Similarities and differences between Thailand and Philippines
In late 2011 I went to Thailand three times during my SE Asia visit and spent altogether around 5 weeks there. I also spent 3 weeks in the Philippines and just because of the 3-week tourist visa at that time.
One would think that both being Asian countries, they should be very similar, right? But if you have been traveling for a long time, then you know it is not true. Our expectations about destinations are usually wrong – or better, or worse than the reality itself.
I found both many similarities and differences between Thailand and Philippines.
Similarities between Thailand and Philippines
Beaches – Both Thailand and the Philippines can be proud of their beaches. You know, all those beautiful secluded beaches with white sand, palm trees and transparent sea can be found in both countries. Yes, welcome to paradise! Even famous party Boracay island can be still proud of its stunning beaches, such as the less visited Puka beach 🙂
Puka beach on Boracay, Philippines
Islands – Both countries consist of many islands (Philippines of thousands more than Thailand). There is a bunch of islands that very few people know about, the smaller the islands, the better to visit (at least I do prefer quiet empty beach.)
Small grocery stalls and street vendors – Very common in both countries which makes it very easy to munch at the street.
Rice – Trust me, after visiting these 2 countries I just could not eat rice again any more when I came back home to Slovakia! They even eat loads of rice for breakfast! What? Where is my fresh fruit?! But to be honest, I did enjoy visiting Batad rice terraces in the Philippines, such an incredible place! However, since my first SE Asia trip I don’t like eating rice any more.
Fruit – Easy to get tropical fruit and fresh coconuts almost anywhere. That’s all I need to be happy!
Weather – As you can imagine, weather is very alike. Hot and sunny, or monsoon months.
Religious life – people of both countries really live a religious life a lot even though the religion itself is very different.
Sea – many Thai and Filipinos cannot swim. I never understood this thing as mostly people from countries with no sea can swim and those that have coasts cannot. But those locals who can, in Thailand and Philippines, will jump into the sea not only in the bath suit, but in T-shirts or even jeans, especially women. It is more than obvious who is who, I mean if you want to distinguish foreign female tourists (all in bikini) from those local ones. I understand, different culture and priorities.
Alcohol – it seems that in these 2 countries people are just not big alcohol fans. Personally, I almost saw very few Filipinos (apart from that crazy night when we ended up at the swimming pool at 3.30 am) and also just a couple of Thai persons drinking alcohol, not even when we went out at night. There are definitely less people drinking alcohol in these 2 countries than somewhere in Europe, for example (at least when I compare it to Eastern Slovakia where I was born.)
Differences
Prices – I was really surprised but life in the Philippines is not that cheap as you would expect. Some things were a lot more expensive than in Thailand, such as transportation. You have to pay airport and terminal fees separately in the Philippines every time you travel and they were not included in the ticket price when I was there in 2011. Annoying!
Transport – I think using the public transportation in Thailand was way easier than in the Philippines. The buses and trains are not that overcrowded in Thailand… but in the Philippines? OMG! They put 20 people in a small van designed for 10 people together with all those hundreds of bags and backpacks. Tall people like me really suffer!
Long distance trips – If you are going to touristy places, in Thailand there are bus trips, or bus and boat trips organized that will take you there (such as a trip to Koh Phangan or Koh Lanta). To buy the second one directly tends to be cheaper than to buy a bus ticket only and then the boat/ferry ticket separately. It really amazed me how well organized all those trips were. At each transfer point there was someone waiting for us to tell us where to go. But in the Philippines I haven’t really noticed such a thing. I don’t think it was because I was traveling there with my local friends, but because those organized bus/boat trips just don’t really existed there.
Spicy food– Most of Thai food is spicy, but not the Filipino cuisine. I am not a huge fan of spicy food, so I preferred the food in the Philippines.
Fish – In the Philippines, fish is extremely common to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Fish soup, grilled fish and many other ways of preparing fish kept me alive when there. I even tried catfish as that was before I became vegan (they call it hito) for the first time there and it was really delicious! (Now I am vegan so I wouldn’t eat any fish any more).
catfish in Philippines
Junk food – In the Philippines they eat a lot of junk food. They even have their local kind of McDonald’s junk food restaurant called Jollibee and believe me, it can be found everywhere! Thai people seem to be healthier and I didn’t really notice many of them eating fast food.
