Cebu Fiestas and Festivals

Annual celebrations are observed by Cebuanos in the Philippines called Fiestas and Festivals. These are religious gathering activities that showcase unique dance and music beats. Certain places in Cebu have their distinguished kind of fiesta and or festival . Cebu has one of the most colorful and world-reknowned festivals in the Philippines.  Every time fiesta and festival days draw near on the present day in Cebu, tourists purposely visit the country to witness the uniqeness of Cebu.

Seen below is the complete list of the Fiestas and Festivals in Cebu.

Sinulog Festival
3rd Sunday of January (Cebu City)

Tagbo Festival
19th of January (Poro, Camotes Island)

Silmugi Festival
20th of January (Borbon)

Bodbod Festival
10th Of February (Catmon)

Kabayo Festival
February – Movable (Mandaue City)

Sarok festival
14th of February (Consolacion)

Soli-Soli Festival
18th March (San Francisco, Camotes Island)

Tostado Festival
3rd Sunday of April (Santander)

Haladaya Festival
Easter Sunday (Daan Bantayan)

Kabanhawan Festival
Easter Sunday (Minglanilla)

Bahug-bahug sa Mactan or Kadaugan sa Mactan
22nd – 27th of April (Lapu-Lapu City)

Mantawi Festival
7th of May (Mandaue City)

Tartanilla Festival
12th of June (Cebu City)

Camotes Cassava Festival
2nd week of June (Tudela, Camotes Island)

Palawod Festival
Last week of June (Bantayan, Bantayan Island)

Semana Santa sa Bantayan
Holy Thursday and Good Friday (Bantayan, Bantayan Island)

Kinsan Festival
June – Movable (Aloguinsan)

Kuyayang Festival
June – Movable (Bogo City)

Caballo Festival
25th of July (Compostela)

Dinagat Bakasi festival
2nd week of August (Cordova)

Bonga festival
9th of August (Sibonga)

Siloy Festival
Last Saturday of August (Alcoy)

Kabuhian Festival
3rd Sunday of September (Ronda)

Karansa Festival
3rd Sunday of September (Danao City)

Pitlagong Festival
26th of September (Argao)

Sinanggiyaw Festival
4th of October (Dumanjug)

Inasal (Halad) Festival
14th – 15th of October (Talisay City)

Kabkaban Festival
4th week of November (Carcar City)

Kawayan Festival
2nd of December (Alegria)

Sadsad Festival
8th of December (Oslob)

Tag-anitohan festival
8th – 9th of December (Tudela, Camotes)

Pasyon sa Mandaue
Good Friday to Easter Sunday (Mandaue City)

Fiesta sa Mandaue
May 8 – Week Long Festival (Mandaue City)

Feast of Santa Filomena
Celebrated in the First week of August in Tingo, Olango Island.

Tagbo Poro Festival
Celebrated every January in honor of Patron Santo Niño de Poro in Camotes Island.

Banig Festival
Fiesta celebrated in Badian Cebu in the Month of July.

Cebuanos themselves  dominate the streets, purchase souvenirs, take lots of photos and throw out parties in their own homes. Cebu ranks number one as tourist destination in the Philippines because of Fiestas and Festivals most especially Sinulog. The year is about to begin a new set of gathering activities are prepared and awaited by many. Pack up and get ready for loads of fun and excitement in Cebu.

CEBU is the oldest city in the Philippines. It is called the “Queen City of the South” and the nation’s Seat of Christianity.

Cebu is a province in the Philippines, consisting of Cebu island and 167 surrounding islands. It is located to the east of Negros, to the west of Leyte and Bohol islands. Cebu is a long narrow island stretching 225 kilometres from north to south, surrounded by 167 neighbouring smaller islands, that includes Mactan, Bantayan, Malapascua, Olango and the Camotes Islands. Wikipedia.com

Records have been altering recently. Below are the updated details of Cebu basic facts. Big thanks to the websites and the books I referred in order for me to post the latest reports of some vital facts about Cebu. Sources are indicated at lowest part of post.

