Vigan City Tour

OVERVIEW

See the highlights of Vigan City for an overall understanding of what UNESCO hails as the best-preserved example of a planned Spanish colonial town in Asia. On the outskirts, you will find Bantay Church, whose 16th-century bell tower first served as the town’s watchtower. For a glimpse into the local culture, you will browse a complex of four museums, each focusing on a different aspect of the Philippines. Once done, travel to Vigan National Museum, an ancestral house constructed in 1788, which was declared as a historical building owing to its association with the martyred priest, Fr. Jose Burgos (1837-1872), whose death along with two other priests sparked the anti-Spanish colonial resistance. Vigan City is also recognized for its outstanding earthenware, as you will discover at Pagburnayan Pottery. The famed burnay jars produced there were originally made by Chinese immigrants who found the quality of the region’s natural clay to be excellent. Now mostly decorative, burnay jars were once used to hold wine and fermented fish because they supposedly tasted better when stored in the jars. Later, while walking along cobblestoned Calle Crisologo, you will see an array of architectural gems, including homes with Spanish, Mexican and Chinese influences.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Visit key attractions that define Vigan City, an acclaimed UNESCO World Heritage site.
• See treasures such as Bantay Church and residences with various architectural influences.
• Browse a museum complex and a pottery factory that produces coveted burnay jars.
• Meander along Calle Crisolgo, the street where the affluent lived in the colonial era.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.