Thanks Julian, that’s super-helpful! I’ve added some of the info you provided into the post, and gave you a little shoutout. 🙂

1. Under the SIM Card Registration Act, if you register your SIM card using a foreign passport, and you’re only traveling in the country as a tourist, the SIM card itself will only be valid for 30 days. The SIM’s validity can be extended if your tourist visa has been extended, or converted into another type of long-term visa, but I’m not sure about the process for it.

2. You can still top up (or “load”, as we call it here) your Globe or Smart SIM using scratch cards which are available in 100, 300 and 500 peso denominations, and these cards contain simple instructions on how to load them. It is still quite easy to find stores selling them. (A little tip: Information counters at SM and Robinsons Malls sell those scratch cards, and the 300 and 500 peso cards can be bought there at a small discount, typically at 10 to 15 pesos less.)

3. If you have enough top up credits in your SIM card, you can subscribe to call, text and data packages even without Globe’s GlobeOne app or Smart’s GigaLife app. Just dial the USSD code *143# for Globe or *123# for Smart to see the list of packages and subscribe to them, as well as check how much top up credits you still have, and (only for Globe) top up using a scratch card.

4. Network coverage for Globe and Smart vary by location. Personally, I find Globe to have better indoor coverage than Smart most of the time, while Smart has the upper hand in some far-flung provinces. If you’re staying in the Philippines for a very long time, consider getting a dual-SIM phone (a standard feature in most phones sold here for years) and putting both a Globe and a Smart SIM in it, like what most of us do here, to make sure that you have maximum coverage around the country.