For most people their initial port of entry is Manila, they then generally move out to the provincial areas for their holiday. As a scuba diver, the Philippines is my favourite diving destination and I frequently travel to this interesting country. There are plenty of hard-working and honest Filipinos whom I respect, but you need to be aware as there are so many traps for unsuspecting and trusting tourists.
Taxi drivers - I have frequent arguments with taxi drivers refusing to turn the meter on instead quoting an outrageous price. As soon as they see I'm white they see the opportunity to try to gouge me, I don't mind an argument and like them, I'm happy to make a scene.
The familiar face - in the morning, mostly Sundays when no one is around you get approached by a male (in my experience) who claims to work at the hotel you are staying. Wouldn't you know it, he has a family issue that requires fast cash and since he works at the hotel you are staying he will get it back to you.
While I should just walk off, sometimes I like to engage these guys in a little conversation and play along naming the hotel and getting them to agree, naturally you are staying at a different hotel but I just like to see the look on their faces when you expose them.
Porters - in a country with no social security system, it is pretty much every man for himself. There are plenty of poorly educated under-employed working age males touting for work and a porter is as good a job as any as there is a demand for their services.
I don't begrudge these guys trying to scrape out a living in difficult circumstances but when you pull into a bus station, ferry terminal or airport. These guys descend on you grabbing at your belongings with no intention of giving them back without a fee then I become a little less sympathetic to their plight. I might not be young anymore but I am still capable of carrying my own bags.
Taxi and bus touts - arriving at airports and ports, the touts try to direct you to non-metered taxi stands that gouge you, there are fixed price taxi stands at the airports and these touts will operate along side them to try to feed you into cramming taxi drivers.
Question everything, even at the fixed charge stands they try to overcharge you, always check the fare printed on the board and argue everything. This can also crossover into bus touts and I have been caught out by one of these guys posing as a conductor on the bus.
The conductor only ever asks for your destination once the bus is on route working his way from the front of the bus to the back and issuing a ticket. He then moves to the front again working his way back collecting fares based on the ticket he issued you.
Restaurant bill overcharging - this could happen by accident with a clerical error. However, experience tells me that the frequency that this happens at Manila restaurants is that either the whole city is financially illiterate or they are pulling a swifty. Check every charge, question everything and then demand a large discount or free meal in the future when you catch them out.
Card skimming - ATMs are the major point of contact for card skimmers with card readers attached to the card reader skimming details when the card is inserted into the machine. Small cameras are fixed to read your password when you enter your details so always check the card reader before inserting you card and always cover your hand when you enter your code.
Bar rip-offs - most bars allow you to run a tab so things can get away from you really quickly. This is especially true for people coming from areas that don't run tabs. Always check the price of drinks before you order and enquire if you are beginning with a discount for the first drink. Even changing bars within the confines of a large hotel can come with nasty consequences as I found out the hard and expensive way.
Spiked drinks - this happens on a regular basis more often than one would think. This happens especially in the tourist district of Intramuros where a friendly woman approaches usually a single female, quickly strikes up a friendship and invites the person out to lunch where they are joined by friends including the alleged husband.
Drinks are spiked and the female is put in a taxi and driven around for a while before taken to an ATM and her account is emptied. As they are unconscious, they are vulnerable to sexual assault with a victim recounting to me where she began to regain consciousness with the alleged husband kissing her before passing out again. The police aren't interested even though they know the identities of the perpetrators and they operate unhindered.
Fake goods - I see a lot of name brand designer stores and boutiques in Manila, the affluent clientele don't seem to be as price conscious as other destinations and I have no issues with authentic goods here. Manila is pretty much built on enormous shopping malls so no concerns here but buyer beware in the smaller shabby malls targeting a totally different consumer group.
Kidnapping - whilst most of the kidnapping occurs on the southern island of Mindanao, these crime gangs sometimes move into an area, grad someone and then sneak out immediately. When you see a local get into a vehicle their first action is to lock all the doors - a good habit to emulate.
Taxi drivers have been known to swipe people so I have seen locals, especially females take a shot of their licence displayed in the vehicle and send to a friend. This happens in the open and acts as a deterrent to seedy cab drivers.
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