Singapore on a thread budget, NOT a shoestring (pun intended)

One of my recent travels was to Singapore, one of the world's most expensive cities. So, here's how I managed to go on a trip there with money just enough to get by,

1. Get cheap air tickets.
Singapore's changi isn't one of the worl'd busiest airport if it would cater to low cost airlines. Airlines around the world use changi as one of their major hubs for connecting to southeast Asia. There are frequent flights to any place around the world in Changi International. Plus, its been voted as the world's best airport multiple times due to its very warm hospitality when it comes to traveler from any walks of life.  In my situation, I  got a flight out of Cebu, PH to Singapore  for only about 1500PHP and thats the cheapest they could get. Getting Cheap seats would spare some change which you could spend experiencing the expensive citystate of Singapore.

2. Take the bus, then take your flight home from Malaysia. If you're really on a tight budget, consider getting your flight out of singapore elsewhere, like Kuala Lumpur for example. Flights out of Changi, can be hefty, even tripling the amount you paid for getting there. Moreso, not does it save you money on air tickets, it also gives you the opportunity to explore another city/country, getting you another stamp on you passport. (this serves well for Citizens of the ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] region). Malaysia, SG's nextdoor neighbor is just a bus ride away and the good thing about getting through the malaysian border, is that everything, becomes a lot more AFFORDABLE.

You may take the MRT in SG to Woodlands Checkpoint and take bus 170 to Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and from there you can take a bus to any point MY. I recommend you do not take a bus from SG direct to Kuala Lumpur, here's why:

If you take the direct bus from SG City Center to KL, it would definitely set you back around 50SGD. But, if you take the mrt and bus to Johor, you would have to spend about 3-4 SGD, then once you get to Johor, then you'll only have to pay 30MYR to KL that is about one-fifth the price if you take the direct bus.

3. Stay in Hostels NOT HOTELS.
HOTELs in SG are quite expensive. Alternatively, hostels in singa aren't shabby for large fraction of the cost when staying in hotels. An overnight stay in Marina Bay Sands, the hotel in SG with a canoe on top of it is about 400SGD that is trip's worth of money, and that also doesn't include breakfast, you're just paying for a place to sleep.

4. Get cheap eats at Hawker Centers.
Singapore's food scene is fixed in hawker centers. They are open air food courts, where you can sample the Singaporean palate and culture. althought some hawker centers are heavy on the pocket, pointing to those frequent by tourists, you can generally get a meal for 5-8 SGD and that is a filling meal if you ask me.

If you get the chance to sample hawker center cuisine, i recommend you try Laksa, Chicken rice, Satay, Hokkien Mee, Carrot Cake, Oyster Omelets, and Sambal Stingray.

5. Get around the City with the Tourist Pass Card of the MRT
Singapore, I should say is very inviting to tourists. They've packaged a service for tourists, especially those with short visits. This service allows you to ride the mrt and local buses unlimited times for approximately 6SGD per day. The tourist pass can be purchased for 20 SGD for 3days unlimited rides on the MRT, but take note that you have to dole out 10SGD as deposit for the card, which means you can get the 10 dollars back after your 3days.

Alternatively, you can opt for the EZ link card, which allows you to ride the MRT for cheaper fares compared to getting regular tickets.

Lastly, as a Filipino traveler, I've been privy to information regarding discounted tickets on attractions. There's this shop/travel agent in Lucky Plaza(shop #03-65) that sells tickets for popular singapore attractions with prices lesser than what they tell you at the booths. You may get tickets for the MBS skypark, Gardens by the Bay Domes and a river cruise for 55SGD but when you get it at the attraction booths would pay about 70SGD. You can also get a Universal Studios Singapore Pass for about 60SGD. Prices would be steals compared to getting them from attraction companies.

Although I only spent little, it didn't ruin my trip to have fun. This is it for now and I wish you an enjoyable travel.

#SINGAPORE #REDDOT

Exploring El Nido, in the world's most beautiful island

Palawan has been voted by Conde Nast readers as the world's number 1 island. On this note, this post would look into the nothern part of Palawan, El Nido.

This is a recall for our family trip last December 2014.

El Nido is a municipality in the norhern tip of Palawan island. It's about six hour by land transportation from the province's capital of Puerto Princesa.

How to get there:

There are frequent flight in and out of Manila and Cebu to Puerto Princesa, Palawan. Major carriers, Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines and AirAsia bring tourists to Palawan. For those able to jet set and would want less of a hassle, there are flights from Manila and Cebu direct to El Nido, although take note that these flights would set you back a hefty amount of money, last time I checked it was 7 thousand Pesos for a one-way trip(148USD) on AirSwift. But that price tag saves you 6 hours of precious time which would typically be on a van, which I think would be much uncomfortable for our tall westerner friends, since leg room on these transports are quite close to nil.

