In Ángeles, located about eighty kilometers from Manila in the Philippines, a lucrative form of sex tourism called the “girlfriend experience” thrives, attracting primarily Korean, Japanese, American, Australian, and New Zealander clients. Women—often very young and sometimes underage—dance nearly nude in bars along Field’s Avenue, managed by strict “Mama Sans,” and can be taken out for a “bar fine” of around 1,000 to 1,500 Pesos (15–25€). Clients then bring them to hotels or restaurants, sometimes adding more women to the group for the night, and may prolong the experience at beaches or hotel pools. Sexual activities typically occur without protection in a devoutly Catholic country where abortion is both illegal and widely condemned. Around twelve to fifteen thousand young women, largely from impoverished areas and slums, work in bars listed in free tourism guides, while transsexual prostitution also operates openly. This industry supports many peripheral vendors—selling items like Viagra, candies, cigarettes, and stuffed toys—alongside inflated hotel rates, late-night dining options, and motorcycle taxis. Despite official denials and the occasional police raids, bars reopen quickly, hinting at an entrenched system of corruption. The origins of massive prostitution in Ángeles trace back to the nearby Clark Air Base, formerly the largest American military installation outside the U.S., closed in 1991. Today, while an international airport and a military cemetery remain, the sex trade continues unabated, with tourists having replaced the soldiers and countless fatherless children left in the wake of the “girlfriend experience.”
