[scotian]

(02-26-2013 10:43 PM)Vacancier Permanent Wrote:  

Awesome stuff Scotian!
Dumaguete I've been hearing and reading a lot of good stuff in that it can be a literal goldmine if/when one lives there. How far is the beach from the better part of town to stay at? And what would you feel to be a good budget to live on there if one were to live in D town for say 3 months? Nothing fancy, but a nice fully furnished apart with fast wifi, in a good bairo and near the action.

Cheers!

(02-26-2013 10:15 PM)scotian Wrote:  

(02-25-2013 06:42 AM)cool Wrote:  

I recommend going to Mati in Davao Oriental.

The views, the beaches...I felt like I was at the end of the earth. I didn't stay overnight, because I went with a few people who weren't beach people. I don't know anything about the nightlife in Mati City. Once the bus arrived at the station, we hired a couple a few motorbike drivers to take us out to Dahican beach.

The girls are darker out that way.

Thanks for the heads up man, I looked it up on Wikipedia and this looks like the perfect kind of place for me to check out. How long was the bus ride there from Davao?

VP, the better beaches are about 20-30 minutes outside of the downtown area. I think that you could get a nice serviced apartment here for under $500, so to break down what I would be spending in a week:

-rent: $125
-scooter: $60
-Meals (3 times a day at decent restaurant): $120
-Smokes (10 packs/week): $8
-Booze (8 beers/day M-F, 15/day weekends, plus 12 shots/cocktails): $120
-Random costs: night at movies, fishing, one day diving, entrance fees to nice resorts, massage, haircut, laundry. etc: $100

So that is about $533 per week which is $2132 per month, and you would be living VERY nicely in Dumaguete. Obviously, other peoples' costs will vary and I would say that a guy could easily get by on much less because I drink and smoke a lot and eat out all the time. By not going out and cooking at home, getting a cheaper place ($300/month or less) and taking the local transport, costs could be reduced big time, but this will give you a good idea of what to expect.