Beach Bum

The surfing capitals of the Philippines — here the waves will be there every single day. Expect throngs of foreigners at every turn. The average is 70% foreigner in Siargao with the nickname "United States of Siargao" being used everywhere. Here you will live among many digital nomads, backpackers with an awesome nightlife. The boardwalks and beaches have nightly parties and this is where you will see the most skateboards in the Philippines. Internet is fantastic. Internet cafés are filled with Europeans and Americans working day or night. The resorts often offer day passes so you can resort hop and each has fantastic restaurants with food from around the world. Here you feel like you are always young again on a permanent vacation.

Dating here is more difficult with the hook up culture that surrounds the occupants but if you are hoping to find that Swedish girlfriend you just might find her here. Even the Filipinas who travel here for vacation are hoping to find that 20 year old six pack abs surfer. The rental market here is difficult and expensive — many places opt for short term renting only and the remaining nice ones demand a higher premium. Expect to pay almost double the usual rents — ₱40K and up — with maintaining a good western lifestyle in the $3,000 a month range. The good thing is if you can live simple then there is a whole market there serving the backpackers.

La Union has a completely different energy from Siargao despite both being surf destinations. Where Siargao feels like a tropical island colonized by international surf culture, La Union feels more like a weekend escape that grew into a lifestyle destination. The waves at San Juan are consistent and good without being world class. The crowd is younger, more Manila-based, more Filipino-influenced than the heavily international Siargao scene.

The medical and infrastructure reality needs honest acknowledgment. Neither Siargao nor La Union has a hospital capable of handling serious medical events. Siargao's nearest real medical facility requires a boat or flight to Cebu or Manila. For a man in his 50s or 60s this deserves serious weight before committing.

Siargao sits in a typhoon corridor and takes direct hits more frequently than most Philippine destinations. Typhoon Odette in 2021 essentially flattened significant portions of the island. The community recovered but this is a real recurring risk.

You don't want to live here if you like to travel to other destinations — La Union has no airport and you have a very long drive to Clark or up to Ilocos Norte with flights only to Manila. Only a single highway goes north and south. In Siargao the airport is small and jammed packed. The flights to and from Siargao are some of the most expensive in the country. Only live here if the destination was the place you wanted to stay put in.

The permanent vacation feeling is real and genuinely wonderful — and it comes with a psychological trade-off. Some people thrive indefinitely in that energy. Others find that after six to twelve months the permanent holiday feeling starts to feel unmoored. The men who struggle are those who arrived seeking escape and eventually realize escape is not the same as a life.