How Long Should I Spend in Manila, Philippines?

Manila is the capital of the Philippines and where most international flights to this beautiful country will fly into. This capital city has a lot to offer visitors in terms of affordable accommodation options and things to do! In this post we are answering the question, how long should I spend in Manila, Philippines?

Many people fly into Manila, spend 1 quick night and then immediately fly out the next day to one of the over 7,000 islands that make up the Philippines. While the islands are absolutely beautiful and deserve their time, we would encourage you to spend a few days exploring Manila!

How Long Should I Spend in Manila?

We spent 3 days and 4 nights in Manila and felt like it was the perfect amount of time! We had plenty of time to see so many different things, eat at a bunch of restaurants and get a feel for the city.

If you don’t quite have that much time try to spend at least a couple nights so you have 2 full days to explore. We got a private apartment in a really good location for $29 USD a night so there are definitely inexpensive accommodation options within the city. We also found so many cheap places to eat that were significantly cheaper actually than some of the islands we’ve visited.

Where Should I Stay in Manila?

We stayed in the Makati neighborhood of Manila and would recommend it! It’s the neighborhood that is often recommended to people visiting Manila for the first time as there are plenty of accommodation options (in all kind of price ranges), restaurants, and shops. We found it safe and clean and felt completely comfortable walking around during the day and at night.

You can reach anywhere you might want to visit within the city from Makati by Grab which is a ride-sharing app similar to Uber. Download the Grab app, hook up your credit card and simply put in where you are and where you want to go.

The most expensive Grab we took in Manila was $8 USD so it’s really reasonable! We often found that getting from one side of the city to the other was about 200 pesos, or $4 USD.
You can only put in a payment method once you are in a location where Grab operates. We tried to put in a credit card in Australia before our flight and it didn’t work until we got to the Philippines.

Read More: 3 Week Philippines Itinerary

What To Do in Manila

There is a lot to do in Manila so make sure to take advantage of your time there. Here are just a few things you can do especially if you only have a couple days! We either walked or took a Grab to all of these very easily.

Go to the Greenbelt Mall

The Greenbelt Mall is in Makati so depending on where you are staying you might actually be able to walk to it. It is a really nice mall that has a blend of indoor and outdoor spaces and it is really well designed! There are quite a few luxury stores as well as more affordable and familiar stores like H&M.

A lot of the Greenbelt Mall is outside so there are courtyards to sit and hang out which is really nice. You can go back and forth between the air conditioning in the mall areas and the warm heat from outside. There are also so many food options in the Greenbelt Mall so this is a really good place to go if you’re looking for a place to eat!

You can find almost any type of food in a range of sit down or takeaway style restaurants.
We ate at Banana Leaf Restaurant and had a really delicious dinner for $17 USD and got a lot of food!

Experience the Tutubon Night Market

The Tutubon Night Market is a large night market that happens every night of the week starting at 6 PM. Vendors line the perimeter of the Tutubon Shopping Mall. If you get there before the night market opens there are quite a few stores into the shopping mall as well as a grocery store and a few restaurants.

At the northern edge of the shopping mall there is another small market and a food court area with different food vendors as well.

Vendors line each side making a walkway that goes around the whole shopping mall. We would estimate there are probably a few hundred vendors selling clothing, footwear, bags, accessories and small electronics. You literally could find any clothing item you forgot to bring at the Tutubon Night Market for very cheap!

I bought a pair of shorts for 100 PHP or $2 USD. Everything is really inexpensive and negotiable so get ready to bargain if you find something you like!

There were a lot of other people walking through and buying things although it did seem like a lot of locals and not too many other tourists. But we felt completely safe the entire time even at night! We walked around for about 2 hours and really enjoyed seeing our first night market in Asia!

Walk Around Makati

The neighborhood of Makati has a lot of restaurants and cafes so make sure to walk around where you’re staying while you’re there. We loved walking around and seeing all the unique types of transportation that we have never seen before!

Popular in Manila (and in a lot of the Philippines) are jeepneys which are large van type vehicles that operate like local buses. You can take them to get around the city for very little although you might be squished in with a lot of other people! There also are so many motorbikes and tuk tuks that it’s interesting just to watch everything go by!

We expected the traffic to be a lot more crowded and chaotic (which it definitely was to a certain extent) but it really wasn’t that bad. You can cross the street fairly easily and we didn’t feel uncomfortable walking around at all!

Visit the SM Mall of Asia

The SM Mall of Asia is one of the largest malls in the world so we had to see it for ourselves. We didn’t even end up seeing a fraction of the whole thing because it’s so big! You can find any store you might be looking for as well as a grocery store. There is even a section where you can get services like a haircut or massage. Dave got a walk in haircut for only $5 USD!

Inside the Hyper Market is a food market that we ate at and really enjoyed! Vendors were selling different types of beef and pork dishes, noodle dishes and even a mcdonalds ice cream stand!

The SM Mall of Asia is really close to Manila Bay so if you wander over to the water you can usually catch a really nice sunset!

Wander around Intramuros

The Philippines were under Spainish rule until the late 1800’s so there is a Spanish influence that can be found throughout the country. You can find a lot of Spanish influence in the area of Intramuros. This walled area includes popular spots such as the Manila Cathedral and San Agustin Church. Check out Fort Santiago which dates back to the late 1500’s and can be visited for 75 PHP or $1.50 USD.