How To Survive The Heat In The Philippines

During the summer months of April and May, locals in the Philippines experience extremely hot, humid weather. And while most people look forward to these months as the perfect time to head over to the beach, it’s impossible to escape the heat once you’re back in the city. Here’s some tips on how to survive the summer season in the Philippines.

Stay hydrated

To bring down body temperature, be sure to drink lots of water during this season. You may also opt to have hydration salts or tablets to keep yourself hydrated. Summer is also a time for caution and you should stay hydrated all day to prevent heat stress or heat stroke.

Wear clothes made from light, cooling fabric

Apart from staying out in the sun for long periods of time and keeping yourself hydrated, what you wear can affect how your body adapts to temperature. It’s advised to wear loose-fitting clothes made out of cooling, breathable fabrics such as cotton, rayon, chambray, and linen. Colors of your clothes also play an important role as bright colored tops such as yellow or orange can repel the heat of the sun.

Summertime is also the perfect season to indulge in cool, frozen treats such as ice cream (or its Filipino version called sorbetes), ice candy and a favorite ice-shaved dessert called halo-halo. If these frozen treats are too sweet for you, cool drinks such as fruit shakes, smoothies, sago’t gulaman and buko juice will surely quench your thirst.

Go to malls

Should the heat become too unbearable at home and turning on the electric fan to its highest speed isn’t enough to keep you cool, the next option to consider is heading over to a nearby mall. Great news if you live near one, since you won’t have to spend a single centavo to take advantage of the cool ambience within these local malls.

Visit cool places

While the Philippines is generally the best destination to get tanned during the hot season, not all Filipinos would want to endure the heat. Luckily, for those who aren’t beach bums, there are cool places across the country where you can visit to escape the heat even for a few days! Baguio City, known as the City of Pines, remains on the top spot – being tagged as the country’s summer capital. Other famous destinations that would keep you cool are Tagaytay City, Batanes, Sagada, Negros, and Bukidnon.

View of Taal Lake in Tagaytay, Vulcan Point

Go for a swim

If your town or province does not have beach waters suitable for swimming, or taking a trip to Boracay Island or other white-sand beaches will be too costly for you, fret not because there are numerous swimming pools and water parks you can head to. And for those who’d like to avoid crowded public pools, you may opt to rent a private resort, go to a hotel or sports club, or set up an inflatable garden pool at home.

Apart from the above-mentioned tips to survive the scorching heat this summer, it’s also best to bring a hat, an umbrella, and put on sunscreen while under the sun.

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