towel change. I have stayed there for weeks off and on and liked it, but rates just too high for long term stay for me. They have web site

Thanks for the info but they are not in Davao which is where i would like to start.

[Curley]

I would think long and hard before deciding to move to thailand for good. Lets face it, the nationality of the gal you settle with is going to determine where you end up. There is a lot to be said for "living" in a country where english the defacto language, the newspapers and TV stations are in english, roadsigns, legal documents, water and electric bills, are in english. Now I have never been to thailand, but I am going to hazard a guess that once your away from the tourist areas or major cities, english will not be spoken. If you move to thailand and find your future partner, you will be totally dependant on her for translation and just about every transaction. I would further hazard that the only people in thailand you could really have a conversation with is another english speaking expat. Think long, think hard before giving up on the Philippines.

Thanks, you're right about the language but I will be retired and would try to learn, I already speak Spanish and some French so I'm not completely unfamiliar with other languages. I have been to Thailand many times over the last few years and have tried several different parts of it. I will think long and hard.

[volstateguy]

I have never visited Thailand but I have been to the Philippines several times and I have done lots of research and comparisons between the Philippines and Thailand. For me, the Philippines is the best overall. English is widely spoken, tourist visas can be extended for much longer without leaving the country. Thailand does have the retirement visa but it requires you to deposit 800,000 baht in a Thai bank, that cannot be touched. The ladies in the Philippines will love you far better than a Thai lady....I once read that a Thai lady's priorities are in the following order, her children, her family, her dog, the water buffalo, the fleas on her dog....then you. The use of a dowry is much more common in Thailand. As I stated before I haven't been to Thailand personally, these are just things that I have read many times while deciding where I would like to retire. I still want to visit Thailand someday, but I imagine it will be on holiday from the Philippines where I have retired.

[i am bob]

yes, as Volstateguy mentioned - dowrys in Thailand are very common... And once again manyu will look at foreigners as an ATM for the family!