Capital : Cebu City

Districts : Eight (8)

Cities : Cebu, Danao, Lapu-lapu, Mandaue & Toledo

Municipalities : 48

Barangays : 1,201

Location : Center of Visayas Islands – 584 km. (385 miles) South of Manila

Population: 2.85 M Cebu Province; 1.5 M Metro Cebu or 53% of the island (NSO data as of 1995)

Climate : Cebu’s weather is relatively moderate, having no distinct wet and dry season, the perfect vacation spot for all seasons. One can bask under the sunshine the whole year through since Cebu is blessed with tropical climate. Humidity is 78 percent, warmest temperature is at 189C usually expected during the months of December to February, while the wettest time of the year occurs during November.

Average Annual Rainfall: 1,638.20 mm
Minimum Monthly Rainfall: 50.40 mm
Maximum Monthly Rainfall: 206.50 mm
Mean Temperature Range: 26.49 C – 28.79 C
Minimum Temperature: 22.69 C
Maximum Temperature: 33.19 C

Land Area : 508,839 hectares (5,088.4 sq. km)

Certified Alienable and Disposable Land : 253,341

Classified Forest Land : 100,775

Unclassified Forest Land : 154.723

Arable Land : 338,816 hectares

Firms Registered (1994-1998) with DTI : 33,911 with SEC : 4,581

Agricultural Products : Corn, rice, legumes, fruit trees, root crops, ornamental plants, coffee, cacao and spices

Topography : Predominantly rugged & mountainous with its highest peak at 1,000 m. above sea level. It is elongated; approximately 250 km. long. Its widest point is 45 km.

Ethnic Origins: Malay mixed w/ Chinese & Spanish ancestry

Languages : Cebuano (spoken by 98% of population), Tagalog, English & Chinese (Fookien & Mandarin)

Dialects : Cebuano is the dialect in the province, which is also widely spoken in the Visayas and Mindanao. Tagalog and English are also spoken and understood.

Dress : Casual dress in light, natural fabrics, preferably cotton. Dinner jacket and tie or Philippine Barong Tagalog for formal events.

Currency : Philippine Peso. Travellers cheques and foreign currency can be exchanged at hotels, banks or authorised dealers. Major credit cards are accepted at major outlets and facilities.

Political The five major cities in Cebu province are Cebu, Mandaue,

Subdivision: Lapu-lapu, Danao and Toledo, while there are 48 towns or municipalities. Facing Bohol Strait is the island’s capital, Cebu City and historic Mactan Island lies just across the city’s harbor. Cebu City is bounded by the City of Mandaue and the Municipality of Consolacion in the north; the city harbor and Bohol Strait in the east; Talisay town in the south and Toledo City in the west. Of the 73 barangays comprising the city, 30 are categorized as mountain barangays with land area totaling 27,797 hectares. There are 6 congressional districts, 3 component cities, namely: Lapu-lapu, Danao and Toledo; 2 highly urbanized cities: Cebu and Mandaue; 48 municipalities; and 1,122 barangays.

Power Capacity: Over 600 mw

Water Supply: 107,337 cu. m

Road Network: 3,811.650 km

By Type of Pavement (in km)
Concrete : 195.602
Asphalt : 605.294
Gravel : 2,837.435
Earth : 173.320

Existing Road Category (in km)
National Road : 622.857
Provincial : 950.074
City : 188.614
Municipal : 404.510
Barangay : 1,645.595

Sea Ports: Cebu International Port and 44 Domestic Ports

Airports: Mactan-Cebu International Airport and 5 Feeder Airports

Information and Communications

Telephone Lines: 324,400 digital lines 12,870 non-digital lines Land-Based Phone Companies: PLDT, Islacom, Cruztelco, Sotelco Cellular Phone Companies: Globe Telecom, Extelcom, Islacom, Philtel, Smart Pager Companies: Beeper 150, EasyCall, InfoPage, Islacom, Pocketbell, Recall 138 Internet Service Providers: 21

Media Facilities:
7 local television channels
3 cable TV stations
20 FM & 13 AM radio stations
A variety of local, national and international papers

Educational Institution
Educational center for 2/3 of the Philippines; has over 1,000 private and public elementary schools; 200 secondary (high) schools; 6 universities; 28 colleges; 10 manpower training centers with an average annual population of 130,000 college students.