Language – Obviously, Thai and Filipino languages have nothing to do with each other, but now I mean English language. In the Philippines, English is widely spoken and for them it is kind of a second language while in Thailand I found just poor English and only in touristy places (more on islands than in Bangkok, for example.)
People – I have to say that I LOVE all the Filipinos. They are super helpful, nice, smiling all the time, hardly ever in bad mood (apart from some bus drivers). The saying goes that Thailand is the land of smiles but comparing to Filipinos, I did not find that many nice people in there. Just to make an example, I have a lot of Filipino friends just after 3 weeks there, but not even one real Thai friend after visiting Thailand more than 5 times. Could be also because of the language barrier, I guess.
Smoking – for non-smokers like me, Philippines and Thailand is a true paradise! Very few locals smoke there (at least comparing to for example Italy, Spain or some other countries where you see so many smokers).
Massage – Thailand is one of the best countries in the world to get pampered with a massage. You can choose from many different massages and they can be very cheap. I had one almost every day. Unfortunately, in the Philippines it is not so common.
a Thai foot massage in Bangkok
Sex industry – sex change surgery is so popular in Thailand that you have to be careful when you meet a perfect sexy Thai woman unless you don’t care she was a he before. (Disgusting-to-me) ping pong shows in Bangkok and prostitutes in Pattaya are just one of the hundreds things many Thai women do for living (obviously some of them are tricked to that). And that famous thing of Thai girls making their living by ‘’spending time’’ with old foreigners is really present in everyday life of tourists visiting Thailand; you will see that happening everywhere around you. This is way less common in the Philippines and during 3 weeks there I did not see much of it, even though I heard young Filipinas + old foreigners issue does exist there, too. And I only saw one ladyboy in the Philippines and it was during a show anyway (personally I don’t mind this).
The opinion and thoughts in this article are based on my personal experience, observing and speaking to the locals and travelers who visited Thailand and Philippines.
Check out more posts of this kind: Similarities and differences between Mexico and Thailand and also Similarities and differences between Chile and Argentina.
Have you found more similarities and differences between Thailand and Philippines?
Zaire
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There are many people who practice filipino massage. It is just not that easy to spot compared to those who practice Thai massage in Thailand. Filipino massage is more common and much practiced on households than in resorts and spas. Anyways, thanks for this amazing post!
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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That might be true with filipino massages 🙂
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Tristan
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thanks for the answer, Alex 🙂
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mehdi
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I love your article thank you for the share. I never been to the Philippines but I have travelled to Thailand several times. There is one point where I don’t agree with you is when you say that Thai people don’t drink. Well if you are in the southern province in island and cities like Ko lanta or Saturday or Hat Yai than I can understand since they are mainly muslims. But take a look at phuket and old these young Thai girls with foreigners what do they do? Bangkok Pattaya hua hin in front of the stalls karaoke taxi car and motorbike drivers drinking alcohol is like a ritual to them Maybe you didn’t pay attention. Otherwise I agree with most of the points you mentioned here above ?
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Hm you might be right, but I avoided Pattaya and surroundings completely so don’t know what’s happening there.
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micah
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customs similarities of thai and fil.
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chetah
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Funny when you said u don’t have thai friends in Thailand. Of course, we dont speak English and we are too shy to speak to people. My western friends encountered the same cuz they told me that they wanted to know local ppl in Thailand but they got no chance to meet them since they only stayed in Hostel(which is designed for tourists) and dont start talking with Thai ppl(thai ppl are generally shy but we are super friendly once you get to know us)
In The Philippines there are not many western tourists like in Thailand. Ppl are paying more attention with white than asian ppl(or even the same asian sometimes). Plus they widely speak English in the Philippines. Due to this language barrier ,this is why you find a lot of friends there. ^_^
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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You are right, I know that the language barrier causes most of it. Now I do have some Thai friends after my last visit to Thailand, but they do speak some English.
