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Artwork for Philippines Travel Podcast with Miguel Santos
Society & Culture

Philippines Travel Podcast with Miguel Santos

Miguel Santos

The show treats the Philippines as somewhere to live in, not simply to fly over. Travelling there means moving between islands that number 7,641 according to the national mapping authority, through mountains and narrow coastal lowlands, and across a tropical marine climate shaped by two monsoons.

The host settles in one place and learns it before moving somewhere connected to it. The range includes Manila, Cebu City, Davao, and the less obvious city of Antipolo, along with the farmland concentrations of Luzon and the Visayan islands. He also spends time in Zamboanga and Cagayan de Oro, where the population pattern follows good farmland rather than the tourist map.

The show unfolds with the Philippine calendar: the northeast monsoon runs from November to April and the southwest monsoon from May to October, so the host returns to places he has already visited to see how daily life changes with the season. A place is not covered once and finished; it is revisited until knowing it properly becomes the point.

Miguel Santos lives in Philippines and stays for two years, moving between cities, coastlines and smaller towns on a route that follows the seasons. Not a week-long visit — Miguel is there in every kind of weather, working out where to eat on an ordinary Tuesday, which train to take, what a festival actually feels like from the pavement.

A new episode arrives every day. Each one is short and specific: one neighbourhood, one journey, one meal, one museum worth the detour — with the practical detail that matters. What it costs. When it closes. Whether the queue is worth it. What to do when it rains. Every episode carries a full transcript and chapter markers.

Part of Paris2Tokyo — one show for each of the world's hundred most-visited countries. Made for travelers, wherever you are going next.

#Philippines #PhilippinesTravel #SoutheastAsia #Manila #TravelPodcast #Travel #Paris2Tokyo

https://www.paris2tokyo.com/podcasts/philippines/

  • 6 episodes
  • Updated Yesterday

Episodes6

  • Yesterday · 9 min

    Monsoon Last Day, Manila to Mindoro Plans

    Miguel spends his final full day in Manila with a budget check, a visit to the National Museum of Natural History, and a monsoon-lit dinner at Harbor View Restaurant. He reflects on the city's rhythm, plans his move to Mindoro and Palawan, and feels the …

  • Wednesday · 11 min

    Monsoon Mail, Mangga, and the MaArte Plan

    Day five in Manila: Miguel collects mail, navigates a wet market, and plans the MaArte Fair. Plus, practical talk on ACR I-Card renewals, budget tips, and the cost of living in Poblacion.

  • Tuesday · 8 min

    Monsoon Monday: Coffee, Budgets, and Bayanihan

    Day four in Manila: Miguel navigates the city's monsoon rhythm, gets a caffeine fix at a local roastery, costs out the expat budget, and witnesses bayanihan in action during a flash flood. Plus, a plan for the MaArte Fair and the long road to Palawan.

  • Monday · 8 min

    Monsoon Art, Heartbreak, and Home in Manila

    Day three in Manila: I check out the Cinemalaya film fest, mourn a Caloocan fire, watch a wage hike get blocked, and find a flat in Poblacion that might just be home. Plus, a monsoon-soaked walk through Quiapo, a coffee at The Den, and a plan for Mindoro…

  • Sunday · 10 min

    Monsoon Paperwork and the Pulse of Manila

    Miguel navigates the Philippine bureaucracy, from ACR I-Card applications to bank accounts, and explores the city's wet-market economy and vibrant arts scene, all while the monsoon rains shape his new life in Manila.

  • Saturday · 9 min

    First Monsoon in Manila, Paperwork Days

    Miguel Santos lands in Manila and dives straight into the chaos: monsoon rain, SIM registration, bank queues, and the hunt for a flat. He gets lost on a jeepney, eats his weight in Binondo dumplings, and walks the walls of Intramuros, all while figuring …