HomeIloiloIloilo CityIloilo among the best places to live by Moneysense MagazineMoneySense Magazine has just placed Iloilo City at 5th spot in their list of best places to live in the Philippines on their March-April 2008 issue. The magazine attributes Iloilo’s strategic location, top schools, and natural wonders, among the decidi By Marcos Detourista on April 14, 2008MoneySense Magazine has just placed Iloilo City at 5th spot in their list of best places to live in the Philippines on their March-April 2008 issue. The magazine attributes Iloilo’s strategic location, top schools, and natural wonders, among the deciding factors in including Iloilo in the list. April-March 2008 Cover of Moneysense Magazine Full Ranking of Best Places to Live in the Philippines:1. Bacolod 2. Makati 3. Davao 4. Marikina 5. Iloilo 6. Las Pinas 7. Pasig 8. San Fernando, Pampanga 9. Mandaluyong 10. Quezon City 11. Manila 12. Batangas 13. Cagayan de Oro 14. Muntinlupa 15. Angeles 16. Baguio 17. Lipa 18. Calamba 19. General Santos 20. CebuHeinz Bulos, writer of the article, contacted me and quoted the reasons why thought Iloilo was an excellent place to live in. We writes:A life-long resident of Iloilo, Marcos Caratao, Jr., 20, a student and administrator of ExploreIloilo.com says, “Iloilo’s peaceful environment, its food, and the hospitality of its people definitely make the city a great place to live. Aside from having an excellent peace and order situation, one can have a peace ofmind when in Iloilo simply because there is not much stress brought about by the problems of urban congestion.”and…Marcos says, “Ilonggos love to eat! And it shows through the variety of its delicious local dishes.” He adds adds, “Ilonggos generally prefer to have intimate gathering with friends and loved ones at home or in a place where they can enjoy each other’s company. Though once in a while, Ilonggos also like to party whether it is in a bar, club, during the town fiesta or its famous festivals.”Fellow Ilonggo blogger, Junelle of Intiendes was also quoted by Moneysense Magazine:Iloilo is also richly endowed with mountains, waterfalls, rice terraces, caves, white sand beaches, and numerous islets. “It has a lot of hidden treasures worth exploring,” says Junelle Caravana, 26, a project manager for a software company and administrator of Iloilo Bloggers (www.iloilobloggers.com) who has been an Iloilo resident since birth. And it doesn’t cost a lot of money to have a leisurely life. Junelle shares, “Strolling in the mall – it’s what I do. And mostly, stroll around the Iloilo. I can’t get enough of its beauty and there are still a lot of places I need to explore.”The feature about Iloilo ends with:Iloilo is a fast-growing modern city with hotels, shopping centers, restaurants, golf courses, and convention facilities. As Marcos notes, “Iloilo is a modern city set in a laid back atmosphere. What I like best about Iloilo City is that it has amenities that every modern city possess within a stone’s throw from each other yet still retain its idyllic old world charm.”Don’t leave yet. There’s more!Leave a Reply Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment *Name * Email * Website ΔThis site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.Comments calos saysAugust 3, 2011 at 1:45 pmbasi abi nila sng iloilo bacolod like the people i know nga ang players sang Azkals nga pinoy are mostly from bacolod. ayy nano……… nga ang matuod Barotac Nuevo (bacolod) iloilo./ heheheReply midnightclubPCL saysAugust 3, 2011 at 9:48 amang magazine ka na iya gid sang tagabacolod nga ubra mo. tinikal naman eh. nga a gin post na di ni marc man? lolReply Vic saysAugust 3, 2011 at 8:41 am@mur2s., agree…wala na gawa nonsense naglalabilin ba… hihihih…what you mean anti-social site?