TotallyOz Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 I am considering a trip to Manila. I have never spent time there but have wanted to visit for many years. Any suggestions on the gay scene? Also, has anyone stayed at the Intercontinental there? It looks reasonable prices for the dates I am looking at. http://www.ichotelsgroup.com/intercontinental/en/gb/locations/overview/manila If I go there for 5 days, should I spend the entire time in Manila or go to other areas? Quote
Guest gorcum Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 Hi Michael, I visited Manilaa few years ago and it is a nice city to visit. The gay scene is nothing like Thailand, much smaller but in malate is a small gay scene with some bars. There are lots of willing Filipino boys availeble. Manila is OK for a few days but the best of the philipines is the nature and beaches, puerta Galero is gay friendly. Some hotels do not alow overnight guest. best to buy a lonely planet guide and visit this website. http://www.utopia-asia.com/tipsphil.htm Hope you have a great visit. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 Shamelessmack has a number of interesting articles about Manila and gay places - http://shamelessmack.wordpress.com/category/1-cities/gay-manila/ Quote
KhorTose Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 I am considering a trip to Manila. I have never spent time there but have wanted to visit for many years. Any suggestions on the gay scene? Also, has anyone stayed at the Intercontinental there? It looks reasonable prices for the dates I am looking at. http://www.ichotelsg...overview/manila If I go there for 5 days, should I spend the entire time in Manila or go to other areas? I have not been to Manila in years. I spent two month in the PI. I stayed in Cebu, Manila and Baguio. Loved Baguio the most, but grew very tired of all the schemes from all of the boys I met.This is a very Catholic country and the messages that gays get from the church are bad and it does affect them in the worst ways. To answer your question, The easiest place to find gays is in Manila as there is a well defined area to look in. That is Makati or Macati. The intercontinental is in the area, but not close, and I do not know if it is gay friendly. This is important as many hotels frown on joiners. I stayed at the Pan Pacific which is very close to the gay area and very gay friendly, and has been rated one of the best hotels in Manila. Step outside your door and one block away you can meet boys who want a date. Two blocks and you are in the heart of the gay area with its gay bars and discos. Most gay go-go type bars are for women and not really for men. Yes, I would stay all five days in Manila, but if you get bored there is a beach resort to the South call Puerto Galera that is very popular with local gays. Unlike Boracay---another beach resort--this is only a two hour drive from Manila and a short ferry ride. Good luck and be very careful. Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 The Philippines is one country in the region which I now prefer not to visit. In my early days in Hong Kong, I used to visit regularly for relaxing week-ends, as the gay scene was quite extensive with lots of young men around. Anyone remember Coco Bananas and 690 Retiro Strip? You could not walk through the shopping mall Harrison Plaza without dozens of eyes gazing longingly at you! I did stay a couple of times at the Intercontinental, but mostly at the Philippine Plaza which had a much more leisurely Hawaiian feel about it and a great cruisy pool. No problem then with joiners in either hotel. But with martial law in place, everyone had to go through metal detectors and have bags searched. Some of the boys found this too much and would not come inside. One place to visit for gays then was Pagsanjan Falls outside Manila. It's a beautiful spot with cascading waterfalls in a dense jungle setting. It was also a centre for a host of commercial boys, but I believe that has completely changed now. It's been about 20 years since my last visit. The last time, I went to a host bar called, I believe, Spartacus and took a guy off. When he was showering, a dreadful smell descended on the hotel room. I traced it to his sneakers which he had probably worn for years and never once cleaned. That smell was foul. I put the bedcover over them, but it virtually killed what followed for me. I found the grinding poverty increasingly difficult to take. It was just everywhere. Even though Marcos and his cronies had built walls around some of the worst Manila slums, you could still see them and they make me almost physically sick. I hope things have now improved. Quote
kokopelli Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 A good friend recently visited Manila and his secret to success was GayRomeo. He did a lot of research on line on GB and did very well. His finest experience was with a handsome, gay, medical student who, totally sexually suppressed and in the closet, could not get enough of sex and no money involved. Oh, my friend is on the "portly" size so that is not a problem. Quote
lexusgs Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 Hi Mike, I was in Manila 3 months ago. The advice given here is sensible in terms of hotel. Pan Pacific is close to the scene although the scene in fact is quite small. They have a huge shopping mall close by also called Mall of Asia(very cruisy!)There are some go go bars with hot guys but you will be fighting with women for an off. I have made many Phillipino friends while working in Dubai(Dubai has around 250,000 Ph guys working and sending money home)They always recommended the net for hook ups. Manjam is just as popular as GR. The guys there aint shy once you hook unlike Thailand. I would also recommend a 2/3 visit to the island of Boracay. Great place to relax, there's a stunning Shangri-La hotel located there which would be right up your street I found an article that best describes the bar scene here. http://www.fridae.com/newsfeatures/2009/08/05/8741.manilas-macho-dancing-bars Quote
