NEW ANGELES CITY (Pampanga, Balibago, Subic) PI

[hayhay1]

Originally Posted by Gem08

good to say CP has a bunch of nice gems... sad to say we met 6 runners out of 7 girls there... even the waitress!!

Wow bro many runner, me lucky only one unitl now, maybe I have my girls there

[Mighty_Moog]

hello bros...

wanted to ask our regulars to AC about credit card usage in clubs/bars.... is it safe to use your card in these establishments? or just shopping in phils in general... your thoughts on this... thank you in advance...

[Pink_Flyod]

Originally Posted by Mighty_Moog

hello bros...

wanted to ask our regulars to AC about credit card usage in clubs/bars.... is it safe to use your card in these establishments? or just shopping in phils in general... your thoughts on this... thank you in advance...

I have no problem so far with Crystal Palace, High Society, Atlantis and i forgot some other places.

[soundguy]

Originally Posted by Mighty_Moog

hello bros...

wanted to ask our regulars to AC about credit card usage in clubs/bars.... is it safe to use your card in these establishments? or just shopping in phils in general... your thoughts on this... thank you in advance...

I also use credit cards in those bars plus some restaurants. The only thing you need to watch out is if you do any withdrawal from the ATMs. Be careful of phishing devices, not widespread, but known to happen.

Enjoy AC! is a great place...i hv fallen in love with it...

[BigAllan]

Originally Posted by Mighty_Moog

hello bros...

wanted to ask our regulars to AC about credit card usage in clubs/bars.... is it safe to use your card in these establishments? or just shopping in phils in general... your thoughts on this... thank you in advance...

Generally it is safe to use your cards in the AC establishments but it is not encouraged unless you really run out of cash.... that's why most businesses slap a surcharge for card usage. From the businesses pov..... they have to pay a service fee and the money only comes in from the banks after a couple of months..... we rather see real money in hand...... those who have run their own business should know that cash flow is an important component to keeping a business healthy. On top of that skimming devices nowadays are really simple, tiny and easily hidden by rogue employees making it tough for the business owners to catch them out. So my advice is keep your cards out of sight and only use them in an emergency..... it's best to carry cash.

[Mighty_Moog]

Originally Posted by Pink_Flyod

I have no problem so far with Crystal Palace, High Society, Atlantis and i forgot some other places.

Originally Posted by soundguy

I also use credit cards in those bars plus some restaurants. The only thing you need to watch out is if you do any withdrawal from the ATMs. Be careful of phishing devices, not widespread, but known to happen.

Enjoy AC! is a great place...i hv fallen in love with it...

Originally Posted by BigAllan

Generally it is safe to use your cards in the AC establishments but it is not encouraged unless you really run out of cash.... that's why most businesses slap a surcharge for card usage. From the businesses pov..... they have to pay a service fee and the money only comes in from the banks after a couple of months..... we rather see real money in hand...... those who have run their own business should know that cash flow is an important component to keeping a business healthy. On top of that skimming devices nowadays are really simple, tiny and easily hidden by rogue employees making it tough for the business owners to catch them out. So my advice is keep your cards out of sight and only use them in an emergency..... it's best to carry cash.

Hi all,

thank you for the replies bros... i just wanted to make sure that using card is safe in AC... i dont like to carry cash around too much also but will keep your advice in check... thank u again...

[CPVictim]

Originally Posted by Pink_Flyod

I have no problem so far with Crystal Palace, High Society, Atlantis and i forgot some other places.

Originally Posted by Mighty_Moog

Hi all,

thank you for the replies bros... i just wanted to make sure that using card is safe in AC... i dont like to carry cash around too much also but will keep your advice in check... thank u again...

I've used credit cards & even DBS debit card in several visits to AC since 1999. Never any problems so far. Here are some good reasons for using a credit card :

1. Too much cash in your wallet draws unnecessary attention when paying at the Massage shop, restaurant or a jeepney/trike ride.