Financial Systems
Commercial Banks (50), Off-shore Bus (2), Gov’t. Banks (5), Savings Banks (9) and Rural Banks (27)

Major Industrial Activities
Industrial parts assembly, food processing, furniture, stonecraft, garments, fashion accessories, gifts, toys and housewares (GTH), electronics/electrical equipment manufacturing, coal and dolomite mining

Indigenous Materials

Agricultural products (corn, rice, legumes, mango, coconut, vegetables) Mineral resources (copper concentrate, coal, dolomite, cement, limestone) Citronella grass, clay, pandan, Romblon

Manufactured Products

Semi-conductors Furniture Processed Fruits Gifts, Toys & Housewares Coconut oil Garments Plastic and plastic products Ammonium Nitrate Copra Expeller Cake

Dried fruits Construction bricks Plastic bags Noodles Steel grills Cabs for motorcycles Citronella Oil Bricks (rooftiles

Principal Exports:
Semi-conductor devices, electronic timepieces, electronic components, wire harness, floppy disk drives, photographic equipment, garments, furniture, camera paraphernalia, car stereos, audio/video equipment, carageenan, fashion accessories, coconut oil, frozen shrimps

Flaunt Cebu

ONE OF THE DELIGHTS of living as a Cebuana are the undoubtful positive whims of the public (may it be of my fellow Filipinos or of foreigners) unto me instilled in their minds.

Cebuanos and Cebuanas are naturally creative and skilled. Moreover, they excel in most cases in the field of performing arts, effectiveness and efficiency of work, hospitality and love of fellow citizens.

Accompany me as I indulge myself to the unique Cebu events and tours. Sakay Mo Bai! It’s time to explore the one-of-a kind Cebu! To begin, allow me to tell you a very short story..

ANGELI slowly pressed the shutter button of her family’s camera before a terrific view of a large set of scattered buildings, ringed by streets as she stands steadily on a huge black-colored rock situated on a cliff of Beverly Hills.

Flash* Seconds later, the camera’s LCD screen reviewed a picture forcasting pure mundance beauty and a breath-taking scenery.

Aaaah. It was a vivid panorama of a marvellous province, nothing else but the special CEBU.

In minutes, she’ll be off to another place still in the remarkable province to flaunt everything about it.

The End.

That’s the story. And yes it’s hanging. Follow me as I add up the other parts of Cebu and Me. Come along as I unfold the exciting trips, events and facts about Cebu. Go on an adventure while staying home here in ilovecebu.blog.com

So why I am doing this?

CEBU has been a significant part of my life. It is were I was born, have grown and lived. It contributed a lot in my way of living that made me the person I am today. The place imparted to me the necessity of bearing the good traits and characteristics one pure Cebuana should posses. It has showed to me the wonders of life which are worth remembering.

Today, as a sign of my gratitude of being a Cebuana currently residing in Cebu City, I proudly present to everyone my new blog which is ilovecebu.blog.com. This will serve to everyone their source when it comes to Cebu tour guides, Cebu site reviews and most especially, Cebu event updater.

For the next post you’ll be reading, I strongly recommend these in order:

FACTS and FIGURES

FIESTAS and FESTIVALS

GETTING READY for a WALK

LANDMARKS

LEARNING the LANGUAGE

ROAMING AROUND

Above are actually linked titles of the next seven blog posts of this entry which primarily talk about the basic facts about Cebu. What are you waiting for? EXPERIENCE CEBU NOW!

Until then Mga Igsuon! (my brothers and sisters!)

MABUHAY CEBU!