Visa Free Countries para sa Lakwatserong Pinoy (o Lakwatserang Pinay)

What keeps you from grabbing that airfare promo? You know you want it, why don’t you get it? The most common answer one would get is: Hassle kumuha ng visa!

The Pinoy passport ranks 69^th in the world for free entries. This can greatly discourage a first-time traveler from making an effort to apply for a visa in countries that require one. Only the promise of an employment or a family member pledging to pay for your tour can encourage you to step out and apply for that elusive permit to travel.

Oh but it doesn’t have to be that way. If we are to take things from a wider perspective, our Philippine passports give us free access to postcard-worthy islands and beaches, provinces rich in history and culture, centuries-old temples, flea markets and endless food trips in Southeast Asian countries. Places, sites, and experiences that other passport holders may need to pay dearly for to visit. Isn’t that good news? Sure it’s always exciting to travel to a different continent (like the US and Europe) but if you can’t summon the courage, time, and effort to work on your visa just yet, you can always visit our neighboring Asian countries.

To help you decide on which country to visit first, here is a list of visa-free countries for Pinoys I sourced from www.travelbook.ph.

Visa-free (no limits)

• Colombia (Hello, Ariadna Gutierrez!)
• Morocco
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (a southern Caribbean nation)
• Suriname (a quaint country in South America)

Visa-free (limited number of days)

• Bolivia – Visa-free for 60 days
• Brunei – Visa-free for 14 days
• Cambodia – Visa-free for 21 days
• Costa Rica – Visa-free for 30 days
• Ecuador – Visa-free for 90 days
• Hong Kong – Visa-free for 14 days
• Indonesia – Visa-free for 30 days
• Laos – Visa-free for 30 days
• Malaysia – Visa-free for 30 days
• Peru – Visa-free for 60 days
• Singapore – Visa-free for 30 days
• Thailand – Visa-free for 30 days
• Vietnam – Visa-free for 21 days

Visa-free (limited number of days plus special conditions)

• Brazil – Visa-free for 90 days
  • for holders of diplomatic, official, and service passports, visa-free for:
    • Duration of tour of duty or
    • 180 days for official business or tourism
• India – Visa upon arrival valid for 30 days (limited only to New Delhi and Mumbai airports)
• Israel –
  • Visa-free for tourists (number of days of stay will depend on Immigration)
  • Visa-free for holders of diplomatic and official passports; visa is required for business.
• Mozambique – Visa upon arrival valid for 30 days.
• Palau – Visa-free for 30 days, visa upon arrival (provided that the Filipino national has a return/onward plane ticket)
• Sri Lanka – Visa-free for 30 days, upon arrival (provided that the Filipino national has a return/onward plane ticket)
• Tuvalu – Visa-free for 30 days, visa upon arrival (provided that the Filipino national has a return/onward plane ticket)
• Vanuatu – Visa-free for 30 days, visa upon arrival (provided that the Filipino national has a return/onward plane ticket)
• Zambia – Visa upon arrival:
  • Three months for tourism
  • One month for business

So, who says you can’t travel? All you need is a valid passport (not expiring within the next six months), your suitcase, some cash, and an unquenchable thirst to soak up a foreign, sometimes strange, culture!

Bon voyage!