…keep on kutaw kutaw ah…basta wala lang matapakan na iba… practical joke is okReply Vic saysAugust 3, 2011 at 8:34 am@Gil… very correct observation of places…nothing more nothing less…. Manila Taxi Drivers— is beyond worst leeches , very dishonest and very rudeReply jun saysAugust 3, 2011 at 12:26 amnot 2 hostileReply Gil saysAugust 2, 2011 at 1:59 amWow nice flame war going on. I’ll chime in.I have been to Bacolod and it was very peaceful but incredibly boring. I didn’t find it as accessible as Iloilo as most destination is within 30 mins reach in Iloilo.Manila was just plain awful. Can’t trust the taxis there and you would have to be a rich man to live comfortably there. Lots of attractions but too expensive for my blood. Everyone there also seems downright angry or out to scam you.Cebu is a nice place to live in. It’s pretty much Iloilo but just richer, cleaner, has more to offer in terms of tourism and a bit more expensive.Reply mur2s saysAugust 1, 2011 at 10:16 pmhiding myself coz ders no more billy 2 pick on as well as other non sense ppol. maybe im just uncomfortable being serious kon ilonggo nami ya ang mag kutaw kutaw. also d u know an anti social site? m just saying dis 4 now but like anybody else no man s an island so expect il just gonna b around.Reply Vic saysAugust 1, 2011 at 11:23 am@mur2s… where you been man? miss you bah hahahaha…. @midnightclubPCL gani man… I vote for Cebu eh…Reply mur2s saysAugust 1, 2011 at 10:33 ambeauty s n d eye of d beholder. lets face 8 n a broader sense f we dissect how d magazine hav come up 2 der choices i guess we wil agree w/ 8 unless u havent bn out of iloilo or just hav compare 2 some places u hav visited nd not as gud as iloilo den definitely u wont agree dat bacolod city s d #1 place 2 live ( n die?). letz luk at cebu i was expecting 8 on d top but ending up last. maybe nxt tym.Reply midnightclubPCL saysAugust 1, 2011 at 9:26 amgani man vic? daw palagpat aw…Reply Vic saysJuly 31, 2011 at 9:04 pmI just wonder how Bacolod City came as the first in best places to live ( in their remaining life after lifelong work ) rather than Cebu… and why they put Iloilo City in there as number five and 7 NCR Districts First if youre native of Manila will you have to move to Iloilo to live considering you have no relatives there and you’ll be staying there for good … what are the criteria ?… It always depends to the choice of retirees , City is hostile to the oldies its usually for the young active people but if you’re living there all your life you cant switch the place that easy and , It takes a lot of decisive reflection to have major changes as if they want cool place they would choose Baguio, a country relaxing belongs to Batangas…quality Medical Care…in Makati… less than an hour distance to Manila and with many amenities is Calamba … and so on … It should be best place to work and live… best place to retire…best place to camp….best place for vacation…for party and so on….Reply Lakia Payenda saysJuly 31, 2011 at 4:59 pmTo use our Enterprise coupon codes, you will most likely need to place your order online at the official Enterprise website.Reply Laureana Cacho Sheppard saysJune 3, 2009 at 5:33 pmPamatyag ko ang Iloilo mangin centro sang tourism and business. damo na nadevelop nga resorts kay ako may plan to have a holiday house and put up something in my birth village God willing.Reply Jolly saysMay 11, 2009 at 7:23 amHello guys! Whatssup everyone :). Glad I am off the hook from work today and tomorrow. Wheww! I totally agree that ILOILO CITY is one of the BEST places in the Philippines. I was born and raised there, presently I am a Mississipian by law but an Ilongga by heart ;)…BTW, hello to Chymera and Habagat!Reply pascual saysApril 11, 2009 at 10:04 pmi would say the northern part of the philippines is the one of the top 5 to live and retired, theres nothin else but the home of the ilocanos “d ilocos norte” you got everything over there. nice and clean ………….forget bout manila….province is the best….agree? give me a holla fellas…Reply Wangbu saysMay 6, 2008 at 7:17 pmNice spot for Ilonggos.Reply Sporty saysApril 30, 2008 at 7:34 amI will try to check the subdivisions in ILOILO City and the Province probably this summer. Also I want to check the new subdivison there in Sta. Barbara close to the New Airport. A friend of mine who is married to an American here, and her hubby told me if I can do the checking for them, and take some photos and bring them back with me. Kudos ILOILO! Hala Bira! : )Reply choking saysApril 29, 2008 at 8:39 pmIloilo’s problem is very basic: power and water. Power supply is inadequate and unreliable. Availability of processed water is poor. Everything is