Philippine Driver's License Replacement Process 2022

 I recently lost my wallet during my last Holiday trip. Needless to say, my driver's license got lost together with some of my credit cards.

Credit cards are easy to replace. Costly, but easy to replace.

Unfortunately, it's a bit more tedious when it comes to Driver's License.

Requirements

• Affidavit of Loss. You can google the nearest Notary Public nearest you. It should be cheap, around PHP 150.00 - PHP200.00. Sometimes, even free. What I got was a bit expensive. I paid PHP 600.00 for mine. In my defense, they did the Affidavit on their own and just needed a Government ID (Passport) from me and a photo of my lost driver's license. It's also a few meters away from where I work so I don't mind paying extra.
• LTMS Portal Account. If you haven't interacted with LTO in recent years, you probably don't know this portal exists. I found out about this the day I went to LTO. Luckily, registering was easy to do even on a phone. But it's best if you do this ahead of time. 
• Link: https://portal.lto.gov.ph/
• You will need the Client ID of your account
• Accomplished LTO Form. You can do it in LTO if you don't own a printer. 
• As of writing, you can get the form here: https://lto.gov.ph/lto-forms.html
• Download this form: APPLICATION FOR STUDENT DRIVER'S PERMIT / DRIVER'S LICENSE / CONDUCTOR'S LICENSE (APL)
• Fill out the upper half of the form. You can ignore the Vehicle Category part.
• On the "TYPE OF APPLICATION", select G. DUPLICATE
• Cash. I got charge PHP 225.00 for the Replacement. I can't confirm if this fee is similar across all LTO branches.

Once you have these, just go to the LTO branch nearest you that can process License replacement. Do note that not all LTO branches offer card replacement. Be sure to check if the branch that you're going to has it. 

I went to the LTO - PITX Parañaque Licensing Center. They close at 5PM.

I arrived at around 3:30PM and was done by around 4:00PM

TravelRecommends / Flytpack Travel Wifi Review in 2022

TravelRecommends / Flytpack Travel Wifi Review in 2022

A few weeks ago I took my first out-of-the-country trip post-pandemic and went to Singapore. I usually buy a local data sim card during my previous travels, but this time, I decided to try the travel wifi from Flytpack.

I spent about PHP 2485.00 pesos for an 8-Day Unlimited Wifi Router

Few things to take note of about this

1. It's a 4G/LTE Travel Wifi Router. It's not 5G
2. The router is the size of a regular mobile phone. Or a chunky power bank.
3. It comes with a cable and a travel adapter. 

Arriving in Singapore, connecting to the router was pretty straightforward. You turn it on. You connect to it with the password provided on the device. You get internet. That was the case at the airport. 

Leaving the airport, now that's a different story.

I immediately lost connection as soon as we got on our grab ride to our hotel. The connection came back after I rebooted the router when I got to the hotel.

The next day, I left the hotel to tour around. I lost my internet again. I had to reboot the router again as soon as I arrive at my location to get it back. I was commuting via bus so my internet connection was important when moving from point a to point b.

Few things I noticed.

Connected to the router, somehow my phone is suggesting that I'm in Thailand and not Singapore. I raised this concern to the support group via Viber and they were able to resolve it. It also made my internet a bit faster (If I have a connection)

Speaking of the support group, I spent my first two days talking to them. Or rather, complaining to them. Their usual response is to reboot the device. This usually works when you're in a single place. But if you're moving, very unlikely that you'd even get internet access to contact them. 

They mentioned that I can file a complaint on the days that I didn't have proper internet and that they can refund them.

On the third day, I gave up and went to the nearest 711 to buy a data sim card for SGD 12. (roughly PHP 500.00).

Final Verdict

If you're traveling to another country, try and check if they have an option for a prepaid / Data SIM. Most, if not all the time, it's gonna be better than bringing some Travel Wifi Router. If the SIM option is not available, maybe try and check other brands first before trying Flytpack. It was not worth the money, effort, and stress. 

