Makati - An Introduction

The City of Makati, or simply Makati, is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the greater metropolitan area of the national capital of the Philippines. It is the major financial, commercial and economic hub in the Philippines, often referred to as the Financial Capital of the Philippines since many global companies have their offices and headquarters in the city. Makati is also home to the influential Makati Business Club and the Philippine Stock Exchange. Ayala Avenue, running through the heart of downtown Makati Central Business District is often called the Wall Street of the Philippines and is home to thousands of call center employees.

I've lived in Makati for over 3 years and I can say its not unlike many major metropolitan capitals - there is the traffic, the glitz, and the masses - common in everyplace from New York, to Paris, to Hong Kong. During the daytime, hundreds of thousands of people are added to the Makati population, working at the downtown's many office towers and business villages such as Legaspi Village and Salcedo Village. But during Saturdays and Sundays, the streets are quiet and you can take advantage of things like the Salcedo Village Saturday morning market for all sorts of delicacies to quiet walks in Ayala Triangle Park. Numerous bars and restaurants line the streets of Salcedo Villages making it feel like a quiet part of New York City on some Saturday afternoons.

Makati is noted for its highly cosmopolitan culture, also being a major cultural and entertainment hub in Metro Manila. Many expatriates live and work in the city. Makati is also home to many first-class shopping malls, which are located at Ayala Center and Rockwell Center. Makati also has the tallest buildings in the Philippines like PBCOM Tower, G.T. International Tower, and the 6780 Ayala building.

The city also has many of the country's five-star hotels like The Peninsula Manila, the Shangri-La Hotel Makati and the Intercontinental Hotel Manila. Coming soon is a Raffles hotel as well as a Fairmont Hotel across from Greenbelt 3 which will make the Greenbelt area the core of five-star living during your stay in Makati.

Independent business travelers staying in Makati also benefit from budget hotels like the Saint Illian's Inn, The Tower Inn, El Cielito Inn, The Copa Businessman's Hotel, and The City Garden Suites, while serviced apartments like The Salcedo Suites, Rockwell Suites, Fraser Place Manila, Jupiter Suites (Jupiter Arms Hotel) and The Oxford Suites are gaining in popularity among business-minded travelers as well staying in Makati.

If you have any questions about staying in Makati, leave a comment and I'll do my best to reply as quickly as I can.