else is A-1. Just those two fatal flaws.However, it was only last year that we had tap water in our house in Mandurriao. YEY!Reply states_side_ilongga17 saysApril 29, 2008 at 5:04 pmi was born in the state of new jersey but I grew up in New York where my dad is working. It was not hard for me to understand ilonggo coz even when I was small, my parents were teaching us what’s the meaning of that word in ilonggo, my most favorite of course is the word,”Palangga”.hehehe!!That made me realize that word feels sweet.Right now i’m so fluent that i almost forgot to say english =). Kadlaw classmates ko kay sa kadugayon ko didto sa states, staright ako mag-ilonggo.=)Reply sss saysApril 29, 2008 at 3:12 am[re=58267]states_side_ilongga17[/re]: in what part of states you were raised?were u born there? it seems you know a lot of hiligaynon. are u taking a course in iloilo? from ther way u wrote u still being malambing. take care.Reply sss saysApril 28, 2008 at 10:40 am[re=58390]Jolly[/re]: youre back. cheers and keep it up.Reply Jolly saysApril 27, 2008 at 12:23 pmThe Hospitality and Retirement City of Panay Island, none other than ILOILO City, and the Province. Cheers!!! : )Reply gladita saysApril 26, 2008 at 11:05 am@sss – I’m from Iloilo but now living here in Bacolod. The advantage of living in Bacolod compared to Iloilo is that traffic here is not so worse.Reply kk saysJune 20, 2009 at 5:57 pmindeed, bacolod has wider roads that’s because Bacolod is a newer city compared to Iloilo. main streets here in Iloilo(esp in calle real) used to be a super highway during the spanish era (for kalesa lang galing). in the present, the city govt has been implementing new PUJ routes man to alleviate traffic pero daw wala pa epek..hay…Reply states_side_ilongga17 saysApril 26, 2008 at 10:22 amhi mr/miss sss, eiy, im not that too old yet..hehehe!!!im just 17 years old young lady.hehehe!anyways,actually its my 1st time of my 16 years in life that I got to iloilo just because I was born and raised there. I myself and other sibling in our family are also willing to live here in iloilo.So my dad allowed us to stay here. He’s been a successful businessman in states together with my mom which are also purely ilonggos.I was so impress with what our place have, old churches, heritage sites, old houses and beautiful beaches.I didn’t find it hard also to win friends because I prove it that ilonggos are really hospitable and friendly.Right now Im now studying in one of the university here in iloilo.That’s all for my impressions and sharings with you all.hehehe! ILOILO: Pinalangga, Matahum…Aton Siya! ; )Reply sss saysApril 25, 2008 at 12:39 am[re=56646]saint[/re]: sad to say were always on the shadow of bacolod. lets keep our fingers cross maybe someday.Reply sss saysApril 25, 2008 at 12:36 am[re=58039]states_side_ilonnga17[/re]: i bet you’re old and rich now. after living all those years out of iloilo its a great homecoming. good to be back.Reply states_side_ilonnga17 saysApril 24, 2008 at 12:43 pmoooh, yes!!it’s a pride and honor for me to visit and now living here in iloilo, my parents home place even i have all that comfort living when i was in states last 2 years now.And it’s my pride to say, i LOVE ILOILO much!We made even take ahead of other major cities like manila and cebu city.Congrats to all of us and let’s join hands to preserve our heritage, culture as an Ilonggo..And let’s pray to our beloved Patron saint of Western Visayas, Nuestra Sra. dela Candelaria that she will continue to guide our beloved city, ILOILO. ; )Reply billy saysApril 19, 2008 at 6:56 pmI lived in many different places now but for me, ILOILO is still the BEST not because i was born, raised and educated there but because of its sweet ambiance and simplicity. There is really no place like HOME.Reply mspl saysApril 17, 2008 at 11:35 amsimple life lang..tani for our leaders please do something to preserve all of this. to our police officer and military too.Reply mspl saysApril 17, 2008 at 11:22 amhere are some basis of this selection i’ve read… “There are three key components of what we believe makes a place the best place to live: standard of living, quality of life, and cost of living. You may be earning a lot but if you live