Hotel Recommendations Wanted

[Chas]

The flights are booked and I arrive in Cebu in March next year. I will spend a few days in Cebu to have a look around and hopefully visit the Danao Orphanage before moving on to Bacolod on Negros. I hope to photograph what few remnants still exist of the old narrow gauge sugar cane railways. I will then possibly visit one or more of Bohol, Dumaguete, Cagayan D'Oro or Davao.

I will check out hotel reviews on TripAdvisor as well as other web sites, but any personal recommendations would be much appreciated. My budget is up to 2000P per night, but I am happy to spend more on a particularly good hotel and economise elsewhere. On Bohol, apart from sightseeing, I would like to go snorkelling, I do not scuba dive.

If I hire a car and driver for a day, does anybody know what I should typically pay?

Many thanks
Chas

[red]

To rent a car with a driver here it cost 2k per day excluding the gas. There are alot nice hotel if you go to Cagayan de Oro, I can recommend VIP hotel because its in the heart of the city then you can go out at night on Fridays and Saturdays for night Cafe' at those days. It's fun.

[Chas]

To rent a car with a driver here it cost 2k per day excluding the gas. There are alot nice hotel if you go to Cagayan de Oro, I can recommend VIP hotel because its in the heart of the city then you can go out at night on Fridays and Saturdays for night Cafe' at those days. It's fun.

Thanks Red, this is very helpful and much appreciated.

Regards
Chas

[jadegil6]

I rented a car and driver in Cebu City in August of 2008 to go to Negros Oriental for 3 days. I paid 3000 pesos per day, excluding gas. The car was a new, 4-door, mid-size sedan, and was comfortable, but not designed for any rough road/rugged terrain adventures. I rented it through a friend, and not from a company. Many hotels there do have rentals available.

[red]

One thing also is you must learn to negotiate, alot here take advantage to foreigners, they would jack up the price. So investigate the normal prices, say"deal or no deal". Would be much better if you have a friend in the Philippines that will guide you around.

[chaychay644]

it would be also good chas if you have a friend from the places that you are about to visit so that they could help you with regards to the hotel prices, rates and accommodation

[Chas]

One thing also is you must learn to negotiate, alot here take advantage to foreigners, they would jack up the price. So investigate the normal prices, say"deal or no deal". Would be much better if you have a friend in the Philippines that will guide you around.

Thanks Red (and Chaychay), I do not know anybody in the Philippines so it will be like a lamb to the slaughter Though this does not deal with the overcharging, I assume in Cebu I can organise a tour guide via the local tourist office or hotel reception. In Bacolod I understand you have to go through the local tourist office (possibly in Silay City) to go on a tour of the Victorias Factory. I will enquire in Bacolod about the La Carlota factory.

Assuming I survive my trip I will report back to the Forum to give you all a laugh at the stupid mistakes I make. Seriously, I do appreciate your advice and will be careful, but I guess I will be taken advantage of at some point. I will just try and minimise the impact. ChayChay has managed to put me off Jeepneys with her blog article on 'snatchers', so I will stick to taxis.

Once again, many thanks for the advice, it is much appreciated. Keep it coming folks......

[red]

With regards to taxis...make sure the driver is using meter and it is on...there was a taxi driver told me that there was a foreigner riding on a taxi..he didnt agree with rate ..so he got out from the taxi and was gonna pull the signage on top of the taxi cab...the driver got scared and said sorry to the foreigner. Tough one.

[chaychay644]

One thing also is you must learn to negotiate, alot here take advantage to foreigners, they would jack up the price. So investigate the normal prices, say"deal or no deal". Would be much better if you have a friend in the Philippines that will guide you around.

Thanks Red (and Chaychay), I do not know anybody in the Philippines so it will be like a lamb to the slaughter Though this does not deal with the overcharging, I assume in Cebu I can organize a tour guide via the local tourist office or hotel reception.

.

I will advise you not to get a travel agency coz they double the prize of the original hotel accommodation..that's what had happened to my friend when he went to Manila

[jadegil6]

I would advise you to NOT get angry with any taxi drivers, or cause a scene because that could lead to undesired consequences. You can ask them if they have a meter. If they say no, then you can negotiate a price to go to a certain destination before you leave in the taxi. It is much easier if you have a local with you to assure that you will not get taken advantage of. You can find a "guide" or "companion" to travel around with you for a modest fee, to assure that you remain safe. But you should also remember that a taxi driver has to pay for all of his gas and repairs, so he does need to make a profit for his services. Tipping is appreciated, and is customary.