Mark your calendars! Travel Madness Expo will be held at SMX Convention Center Halls 1 – 4 from July 8 until 10!

Entrance Fee: P50

Sponsors include: 

BPI

Smart Communications

Enchanted Kingdom

Hong Kong Tourism Board

Philippine Airlines

Sofitel

Enjoy an extra 10% off your hotel booking at Expedia.com.ph/mastercard with your MasterCard.

Qualifying bookings: This voucher discount applies only to Expedia Rate hotels for hotel only bookings made online at www.expedia.com.ph. It is not applicable to package (flight+hotel) bookings. This voucher can only be redeemed by MasterCard Cardholders.

Voucher value: 10% off the room rate for Expedia Rate hotel bookings.
Minimum spend for voucher use: None.
Minimum stay for voucher use: 1 Night.
Voucher redemption period: Now - 16 September 2015.
Travel period: Now - 31 March 2016.

HOW TO REDEEM:

GET COUPON CODE

Log on to www.expedia.com.ph/mastercard and key in the first 6 digits of your MasterCard number, full name, and email address. Click on the "Get coupon code" button.

FILL OUT THE DISCOUNT VOUCHER.

Log on to www.expedia.com.ph and select your preferred travel dates, destination, and 'Expedia Rate' of your hotel of choice.

On the payment information page, click on "Enter a coupon or promotion code" under the section "How would you like to pay?" and enter the coupon code. Click "Apply Voucher".

PAY WITH YOUR MASTERCARD.

The cardholder must settle payment with their MasterCard to get the 10% off hotel room costs.

Visit the Expedia Promo Page to view the full terms and conditions of the promo:

www.expedia.com.ph/mastercard

It's Summertime! Time to go to the beach and take a week off work!

Every adventure is always better when you get a freebie or you get a discount!
And with this promo from Agoda, you can get a free upgrade of the room you booked!

Booking Period: April 8 to 22, 2015
Stay Period: Until November 2015

Here's how:

First visit the website for the promo: http://www.agoda.com/phpromo

When you scroll down, you will see the list of hotels that have a Free Room Upgrade icon on them.

They have hotels from Cebu:

Boracay:

Even Tagaytay:

Now all you have to do is book any of the hotels in the list before April 30, and the stay period can be up to November and you can get a free upgrade of the room! Try it out! XD

Ever been to Hong Kong? 

If not, and you're planning to go, here's a beginner's guide to prep for your first trip to HK. 
These are all from my preparations for my first trip to HK. :D

Hong Kong Skyline. This was after we watched the Symphony of Lights

First, Book your Flight

Always check Cebupacificair.com or AirAsia.com for cheap promo flights. They usually have promos during holidays. 

From my experience:
We booked a promo flight for two to HK for 6400 Php roundtrip including the Check in baggage fee! That's really cheap! The only down side of getting promo flights is that it's for a much later date. We booked the flight on Sep 2013, and the flight is on Nov 2014. Haha

Second, Prepare your Passport

Make sure you have a valid passport before even thinking about leaving for HK. 
The minimum validity of the passport should be 6 months before you leave the country. 
Just to be sure, apply for a passport (or renew your old one) at least 1 month before your trip.
We don't need to prepare a Visa because Philippines has Visa-Free Entry to HK. Awesome right?

From my experience:
I already had a valid passport before our trip to HK and since it's valid for 5 years I didn't need to do anything.

Third, Book a Hotel

It's always better to book your hotel before  going to another country. You might even get a cheaper rate if you book early. The sites I usually check are Agoda.com or Airbnb.com. Try to look for a hotel as soon as you book your flight. 
Another tip is to read as many of the hotel reviews as possible. The experience of other guests at that hotel could be the key to finding the cheapest and coziest hotel. Check Tripadvisor.com for reviews of the hotel you're planning to book. 

From my experience:
We booked a small apartment in Mong kok for 5 nights at 10000 Php and it was pretty spacious for 2 people. I was afraid of getting a room with absolutely no space whatsoever, where the bathroom is one step away from the bed and the room is so small you can't even fit your luggage inside(which is the norm I'm afraid in Hong Kong for cheap rooms). But at 2000 Php a night in Airbnb we got a pretty decent place that's 5 minutes away from the MTR station and Ladies Market is right downstairs.

You can register at Airbnb using my link and you get 25 Dollars or 1122 Php discount on your first booking!

www.airbnb.com/c/apagulayan1?s=8
The base is 25 US Dollars, so the Peso rate will change depending on forex for the day.