El Nido

So what makes El Nido, noteworthy? Hm, I think would be the BEAUTY.

Boracay, that beach on Posters inviting you to the Philippines.

Cheap seats on sales gets you going, well for me, it does. On march of 2015, Cebu Pacific, a local carrier, sold airline seats for as low as 100 PHP, excluding taxes, to any domestic destination in the Philippines. With the price, I couldn't resist. In my mind, I said, even if there would be a typhoon on the day i booked the flight it wouldn't matter. Hint: get a prepaid bank card if you don't have a credit card, it'll work well in purchasing those online cheap seats.

Destination: Boracay Island, Aklan, Philippines
Attraction: WHITE BEACH, famous to the world or at least to the Filipinos.

How to Get there:

There are two gateways to Boracay Island, (1) Caticlan and (2) Kalibo. Caticlan is the nearest airport gateway to the amazing white beach of Boracay. This is where you can just hail a trike from the airport to the jetty port and in less than an hour your in Boracay. One can opt to take a flight usually a turboprop plane from Manila or Cebu direct to Caticlan. A word of caution though, since tourist would want to get to their destination quick, the quickest way to Boracay is somewhat also with the most hefty price tag. Seats for flight in and out of Caticlan are not usually sold on sales, that's one of the reasons we opted for the Kalibo Route.

An hour and half drive from Caticlan is Kalibo. The municipality has an International Airport with flights from Korea, Hong Kong and as well as Manila and Cebu. The pro for this route is that it is almost always included on domestic seat sales. A con on the other hand, the route would make you take a bus or van ride that would cost an hour and a half of your time. but don't be dismayed, bus or van rides to and from Kalibo aren't bad at all. There are lots of service providers that offer superb transfer services to those who would want to make Boracay there destination.The transfers are seamless, from Kalibo Airport they'll bring you to your Hotel with all the fees included in the package. You can even book the transfers online. TIP: You can book seamless transfers with Cebu Pacific, they have partnered with Southwest tours, a service provider. The price for the transfer is 50 PHP less than when you buy transfers on board your Cebu Pac flight and is way cheaper than getting transfers directly from Southwest.

Fun Activities:

One of the popular activities that most tourist do in Boracay is go touring around the area by bancas and just hop from the main island to a few beaches and within the locality, a go-to island would be Crystal cove. In between islands the tour group would be lead to snorkling spots and take note, some of these spots have beautiful underwater scenery. The island hopping tours usually comes with lunch to refuel the adventurists in you. For a day's worth of island hopping, it would probable cost you about 800PHP (17USD)

Boracay is a tourist spot that been marketed to a lot of people, thereby giving in to modern developments that you don't really see in some other places. With this, some businesses have openly offered modern activities as well. There's a reverse bungee ride in the island and parasailing in Boracay is the cheapest you can get in the PH.  There's even a helmet diving experience that you can do. This would let you experience the beauty of the world under the sea without any SCUBA licenses and training, a sight you won't forget. The island lets you experience the sky and sea in one place. Parasailing would cost you 800PHP (17USD), while helmet diving would cost you about 500PHP (10USD)

Island Hopping (Crystal Cove)

Helmet Diving

Other activities would include Chopper tours of the island, for those who can shell out more than the usually tourist as well as segway trips on beach. There are even ATV trips to the island's highes point, Mt. Luho.

Boracay isn't called the Philippine's 24 hour island for nothing. Boracay boasts of nightlife fit for any party goers. Travellers with a wild side can let themselves out in this island.

Where to stay:

Accomodations in the island isn't really a problem. With the rise of tourist arrivals, both local and foreign travellers can have the comforts of a hotel room for the least expense. although there are world class hotel chains as well, like the Shangri la Boracay, this hotel would give you luxury experience in Boracay. To get competitive and affordable rates on hotels and accomodations, search online booking sites like, Agoda.com, Booking.com and the like.

Isn't that Cerulean water calling you?

Hello!

So, I thought of starting this Travel blog! I'll be posting my recent expeditions in the world of Travelling.

About the Title, Lakwatserong Dukha, translated to to Poor Wanderer in Filipino. I'd like to believe that this blog would try and encourage people to travel even on a tight budget, to see and experience new sights that, for me, can not always be paid with any amount of money.

At this point, I'd like you to consider the Philippines as your next tropical destination. It has a lot to offer and from time to time I'll be sharing them to you here.

This is it for my first post. Happy Travelling!

JB