Frequently Asked Questions

For sure! English is widely spoken in The Philippines

Crime in the Dumaguete area is minimal. Though no place in the world will be 100% safe, Dumaguete would rank favorably comparable to most small to mid-size western cities. Terrorism has not been a factor in the area and though no location is ever immune to a terrorist attack, it would be highly unlikely that terrorism will ever become a worry here.Though much has been publicized about some fundamentalist muslim attacks in Mindanao in the past decade or two, Negros Oriental is far enough away not to be affected

Yes, it is. Relative to most Western countries, your retirement nest egg will last 50 to 100% longer in the Philippines. To get a more specific idea, please visit our interactive retirement finances calculator at https://retiredumaguete.ph/financial/

Absolutely. There are many thigns to do here locally such as running, biking, hiking, swimming, tennis, golf, scuba and snorkeling. For more details, check out our sports and adventure page at https://retiredumaguete.ph/lifestyle/#sportsandAdventture

Yes, there are several good hospitals including Siliman Medical Center and Aces Dumaguete Hospital, which can handle most ailments. For more internationally state of the art facilities, Manila or Cebu is only a short plane ride away

This will depend on your age and past medical history. There are health plans available, however insurers are reluctant to cover those people over 65 years of age. The good news though is that medical costs are extremely low. Most procedures and hospital stays will cost approx. 1/10 of what it would in Western countries and many expats just chose to handle this out of pocket. Philhealth, the government run insurer is easy to enrol in and will typically cover 30% of those costs

There are two major international hubs, Manila and Cebu, which are less than an hour plane ride away. With 8-10 flights a day to and from Dumaguete via these hubs, it is very easy to travel both domestically and internationally.

extremely! The Filipino culture is generally very warm and welcoming and even more so in Dumaguete, hence the tag, “The City of Gentle People”

Again, no place is 100% immune however Dumaguete and the surrounding region is fortune. Surrounded by island, there is no open sea to generate Tsunamis, the main typhoon belt tracks far North, and it is not on one of the more active fault lines of the Pacific Rim. We do have a volcano in the norther

basically, what tropical dreams are made of. Generally the temperature hovers somewhere between 30-35 degrees most days. Being on the ocean, the heat is not oppressive and since we are on the foothills of the Negros Coastal Mountain range with some higher elevations as you move away from the sea, most days are pleasant. For 8 months of the year, most days are clear and sunny with little precipitation and the remaining 4 months is a more defined rainy season.

Yes, Dumaguete is considered one of the best retirement destinations in the world and has attracted retirees from most other countries in the world. If you want to develop and maintain relationships with people from your home countries and culture, it will be easy to do.

The Philippines is a predominantly catholic nation, however there are many other Christian churches for people of other denominations