in an overcrowded city with too much smog, a high crime rate, bad roads, and few schools to choose from, then it may be better idea to just move. Similarly, you can have fresh air, a peaceful environment, and longer life expectancy, but if you can’t find good jobs or business opportunities, you’ll also move.What is standard of living? To us, the factors to look at are income (above average family income and per capita income), economy (high GDP and GDP growth), employment (high employment rate), and business (low cost of doing business). Quality of life includes population (relative low population and population growth), demographics (good gender mix, good number of young economically active people, high ratio of singles), environment (clean air, clean streets), health care (high life expectancy, low mortality rate), education (high literacy rate, high proportion with high level of education), safety (low crime rate, high crime solution efficiency), and leisure (high level of tourist arrivals).”i know mostly of us Ilonggos is really longing for this..Reply saint saysApril 16, 2008 at 7:38 pmyes! that makes me proud as a true-blue ilonggo too. i think next time, we should aim to be no. 1. GO ILOILO!Reply chymera00 saysApril 16, 2008 at 3:07 pmThanks Mike!Reply chymera00 saysApril 16, 2008 at 3:06 pmYeah, it’s great that our city has been given such recognitionReply Mike saysApril 16, 2008 at 1:28 pmwell said marc..Reply Sporty saysApril 15, 2008 at 8:07 amSo true Marc. ILOILO is the best. A Retirement Place to be, with everything accessible. Cheers! : )Reply sss saysApril 14, 2008 at 8:41 pmit makes sense.Reply mspl saysApril 14, 2008 at 5:07 pmYes!!!! at this time we slowly moving without noticing our Iloilo are keeping track. Its back on its feet. This post really makes us proud..really make sense..really makes you an Ilonggo…Reply
calos saysAugust 3, 2011 at 1:45 pmbasi abi nila sng iloilo bacolod like the people i know nga ang players sang Azkals nga pinoy are mostly from bacolod. ayy nano……… nga ang matuod Barotac Nuevo (bacolod) iloilo./ heheheReply
midnightclubPCL saysAugust 3, 2011 at 9:48 amang magazine ka na iya gid sang tagabacolod nga ubra mo. tinikal naman eh. nga a gin post na di ni marc man? lolReply
Vic saysAugust 3, 2011 at 8:41 am@mur2s., agree…wala na gawa nonsense naglalabilin ba… hihihih…what you mean anti-social site?…keep on kutaw kutaw ah…basta wala lang matapakan na iba… practical joke is okReply
Vic saysAugust 3, 2011 at 8:34 am@Gil… very correct observation of places…nothing more nothing less…. Manila Taxi Drivers— is beyond worst leeches , very dishonest and very rudeReply
Gil saysAugust 2, 2011 at 1:59 amWow nice flame war going on. I’ll chime in.I have been to Bacolod and it was very peaceful but incredibly boring. I didn’t find it as accessible as Iloilo as most destination is within 30 mins reach in Iloilo.Manila was just plain awful. Can’t trust the taxis there and you would have to be a rich man to live comfortably there. Lots of attractions but too expensive for my blood. Everyone there also seems downright angry or out to scam you.Cebu is a nice place to live in. It’s pretty much Iloilo but just richer, cleaner, has more to offer in terms of tourism and a bit more expensive.Reply
mur2s saysAugust 1, 2011 at 10:16 pmhiding myself coz ders no more billy 2 pick on as well as other non sense ppol. maybe im just uncomfortable being serious kon ilonggo nami ya ang mag kutaw kutaw. also d u know an anti social site? m just saying dis 4 now but like anybody else no man s an island so expect il just gonna b around.Reply
Vic saysAugust 1, 2011 at 11:23 am@mur2s… where you been man? miss you bah hahahaha…. @midnightclubPCL gani man… I vote for Cebu eh…Reply
mur2s saysAugust 1, 2011 at 10:33 ambeauty s n d eye of d beholder. lets face 8 n a broader sense f we dissect how d magazine hav come up 2 der choices i guess we wil agree w/ 8 unless u havent bn out of iloilo or just hav compare 2 some places u hav visited nd not as gud as iloilo den definitely u wont agree dat bacolod city s d #1 place 2 live ( n die?). letz luk at cebu i was expecting 8 on d top but ending up last. maybe nxt tym.Reply