BTW,

I did send an email complaint on the two days I ranted on their Viber about the intermittent/no connection. I would've ranted for more days, but I stopped using it in favor of the Data SIM card that I got on my 3rd day. Oh, I didn't get any follow-up response after their spiel "We already forwarded your complaint to our technical team". I didn't also get my refund.

Traveling to El Nido Palawan in 2022

 Traveling to El Nido Palawan in 2022

Something to note

- Manila was on Alert Level 2 when we traveled to Palawan. 

Primary Requirements

• Approved S-PASS / Travel Coordination Permit
• Negative Antigen Test Result (taken 24 hours before check-in to your flight to Palawan)
• RT-PCR is needed if you're not vaccinated
• Vaccination Card or Vaccination Certificate

Other Document Requirements

• Plane Tickets
• Hotel Accommodations
• Valid ID

S-PASS

This is fairly simple. 

1. Visit their website and create an account.
2. Click the APPLY PERMIT on the Are you Traveling? section.
3. Key in your Current Location. Key in El Nido in the "Where are you going?" part
1. If you are Flying into Palawan via Puerto Princesa, you still need to select El Nido since it's your final destination
4. It should display to you the requirements that you need. 
1. The requirements that I listed are for the time I traveled. You need to double-check the requirements on this part in case restrictions change.
5. Since I was required to submit a Travel Coordination Permit, I  applied at the bottom of the page.
6. I submitted the Negative Antigen, Plane Tickets, Hotel Accommodations, and Vaccination Cards as my documents.
7. Once you receive your Approved S-PASS/ Travel Coordination Permit, you are good to go.

Negative Antigen Test Result

Home Antigen Kit will not work. Make sure you get your Antigen test at an accredited clinic and they should be able to provide you with the certificate/documentation afterward.

• I got my Antigen Test at TPSN. Fairly Cheap. But their website is crappy.

Vaccination Certificate

You can get your Vaccination Certificate here. If it's not available, just bring your vaccination card.

Pro Tip

Save everything in your phone. They will check this every time! 

Post Timeskip - Boracay Travel

*Timeskip means it happened after the 2-year lockdown due to the pandemic.

Primary Requirements

1. Health Declaration Clearance from the Province of Aklan

• You can visit their site here for details.
• Requirements can be found here.

For our experience, we provided them the following:

• ID that proves you're a resident of this country.
• VaxCertPH Vaccination Certificate
• Flight Details
• Hotel Confirmation Advice. Contact your hotel to get this. 

You will receive an email with a link to get your QR Code for the Aklan Health Declaration Clearance. You will need to show this before boarding the plane going to Caticlan.

2. Other Travel Essentials

You know this already. IDs, Plane Tickets, Hotel Accommodations, Other documents, etc. 

Travel Specifics

1. Our Flight is via Cebu Pacific. We did our web check-in and we didn't have any check-in luggage. The moment we stepped inside NAIA T3, we head straight to the pre-departure area. No-fuss. NAIA T3 Overnight Parking is only available in their open area parking. The multi-level parking is currently closed.
2. We stayed at Zuzuni Boutique Hotel. They are available in Agoda but we decided to contact them directly via their website. This is to confirm that they are actually open, and for the roundtrip transfers. The room we got was beachfront. Not bad.
3. SINOVAC is the brand of our vaccines. They (Cebu Pacific/Aklan/etc) don't really care for this, just as long as you are fully vaccinated. But if in case you are wondering, there. SINOVAC

Some Tips

• Use the Health Declaration Clearance QR as phone Wallpaper. It's easier to show without digging into your bag or your phone apps.
• Bring Cash. Most establishments accept some form of cashless payment (credit card, Shopee pay, etc), but for other things like tips (to people who will carry your luggage), or small thrift shops and food stands, cash is still their only option.
• Bring extra masks =)
• If you perform web check-in, don't wear headphones while in the pre-departure area. Chances are they will call your name to check on your Health Declaration Clearance.
• Ask your Hotel to arrange for your roundtrip transfers. It's very convenient. This will incur additional costs. But maybe you can afford it.