Butuan is likely safer than from whence you came! The City has an extremely low violent crime rate, and crime involving foreigners is quite rare. Although many countries issue warnings advising their citizens to avoid Mindanao, northwestern Mindanao is quite safe. Eastern Mindanao has issues and southern Mindanao has real problems. Mindanao is a very big island. While in the city, Butuan is no different than any other. If you choose to barhop into the wee hours, you are at more risk. If you like to wear expensive jewelry, you are at more risk. If you hang out in the seedier sections of town…yada yada yada. If the purpose of your visit is to molest children, you will find yourself in jail-no questions asked. Wallets are not as good a choice as belt packs or necklace type wallets. The freedoms you may enjoy in your home country are not necessarily freedoms available here. Let common sense be your guide.
Many western men come to Butuan because they have met a gal on the internet, which is wonderful. Be advised, ne strongly advised, that there exists a very active industry in which gals acquire multiple ‘boyfriends’ from all over the world, and extort them for as much as possible until the vacation is over, and the next guy flies in. It is not uncommon for a gal to be working with a ‘Cop’, who will magically appear if a guy is in a hotel room with a gal, and she accuses rape. A cash payment is often arranged so the guy can ‘avoid the immigration hassle’. The sob stories are endless. I have seen ‘dens’ of these types of operations, and they have this type of activity down to a science. Many Expat websites offer a ‘discreet inquiry’ type of service, as do we, and sometimes it is a few hundred bucks well spent, especially when balanced against travel expenses to come here.
You’re not in Kansas anymore Dorothy so be on your guard.
I am not sure your geographic descriptions are Philippine standard. Davao City falls in “Southern Mindanao” and, as a foreigner, Davao City is the safest city I have ever spent time in . . . anywhere in the World (with the exception of Singapore . . . but that is the most boring place on Earth so I will not go back except in airport transit). In January this year I traveled to East Mindanao, to Mati, Davao Oriental, and, apart from being a curiosity (blue eyes make people curious), I did not find anything to feel threatened about. Last year I was in Northwest Mindanao, Dapitan, Zamboanga del Norte, and Cagayan de Oro, Misamis Oriental, but did not feel uncomfortable.
“West” or “Southwest” Mindanao around Cotabato and across to Sulu and Tawi Tawi does have very big issues for non-locals and I would not recommend this area at all to travelers, especially foreigners.
Overall, I feel more threatened in Manila – mostly by pickpockets, around Ermita and Pasay.
Hi Martyn,
I appreciate your contribution. Our compass points are obviously different and I submit that Mindanao news generally stays in Mindanao, and perhaps does not reach the area in which you reside. Nonetheless, it is clear that there are some troublesome areas of Mindanao, and visitors should be informed of same. Thank you
I have met a wonderful lady from butuan, we plan on being married i will visit in december, was interested to know what kind of hotel accomodations there are in the city, and what the cost of living etc is there.
Hi Brian,
Look forward to meeting you in December! Check out the ‘Hotels’ link on the site and contact myself or any of the other commentators directly for further info-we all are happy to assist! Thanks, Greg
i will be in butuan on 26 jan. do you know of budget friendly hotels there. it will be my first trip there. preferably hotels that have internet service and restaurants. plus i have met a phillipino girl from area near there. we were to meet in cagayan de oro before the typhoon hit; so we chose to meet here in butuan. any help you offer would be greatly appreciated. do they have local currencies exchanges or just exchange at airport in manila.
sincerely john barnes
Hi John!
There are many hotel choices in Butuan, all with different amenities. Most of the best priced hotels are located downtown. $20/night will get you a simple, clean room with CATV/WiFi. Hotel restaurants cater to Asian fare generally, and Western food is sporadic. You can exchange currency in Butuan. We would be happy to pick you up at the airport and show you around town and visit different hotels; I know most of the staffs having lived here for 9 years. We rent rooms here at the Marina that include a fridge and simple cooking facilities-more designed for extended stay visitors that want to be out of the City-visit the Hotels tab on this website for info. Many visitors grab this room initially so they can have a home base while searching the town for accomadations that better meet their needs, and it certainly helps first time visitors to have an information resource from another Expat. My email is asiaislandic@yahoo.com, and am happy to assist further!