2. Walking with too much cash is very unsafe especially along perimeter bars after sunset. People have gotten killed for refusing/resisting to part with cash.

3. Your wallet is vulnerable even when your barfine is in your room. Quite a few hotels e.g. Kokomos, Bangkok Hotel don't have safe deposit boxes.

4. When you bill comes in along with a lot of white tabs, in your semi drunken state, you end up giving a 1000P and forget the bill amount. When change comes, you don't even know how much to expect, so if it's less you won't know. In dark conditions of the bars, counting the change can be a challenge too sometimes e.g. Blue Nile.

5. Waitresses intentionally give lot of small notes and coins to expect you to leave something behind. Picking up lots of change is more difficult than picking just your credit card back. If your bill is 630P and you gave 700P, they sometimes intentionally take damn long to bring your change back hoping you leave without it.

6. Very very rarely is any additional surcharge added to the bill in the bars. Hotels also seldom do it.

[leaseoflife]

Flying in mid december to stimulate PH economy.

[MuroAmi]

Originally Posted by CPVictim

Very very rarely is any additional surcharge added to the bill in the bars. Hotels also seldom do it.

I beg to differ.... on a few occasions I had to use my CC to pay for my hotels upon checkout as I have run out of pesos and all of them have made it clear to me an administrative fee is chargeable..... the only hotel that waived the fees was Swiss Chalet.

Some of the hotels I stayed in are the ABC, Grand Lewis, Wild Orchid, Royal Amsterdam, Pacific Breeze, Grand Central, Walkabout and all of them charged CC fees of between 7-10% on top of the bill.

As for using CC in bars..... I refused to use them after an unpleasant experience.
The one and only time I used my CC in AC was in Dollhouse bar with a group of fellow samsters..... there were seven of us and it was my last night in AC so we had a party there. The bill came to about 60,000+ pesos so I settled it with my CC as our group did not carry that much cash.

I flew out the next day and when I checked my CC account online a week later.... I was billed for another 3 sessions there amounting to 200,000p on the next few days after I had left AC. And the hassle I had convincing the bank it was a fraud as I had already left AC on those days. They finally reversed the bill only after a police report was made and my passport shown to them.

So henceforth, I have never used my CC in any of the bars since.

[Pink_Flyod]

Originally Posted by MuroAmi

I beg to differ.... on a few occasions I had to use my CC to pay for my hotels upon checkout as I have run out of pesos and all of them have made it clear to me an administrative fee is chargeable..... the only hotel that waived the fees was Swiss Chalet.

Some of the hotels I stayed in are the ABC, Grand Lewis, Wild Orchid, Royal Amsterdam, Pacific Breeze, Grand Central, Walkabout and all of them charged CC fees of between 7-10% on top of the bill.

As for using CC in bars..... I refused to use them after an unpleasant experience.
The one and only time I used my CC in AC was in Dollhouse bar with a group of fellow samsters..... there were seven of us and it was my last night in AC so we had a party there. The bill came to about 60,000+ pesos so I settled it with my CC as our group did not carry that much cash.

I flew out the next day and when I checked my CC account online a week later.... I was billed for another 3 sessions there amounting to 200,000p on the next few days after I had left AC. And the hassle I had convincing the bank it was a fraud as I had already left AC on those days. They finally reversed the bill only after a police report was made and my passport shown to them.

So henceforth, I have never used my CC in any of the bars since.

Woww.. very unfortunate case. I always stay in Wild Orchid in AC and have always pay with my credit card.. they never put surcharge on my credit cards..

[MuroAmi]

Originally Posted by Pink_Flyod

Woww.. very unfortunate case. I always stay in Wild Orchid in AC and have always pay with my credit card.. they never put surcharge on my credit cards..

The surcharges are NOT reflected in the bills but are billed as whole amount. You will notice the discrepancy between the posted rates and the amount in your bill. When asked for breakdown or why the difference then they will list out the surcharge.