Fourth, Prepare an Itinerary

Okay so you have your flight, your hotel, and your passport ready. Now you have to plan what you're gonna do in HK! Always make an itinerary based on what you want to do and where you wanna go, not what everybody says you should do. Your trip is successful if you enjoyed it, and you can only enjoy something if you truly want it. But once you get there, you don't have to stick to your itinerary. Go where your gut tells you to go. It's a vacation after all. It's not a requirement to go to every single tourist spot in HK. :D

From my experience:
I was researching for things to do and I mostly researched for promos once I get there. haha. I just took down the list of "WHERE TO GO" like Tsim Sha Tsui, or Ladies Market. But not what we're gonna eat there. I thought we'll just choose based on what's available and boy were there a LOT of choices.
I also thought of going to Tim Ho Wan right in Hong kong. But based on a blog post that I saw before we left for HK, there's always a line in that place. So we didn't bother to go. I'll just waste time there.

Fifth, Check weather

Before packing your clothes for the trip, it's best to check the weather forecast for the area you'll be visiting. And also try to consider what you'll be doing when packing clothes. Will you be hiking? Are you going to a fancy restaurant? Is it cold there? Should I bring a sweater?

From my experience:
I asked coworkers who went to HK on November to get a feel of the weather there. And I was told it was cold. It's also cold based on Accuweather. But we still brought shorts. Coz it's just like Baguio. I mean, it's not that cold in Baguio right? But when we got there, boy oh boy, did we make a mistake. We were shivering right after stepping off the plane. We bought nice jackets at Ladies Market tho. XD So we look cool and feel warm in the cold weather.

Sixth, Prepare your Money

Budgeting for the basic stuff should be easy. Set aside enough money for the hotel you booked, the flight you booked, and the activities that you will DEFINITELY be doing once you get to HK. Once you have that set aside, the rest of your money can go to extra stuff you want to buy and random delicious looking food being sold on the streets. And make sure to exchange some of your money either here in Manila or at the Airport before heading out.
Read my other blog post about exchanging money for more tips:Exchanging Money

From my experience:
We spent a little over 16,000 php on airfare and hotel expenses. Then we set aside 3000 HKD for the payables for Macau, Ngong Ping 360, Ocean Park, etc. After setting that aside, the rest of our money went to whatever the hell we want! :D

Once you have all of the above set, you're good to go. If you have anything else that you prep before you go to HK or any other foreign country please comment below. :D

If you are travelling to another country and will need to exchange your Philippine Pesos to another currency, here are a few tips that I learned from my previous trips and would love to share with you. (I've only traveled to South Korea, Hong Kong, and Macau so far tho.)

This is more of a list of options on how to exchange money than tips, but what the heck. :D

Tip # 1

Never exchange all of your money at airports.

Airports have the worst exchange rates and are always lower than local money changers in that country.
Make sure to exchange just a small amount of your cash and then exchange the rest of your money once you find a local money changer.

From my experience:
Before our flight to Korea, we exchanged our money to Korean won while in NAIA Terminal 3.
We already thought that the rate was pretty good. It was at 1 Peso = 20 Won
or 10,000 Pesos = 200,000 Won
When we got to Korea, the local money changer's rate was so much better.
It was at 1 Peso = 24 Won. Later on we even found a better one, at 1 Peso = 24.5 Won.
If we exchanged 10000 Pesos at the last money changer we could have earned 245,000 won instead of just 200,000.

For HK and Korea, they do accept Pesos in exchange to their currency, you just get a better rate when you exchange US Dollars.
But IMO, you lose money if you'll have to exchange your Pesos to US Dollars, so just go with exchanging directly from Pesos to the other currency you need.

Tip # 2

Withdraw foreign money from an ATM

You can also withdraw money from your Debit card( ATM Card) right at a foreign ATM.
As long as it also has a Cirrus or Expressnet logo. (I'm referring to BPI atm cards) You have to check if your ATM card has the same logos as the ATM you'll be using in another country. There will be a withdrawal fee of course but it's the more convenient option than having to go to a Money Changer.

From experience:
Well it's not really from my experience. It's more from a friend's experience in withdrawing HKD.
You have to call BPI first to enable the option to withdraw at an ATM in a foreign country.
After that, you will be able to withdraw money in the currency of the country you're in. But you have to take note that there's a withdrawal fee of 2% of the withdrawn amount or 3.5 dollars whichever is higher.

Tip # 3

Buy foreign money from friends or family members

Let's say a friend of yours just went to Hong Kong and has extra HKD left from their tour. You can also exchange your pesos for their HKD. That way you don't have to wave your hands around while trying to talk to a foreign money changer who knows very limited English.

Tip # 4

Exchange your money while in the Philippines

You can also be super prepared to the nth power by exchanging your money while in Manila. You can buy foreign money at local banks, SM forex counters, local money changers, and Czarina. Most of them have the currency you'll need. But if you'll be buying a large amount, you may want to call them up first before showing up to pay for the foreign currency. Just sayin. Coz they may not have enough of the currency you need when you drop by.

