Cebu is the oldest city in the Philippines and the larger metro area is home to an estimated 900k people. As Cebu grows, so is the number of tourists, expats, and retirees, all living in this buzzing hub also known as the Queen City of the South.
But why Cebu? One reason is that the Philippines has a large English-speaking population. It shows the amount of call center companies that are operating in the Philippines. So communicating is mostly not a problem, making it easier for foreigners to adapt. Cebu’s size and location come with perks such as a seaport to visit the neighboring islands and a beautiful international airport that make it easy to visit other Asian countries.
In terms of internet access, Cebu offers Wifi consistently good enough to work online. For entertainment you have plenty of malls, cafes and bars to choose from. Food is also not a problem as there are restaurants abound in Metro Cebu, including vegetarian and vegan choices.
Aside from that Cebu is known for its beaches, diving spots, waterfalls, mountains, and the best-tasting Lechon. It has one of the grandest festival in the Philippines which is Sinulog.
Living in Cebu isn’t always easy—particularly if you’re not used to the way things are done. Check out our guides, tips, and explanations below!
Arriving in Cebu for the First Time
If you’re a tourist visiting Cebu for the first time. You’re probably wondering what the best way is to get from the airport to the city center or to your hotel. Or where you can leave your luggage. We got you covered!
Where to Find the Best Food?
Visit the growing number of vegetarian and vegan food places—our map helps you find them.
How to Get Around Town?
Getting around Cebu City can be an adventure itself. Some say it’s confusing. To know what are your options read our article on how to get around Cebu City.
If you want to be safe, we recommend Grab Taxi. The fastest (and maybe most dangerous) way though is Habal-Habal, the motorcycle taxis of Cebu.
What is …?
Balut—duck egg embryos. A much-loved and controversial local delicacy. Read all about it in our blog post on Balut.
What are the ATM Limits?
For the first-time tourists visiting Cebu, we all know you need cash to go around. So it’s good to know what is the cash limit for ATMs. Most ATMs enforce a limit of ₱10,000 ($191) per withdrawal using a foreign card and then slap a ₱250 ($4.80) fee on top. But do you know you can get up to ₱40,000 and save fees?
To know more about where you can get bigger amounts, check out our ATM Limits page.
How to Find a Place to Rent in Cebu?
Visiting Cebu and looking for a place to stay?
Cebu has every type of place you can think of – from world-class hotels and resorts to budget-friendly rentals. To know more check out our article to know your options on how to find a place to rent in Cebu.
How to Extend your Tourist Visa in Cebu?
Vacations over? Enjoying Cebu? Chances are you want to stay longer than planned. To do that you need to extend your visa a week before it expires. Our article extending your tourist visa in Cebu guides you about what to do and what to expect when extending your visa.
Online Shopping Payment and How Deliveries Work
Shopping keeps getting more convenient as e-commerce sites continue to add more payment methods for a hassle-free shopping experience. Speaking of which, what payment method works best for peso transactions? Check out our article about payment gateways for online shopping in the Philippines.
We escape traffic by shopping online, but our orders will most likely get stuck in transit anyway. So, let me say this upfront, you’ll need some patience when expecting a package.
Basically, there are four segments in your shipment’s journey:
- Pick-up (first mile)
- Transfer and Transit (e.g. from Manila hub to Cebu hub)
- Sorting (at the courier’s local hub)
- Last-Mile Delivery.
The first mile, transit, and delivery segments are susceptible to delays. Simply because they are subject to weather disturbance, traffic, and human error. To know more about how this work checks out our article online shopping and how deliveries work.