Is It Better To Hire A Car In The Philippines?

If you are a camera-touting foreigner who has never been to the Philippines and wanted to conveniently travel around the beautiful provinces of the country, better rent a car. Or else prepare yourself spending half of your vacation time waiting for the next colorful and crowded jeepney.
Some travelers will prefer the adventure of riding a jeepney and bus around the Philippines. But for some this will be a cumbersome experience. The benefits of renting a car for example around Bohol Islands are the following :

Convenience. You can go anywhere and anytime you want without worrying for the next jeepney. Sometimes the tourist destinations are far apart from each other. The Chocolate Hills is a few kilometers away from Panglao Beach. Taking a bus will take you half day while a rented car will take you for one hour.

Save money. If you are traveling as a group you can save money because it’s cheaper to rent a car where it can take as many as five persons inside. So if you are traveling alone, better make friends with as many tourists in the airplane and start convincing them to travel with you.

Save time. Filipinos are not fond of schedules. Europeans who come to the country are in for a surprise when buses and jeepneys have no time table (gasp). Public transports come and go and sometimes in some far-flung villages there is only a few public vehicles that come once and twice daily.

Weather-friendly. Philippine weather can be unpredictable. During rainy days, it can become sunny suddenly. While on summer, a drizzle might come.

Renting a car can either be from a rent-a-car company or from private persons. In touristy places like Bohol, a rented car for the day comes with a driver and can costs as much as P1,600 for a car (4 persons) and P3,000 for a van (10 persons).

The next time you are in holiday in the Philippines, it can be nice to mingle with the local people by riding the public transport. But then, if you are in a limited vacation time and wanted to see the best and far-flung tourist destinations, then it’s a good decision to rent a car and enjoy the best places with a relaxed smile.