Vic saysJuly 31, 2011 at 9:04 pmI just wonder how Bacolod City came as the first in best places to live ( in their remaining life after lifelong work ) rather than Cebu… and why they put Iloilo City in there as number five and 7 NCR Districts First if youre native of Manila will you have to move to Iloilo to live considering you have no relatives there and you’ll be staying there for good … what are the criteria ?… It always depends to the choice of retirees , City is hostile to the oldies its usually for the young active people but if you’re living there all your life you cant switch the place that easy and , It takes a lot of decisive reflection to have major changes as if they want cool place they would choose Baguio, a country relaxing belongs to Batangas…quality Medical Care…in Makati… less than an hour distance to Manila and with many amenities is Calamba … and so on … It should be best place to work and live… best place to retire…best place to camp….best place for vacation…for party and so on….Reply
Lakia Payenda saysJuly 31, 2011 at 4:59 pmTo use our Enterprise coupon codes, you will most likely need to place your order online at the official Enterprise website.Reply
Laureana Cacho Sheppard saysJune 3, 2009 at 5:33 pmPamatyag ko ang Iloilo mangin centro sang tourism and business. damo na nadevelop nga resorts kay ako may plan to have a holiday house and put up something in my birth village God willing.Reply
Jolly saysMay 11, 2009 at 7:23 amHello guys! Whatssup everyone :). Glad I am off the hook from work today and tomorrow. Wheww! I totally agree that ILOILO CITY is one of the BEST places in the Philippines. I was born and raised there, presently I am a Mississipian by law but an Ilongga by heart ;)…BTW, hello to Chymera and Habagat!Reply
pascual saysApril 11, 2009 at 10:04 pmi would say the northern part of the philippines is the one of the top 5 to live and retired, theres nothin else but the home of the ilocanos “d ilocos norte” you got everything over there. nice and clean ………….forget bout manila….province is the best….agree? give me a holla fellas…Reply
Sporty saysApril 30, 2008 at 7:34 amI will try to check the subdivisions in ILOILO City and the Province probably this summer. Also I want to check the new subdivison there in Sta. Barbara close to the New Airport. A friend of mine who is married to an American here, and her hubby told me if I can do the checking for them, and take some photos and bring them back with me. Kudos ILOILO! Hala Bira! : )Reply
choking saysApril 29, 2008 at 8:39 pmIloilo’s problem is very basic: power and water. Power supply is inadequate and unreliable. Availability of processed water is poor. Everything is else is A-1. Just those two fatal flaws.However, it was only last year that we had tap water in our house in Mandurriao. YEY!Reply
states_side_ilongga17 saysApril 29, 2008 at 5:04 pmi was born in the state of new jersey but I grew up in New York where my dad is working. It was not hard for me to understand ilonggo coz even when I was small, my parents were teaching us what’s the meaning of that word in ilonggo, my most favorite of course is the word,”Palangga”.hehehe!!That made me realize that word feels sweet.Right now i’m so fluent that i almost forgot to say english =). Kadlaw classmates ko kay sa kadugayon ko didto sa states, staright ako mag-ilonggo.=)Reply
sss saysApril 29, 2008 at 3:12 am[re=58267]states_side_ilongga17[/re]: in what part of states you were raised?were u born there? it seems you know a lot of hiligaynon. are u taking a course in iloilo? from ther way u wrote u still being malambing. take care.Reply
Jolly saysApril 27, 2008 at 12:23 pmThe Hospitality and Retirement City of Panay Island, none other than ILOILO City, and the Province. Cheers!!! : )Reply
gladita saysApril 26, 2008 at 11:05 am@sss – I’m from Iloilo but now living here in Bacolod. The advantage of living in Bacolod compared to Iloilo is that traffic here is not so worse.Reply
kk saysJune 20, 2009 at 5:57 pmindeed, bacolod has wider roads that’s because Bacolod is a newer city compared to Iloilo. main streets here in Iloilo(esp in calle real) used to be a super highway during the spanish era (for kalesa lang galing). in the present, the city govt has been implementing new PUJ routes man to alleviate traffic pero daw wala pa epek..hay…Reply