[Pink_Flyod]

Originally Posted by MuroAmi

The surcharges are NOT reflected in the bills but are billed as whole amount. You will notice the discrepancy between the posted rates and the amount in your bill. When asked for breakdown or why the difference then they will list out the surcharge.

Not really bro... The room rate is per the agreement.. the restaurant billing is per what I signed... hmmm... I will check my bill again then...

As what I had remember or my colleagues... there is no surcharge.

[Mighty_Moog]

Originally Posted by CPVictim

I've used credit cards & even DBS debit card in several visits to AC since 1999. Never any problems so far. Here are some good reasons for using a credit card :

1. Too much cash in your wallet draws unnecessary attention when paying at the Massage shop, restaurant or a jeepney/trike ride.

2. Walking with too much cash is very unsafe especially along perimeter bars after sunset. People have gotten killed for refusing/resisting to part with cash.

3. Your wallet is vulnerable even when your barfine is in your room. Quite a few hotels e.g. Kokomos, Bangkok Hotel don't have safe deposit boxes.

4. When you bill comes in along with a lot of white tabs, in your semi drunken state, you end up giving a 1000P and forget the bill amount. When change comes, you don't even know how much to expect, so if it's less you won't know. In dark conditions of the bars, counting the change can be a challenge too sometimes e.g. Blue Nile.

5. Waitresses intentionally give lot of small notes and coins to expect you to leave something behind. Picking up lots of change is more difficult than picking just your credit card back. If your bill is 630P and you gave 700P, they sometimes intentionally take damn long to bring your change back hoping you leave without it.

6. Very very rarely is any additional surcharge added to the bill in the bars. Hotels also seldom do it.

Originally Posted by MuroAmi

I beg to differ.... on a few occasions I had to use my CC to pay for my hotels upon checkout as I have run out of pesos and all of them have made it clear to me an administrative fee is chargeable..... the only hotel that waived the fees was Swiss Chalet.

Some of the hotels I stayed in are the ABC, Grand Lewis, Wild Orchid, Royal Amsterdam, Pacific Breeze, Grand Central, Walkabout and all of them charged CC fees of between 7-10% on top of the bill.

As for using CC in bars..... I refused to use them after an unpleasant experience.
The one and only time I used my CC in AC was in Dollhouse bar with a group of fellow samsters..... there were seven of us and it was my last night in AC so we had a party there. The bill came to about 60,000+ pesos so I settled it with my CC as our group did not carry that much cash.

I flew out the next day and when I checked my CC account online a week later.... I was billed for another 3 sessions there amounting to 200,000p on the next few days after I had left AC. And the hassle I had convincing the bank it was a fraud as I had already left AC on those days. They finally reversed the bill only after a police report was made and my passport shown to them.

So henceforth, I have never used my CC in any of the bars since.

Hi bros...

thank you again for heads up... two contrasting views on this subject... any other bros has had similar experience? please do share... btw whats the exchange rate for singapore dollar in AC now? cheers bro...

[datou]

Originally Posted by Mighty_Moog

Hi bros...

thank you again for heads up... two contrasting views on this subject... any other bros has had similar experience? please do share... btw whats the exchange rate for singapore dollar in AC now? cheers bro...

Master debit card 3% charge from POSB bank if used in foreign currency.
Cebu exchange rate 34.5p = 1Sgd a week ago, Angeles should be around the same.

I use this underwear after i withdraw from the atms / or change at money changer to keep abt 20-30 pcs notes n a credit card.
Talk abt getting into one's pants, think almost impossible for the crooks unless they go for the extreme.
Been serving me well travelling for more than 10 years.
Downside is u need to go washroom to extract the notes if insufficient to pay from pants pockets.



Landing in AC this evening.

[ZIEBART]

Originally Posted by datou

Downside is u need to go washroom to extract the notes if insufficient to pay from pants pockets.
Landing in AC this evening.

Hmmmm, I usually go washroom during bill payment time, is for you to be the one to pay. LOL.

Anyway have safe trip this evening. See you Wednesday.