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Ben
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In regards to drinking? Where exactly have you been staying in both countries?? I’ve lived in the Philippines for almost a decade and in Thailand for half a year. I have hung out with people from both countries, and both love their alcohol. Although, Thai people are more health conscious so they drink alcohol more moderately compared to filipinos. Filipinos love their alcohol and love to get wasted. Of course I’m not speaking for everyone but in comparison to Thai people Filipinos love a drink or two. I’m just surprised you observed the opposite in the Philippines. :/
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Maybe because I don’t drink, people around me don’t get wasted that much or I choose a healthier community, let’s say 😉
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ian
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i’ll have to agree, it’s almost impossible to see a filipino who don’t drink (though most on moderation) but yeah, we go nuts on weekends (on karaokes :-))
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MJ R.
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There are many people who practice Filipino Massage. It is just not that easy to spot compared to those who practice Thai massage in Thailand. Filipino massage is more common and much practiced on households than resorts and spas 🙂
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Realist
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You said you “don’t see many Filipinos drinking alcohol” – not true! There are many places where Filipinos drink – in public. You just haven’t gone to the right places!
Sincerely,
A Philippine native/resident
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Of course there are, but I was comparing to other countries so it is not that bad 😉
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JONtotheworld
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I am a Filipino and I’ve been to Thailand just a few months ago, and ALL your observations are true for both countries. SPot on!
But what I like the most is you find us friendlier (shy face) LOL! 🙂
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks, Jon 🙂 Yes, I do find Filipinos friendlier than the Thai people in general, maybe because of the language, too.
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Carina
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Hi Alex, love your post.
I also compare everything about Thailand and the Philippines on my site http://aroundtheworldinaday.com/philippines_thailand_comparison/
The differences in costs, food, weather, culture and internet speed are huge! Check it out and let me know what you think about it. All the best, Carina
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks Carina for your comparisons, too. Very helpful for many travelers 😉
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Achi
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it is so sad that you can’t make any friend in Thailand ….if you come to Bangkok i can be your friend and be your tour guide for free in Phuket and Bangkok 😉
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Thanks, Achi, will keep it in mind when I revisit Thailand 😉
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Jack P
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Good breakdown and I agree with most. I prefer Indonesia, Philippines and Taiwan over Thailand these days.
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Many people do 😉
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Mark
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Old White men with Young Filipinas are everywhere in the Philippines, just look at ANY mall or Hotel.
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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There are but way less than in Thailand.
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czharina
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valid points..and yes we eat rice for breakfast 😉 comeback to the Philippines soon.
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Czarina, I know you do. Saw the rice everywhere all my time in the Philippines 😀
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christopher john a angeles
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this website help me to answer my assignment in ENGLISH thanks to the ADMIN or the OWNER of this site thanks you so much ^_^
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Very happy to see it helps you in a way 😉
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Comment@ Rico:
No one is judging here, Rico! This is a fact. Plus, I am not a Westener anyway. I just don’t think personally someone 50 years older than you, of the same age like your grandparents, can be really so attractive in your eyes. That’s all.
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Rico
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Why do people always say it’s sad to see young girls with older Western guys? Jesus, they’re human beings, they have free will. The older Western guys are much more interesting for them then their countrymen. Plus a lot of times what tourists think are young girls are single moms who have screwed up already and are looking for a way out. The problem with you Westerners is that you always judge other people’s lives instead of just enjoying life, and letting others live. You should learn from Asians in that and stop judging when you don’t even have information most of the time !
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Crazy Sexy Fun Traveler
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Comment@ GRRRLTRAVELER | Christine:
Right, transportation in the Philippines was a PITA I have to admit. But on the other hand the beauty of its beaches, people and nature made up for it!
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GRRRLTRAVELER | Christine
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Interesting. I love Thailand and havne’t been to the Philippines yet. I’ve been wondering if I”m missing out. The fact they’re much more expensive than Thailand but have less of an infrastructure or organization is a little off-putting. But I do hear it’s beautiful there.
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