Tip # 5

To buy foreign currency is to pay the larger amount

When you look at the money exchange tables, you'll see two columns.
One for Buy and one for Sell. This really got me confused. What the heck is the difference of the Buy and Sell rate?
The words confused me because I'm buying foreign currency, so do I look at Buy column?
Or do they sell the foreign currency, so I have to look at the Sell Column?
Correct Answer. It's actually the latter. Sell Column.

For example:
The exchange rate for HKD on the forex board is like this:
Buy = 5.55
Sell = 6.25

Interpretation:
I had to give them 6.25 Pesos for every HKD they will sell me.
For me to get 1000 HKD, I had to give the money changer 6250 Pesos.

Gets?

Tip # 6

Convenience is the best policy

Go with whatever is most convenient for you. Exchange at the airport, withdraw from an atm, or exchange at a local bank. Don't waste your time looking for a better money changer in the country you'll visit. You're there to see the sights, taste the food and experience the culture, not look for a better exchange rate!

So there you have it, some tips when exchanging to foreign money. Hope it helps you out on your next trip. :)

Some hotels can get pretty expensive when travel but with Airbnb you can choose from affordable local houses and apartments that you can rent for a day up to a month!

Sign up thru the link below and get over 1100 Php or $25 off your first booking!
The base is 25 US Dollars, so the Peso rate will change depending on forex for the day.

www.airbnb.com/c/apagulayan1?s=8

If you sign up on the app, you can enter the coupon code apagulayan1 to get the free credit.
You have to book a minimum fee of P3500 for the discount to apply.

Hey, want free 200 credits? Here you go.
You're welcome!

https://get.uber.com/invite/uberlibre200

In a recent update of the Uber app. You can now check for the fare quote easily without having to click on the Request for Pickup button.

All you have to do now is select the car icon you will ride with. Either Black Car or UberX then you will see the screen showing a field where you can enter the destination

After selecting or searching for the proper destination, the fare quote will show the approximate charge for your ride.

Another important thing to note in the latest update is that the location for the uberX and Black Car buttons have been switched.
The UberX button used to be on the left, and the Black Car button used to be on the right.
Now they switched it so the the Black Car is on the left and Uber X is on the right.

Before the update:

After the update:

It almost got me! Luckily, I always look again before selecting request for uberX
Just be careful which option you select and you'll be fine.

If you haven't tried Uber yet, get free 200 pesos on your first ride with my code:
UBERLIBRE200

Uber On! And Happy Halloween!

+Uber  +Uber Manila

The old design of the Uber invite page used to be a boring all black page with where you can enter your info and register for the app.

But it looks so much cooler now!!!

See it for yourself! And get 200 pesos free credits when you register!

https://get.uber.com/invite/uberlibre200

or you can register in the app and enter this code:
UBERLIBRE200

Here are some tips on using the Uber app to get around the city. This is mostly from my experience and I make sure to do them every time I request for an Uber car to ensure efficiency and to save time.

Tip No. 1

Set the pin as accurately as you can on the map of the app.

Don't just rely on the GPS of the application to set your pickup location.

Make sure that you align it as close to your actual location as possible.

Try to zoom in on the map as much as you can so that the name of the building is already visible. If it doesn't show the name of the building in Uber, check your Google Maps app for the right area. It should look exactly the same on Uber, sans the name of the area.

Tip No. 2

Don't ride during Surge periods!

Surge prices are crazy. They range from x1.25 of the regular fare to x3.

Cray cray! So if you can still wait, let the surge price end. Just check the app every 10 minutes or so until the surge ends.

Tip No. 3

Contact the driver immediately after requesting pickup

One sure way of wasting time is just letting the driver figure out where you are exactly. and figuring out how to get there. Try to send him a message with your exact location, any landmarks nearby and anything he has to know in your area. 

In my case when I request for an Uber car in UP Ayala Technohub aka UPA, I always tell the driver to stay on the right lane of the high way. There is this low barricade that starts before he gets to UPA and keeps going until welcome rotonda. Which is already past UPA. If the driver doesn't stay on the right side of the barricade he won't be able to turn right into the UPA entrance. Two drivers ended up going around welcome rotonda and taking a U turn under Tandang Sora all over again, just because they didn't stay in the right side of the road. From then on, I make sure to send them a text message immediately so they'll know.

Tip No. 4

If sharing a ride, don't use the split fare option in the app.

If you ride with Uber, I don't immediately think that you are the frugal type. But Uber is used mostly for convenience. Specially when there are no available taxis and there is no other way to get from point A to B. But hear me out. The split fare option in the app charges an additional 10 pesos to both your card and your friend's card and whoever else you split the fare with. So to lessen the charges going around. Just split the fare between each other manually. If I use my uber app, and it charges on my card. I'll expect my friend to pay his/her share after. And if we use my friend's phone, I'll pay him/her for my share in cash. 