states_side_ilongga17 saysApril 26, 2008 at 10:22 amhi mr/miss sss, eiy, im not that too old yet..hehehe!!!im just 17 years old young lady.hehehe!anyways,actually its my 1st time of my 16 years in life that I got to iloilo just because I was born and raised there. I myself and other sibling in our family are also willing to live here in iloilo.So my dad allowed us to stay here. He’s been a successful businessman in states together with my mom which are also purely ilonggos.I was so impress with what our place have, old churches, heritage sites, old houses and beautiful beaches.I didn’t find it hard also to win friends because I prove it that ilonggos are really hospitable and friendly.Right now Im now studying in one of the university here in iloilo.That’s all for my impressions and sharings with you all.hehehe! ILOILO: Pinalangga, Matahum…Aton Siya! ; )Reply
sss saysApril 25, 2008 at 12:39 am[re=56646]saint[/re]: sad to say were always on the shadow of bacolod. lets keep our fingers cross maybe someday.Reply
sss saysApril 25, 2008 at 12:36 am[re=58039]states_side_ilonnga17[/re]: i bet you’re old and rich now. after living all those years out of iloilo its a great homecoming. good to be back.Reply
states_side_ilonnga17 saysApril 24, 2008 at 12:43 pmoooh, yes!!it’s a pride and honor for me to visit and now living here in iloilo, my parents home place even i have all that comfort living when i was in states last 2 years now.And it’s my pride to say, i LOVE ILOILO much!We made even take ahead of other major cities like manila and cebu city.Congrats to all of us and let’s join hands to preserve our heritage, culture as an Ilonggo..And let’s pray to our beloved Patron saint of Western Visayas, Nuestra Sra. dela Candelaria that she will continue to guide our beloved city, ILOILO. ; )Reply
billy saysApril 19, 2008 at 6:56 pmI lived in many different places now but for me, ILOILO is still the BEST not because i was born, raised and educated there but because of its sweet ambiance and simplicity. There is really no place like HOME.Reply
mspl saysApril 17, 2008 at 11:35 amsimple life lang..tani for our leaders please do something to preserve all of this. to our police officer and military too.Reply
mspl saysApril 17, 2008 at 11:22 amhere are some basis of this selection i’ve read… “There are three key components of what we believe makes a place the best place to live: standard of living, quality of life, and cost of living. You may be earning a lot but if you live in an overcrowded city with too much smog, a high crime rate, bad roads, and few schools to choose from, then it may be better idea to just move. Similarly, you can have fresh air, a peaceful environment, and longer life expectancy, but if you can’t find good jobs or business opportunities, you’ll also move.What is standard of living? To us, the factors to look at are income (above average family income and per capita income), economy (high GDP and GDP growth), employment (high employment rate), and business (low cost of doing business). Quality of life includes population (relative low population and population growth), demographics (good gender mix, good number of young economically active people, high ratio of singles), environment (clean air, clean streets), health care (high life expectancy, low mortality rate), education (high literacy rate, high proportion with high level of education), safety (low crime rate, high crime solution efficiency), and leisure (high level of tourist arrivals).”i know mostly of us Ilonggos is really longing for this..Reply
saint saysApril 16, 2008 at 7:38 pmyes! that makes me proud as a true-blue ilonggo too. i think next time, we should aim to be no. 1. GO ILOILO!Reply
chymera00 saysApril 16, 2008 at 3:06 pmYeah, it’s great that our city has been given such recognitionReply
Sporty saysApril 15, 2008 at 8:07 amSo true Marc. ILOILO is the best. A Retirement Place to be, with everything accessible. Cheers! : )Reply
mspl saysApril 14, 2008 at 5:07 pmYes!!!! at this time we slowly moving without noticing our Iloilo are keeping track. Its back on its feet. This post really makes us proud..really make sense..really makes you an Ilonggo…Reply