You each save 10 pesos!

Tip No. 5

Get the driver's contact number

The company says you can get a "Private Driver" right? So why not get the driver's contact number? I do this when I need to get the car that I rode in last time. And the driver is the same guy who will be driving that car at a later date. So I always save the driver's number for future use. 

So that's it. Those are my tips on using Uber here in Manila.

If I have more tips for you, I'll make another blog post for it!

Use this code to get free 200 pesos in credits:
UBERLIBRE200

Or you can register here:
https://get.uber.com/invite/uberlibre200

Hey there!

This is an overall review of my experience riding with Uber for the past few months.

History

First time I heard of Uber was back in May 2014, because of an article that popped up in my News Feed about Black Taxis in London having a protest against Uber.

So I went ahead and read more about this app that's causing so much trouble in another country. I then found out that it's just a car service that get payment thru credit cards.

I thought to myself,"I have a credit card! Why not?" So I signed up. And I just used a random free code posted by someone who left a review on the app download page.

And that was when it all started. 

The first time I rode was just for a short distance because the rate of Uber at that time was still pretty pricey.

It was at 120 for the base fare. So it cost me 129 credits out of the free 300.

It was a quick ride. The driver was very nice. The car was new and the idea of the app really appealed to me.

I then signed up my sister's phone and we got 600 credits total. 300 for her and 300 for me since I used my share code. 

And from then on, we kept using Uber. Every weekend.

Drivers

The uber drivers are mostly family driver or previous taxi drivers and most of them know their way around the city. Some don't. So you have to direct them turn by turn.

I prefer the tenured drivers of course, always give them 5 stars in feedback.

Twice I rode with stupid drivers who have no idea where we are going. They went all around the city hiking up the uber fare up to 200+
But after a Fare Review I got the right fare which should be 150 and got my money back. ^_^

Cars

The first cars we got were just the regular sedans, nothing too fancy.
But you can see that the cars are new and even have plastic on some parts of it. 

The nicest cars I got to ride were probably the Red Mini Cooper and the Nissan Teana. Didn't get to take a photo of the Teana though. We were too preoccupied with the moon roof feature. hahaha

Me and My sister next to the Uber Red Mini Cooper

Here's a photo of a Nissan Teana's roof in case you're wondering:

Nissan Teana Image from the Nissan website

Fare

The regular fare of Uber is generally affordable for someone who usually rides a taxi.
Taxi rates are now at 45 pesos for flag down. Just not sure about their rate per km and minute. 

But for UberX it's cheaper or just the same rate. But you're riding a car! ^_^

This is the rate of Uber X:

This is the rate of Uber Black

The only part that I hate with uber is the Surge Pricing, where they have an increase in the fare when there is high demand for cars. Usually during rush hour.

Payment
Some people have apprehensions entering their credit card number in anything a website or an app. And I don't blame them. There are a lot of malicious apps and websites out there. But Uber is not a malicious app. It's totally legit. I only get charged when I don't have free credits. And it always has a receipt after I ride an uber car. You can also check your trips on the rider page of uber.com

https://riders.uber.com/trips

Here's a photo of a trip summary:

The trip summary has everything you need to know about your trip. The time and date of the trip, where you were picked up, where you got dropped off, amount per minute and amount per kilometer. Car type, driver, trip duration, total distance. It also shows here that I didn't get charged coz I only used my free credit. ^_^


Overall: Uber is Awesome
I've told almost everyone at work about it. 
I posted about it on Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.
Also posted on Couchsurfing. Most of my co workers now use Uber regularly because of me. ^_^

I want everyone in Manila to know and try out Uber.
If you haven't tried Uber yet, please don't waste any more of your time and try it out now!

Use this code to get free 200 pesos in credits:
UBERLIBRE200

Or you can register here:
https://get.uber.com/invite/uberlibre200

You can ride just a short distance, and keep using the free credits while it lasts. 

Uber on!

Hey there! 

Image from 99designs.com

I just discovered Uber and it has changed the way I think about getting around the city. Using the iPhone/Android app,  or m.uber.com, you can request a swanky car and professional private driver to pick you up and take you anywhere you want to go. 

The drivers arrive in just minutes, you can watch them approach on the map within the app, and payment is automatically charged to a credit card you add on the app. No need to pay booking fees or tip the driver!

The best part? If you sign up using my invite link below, Uber will credit your account for ₱200 off your first ride:  https://www.uber.com/invite/uberlibre200 

You can also download and sign up from the Uber iPhone or Android app, and just enter this invite code on the sign up screen: 

UBERLIBRE200