A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some

characteristic aspect of that community and its religion or traditions. It is often marked as a
local or national holiday, mela, or eid. Next to religion and folklore, a significant origin
is agricultural. Food is such a vital resource that many festivals are associated
with harvest time. Religious commemoration and thanksgiving for good harvests are blended
in events that take place in autumn, such as Halloween in the northern hemisphere
and Easter in the southern.
Festivals often serve to fulfill specific communal purposes, especially in regard to
commemoration or thanksgiving. The celebrations offer a sense of belonging for religious,
social, or geographical groups, contributing to group cohesiveness. They may also
provide entertainment, which was particularly important to local communities before the
advent of mass-produced entertainment. Festivals that focus on cultural or ethnic topics also
seek to inform community members of their traditions; the involvement of elders sharing
stories and experience provides a means for unity among families.
In Ancient Greece and Rome, festivals such as the Saturnalia were closely associated with
social organisation and political processes as well as religion. [1][2][3] In modern times, festivals
may be attended by strangers such as tourists, who are attracted to some of the more
eccentric or historical ones.[4]

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Ati-Atihan Festival
3rd weekend of January | Kalibo, Aklan
This Sto. Nio festival started it all. One of the oldest religious
celebrations in the country, Ati-Atihan is characterized by a parade filled
with face-painted celebrants, indigenous costumes and weapons, tribal
dances, and loud drumbeats.

Photo by RDexter on Flickr

Tourists who flock to Kalibo for the festivities are free to cover
themselves in black soot and dance on the streets with the drum beats.
Known as the The Filipino Mardi Gras, it is truly an experience not to
be missed.
Sinulog Festival
3rd weekend of January | Cebu City
Cebu also has its own version of the festival in honor of the Sto. Nio. If
you find yourself attending the Sinulog Festival, Pit Seor! is a phrase
you will hear a lot. It means Panangpit sa Seor, a Cebuano phrase
that means to plead to the Seor Santo Nio.

It is one of the most attended festivals in the Philippines, attracting

millions of locals and tourists from all over the world. In 2013, it was
reported that the number of participants reached a whopping four
million.
Sinulog not only sets the stage for Cebuano talents but also for other
regional acts as contingents from neighboring provinces are showcased
through street dancing, pageantry, and sports. It is also known for
hosting the countrys biggest raves, drawing a growing number of party-
goers from all over the country year after year.

Dinagyang Festival
4th weekend of January | Iloilo City
If you happen to know someone from Iloilo, try and ask them about this
Philippine festival. Youll see how their pride for their citys festival is
nothing short of astounding.
Once a year, Iloilo City transforms into one big street party streets
closed, bands in all corners, overflowing food and drinks, and towering
boom boxes. To cap it all off, tribes representing
different barangays and high schools perform in one very competitive
street dancing contest.

Its no wonder how this citys once simple celebration in honor of the
child Jesus (Sto. Nio) ended up bagging several awards including the
Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines (ATOP) title holder
for Best Tourism Event of the Philippines.
According to Iloilo City Tourism Officer Ben Jimena, the winning tribes
are now going international and will be promoting Philippine tourism
to countries like the United States, Canada, and Singapore.
Panagbenga Festival
February | Baguio City
The word Panagbenga comes from the Kankanaey term that means
season of blooming. With the numerous parades of floral floats and
children dressed as flora and fauna, it definitely lives up to its name,
making Baguio the perfect destination for those who still have a
hangover from the huge festivals in January.

Adding to the usual Baguio tourist sites to visit, the whole length of the
Session Road during Panagbenga becomes a feast for the eyes. Called
Session Road in Bloom, Baguios famous street is closed to vehicular
traffic to make way for flower carts, street dancing, and outdoor cafes.
Now that its a huge event bringing in thousands of tourists each year,
its important to plan ahead (make early restaurant reservations, bring a
map, etc.) if you are attending this Philippine festival.

Moriones Festival
Holy Week | Boac, Gasan, and Mogpog, Marinduque
This week-long celebration of the life of St. Longinus is what makes
Marinduque one of the top destinations during Holy Week in the
Philippines. Morion is the helmet worn by the centurions while Moriones
refers to the costumed penitents reenacting the search for St. Longinus,
hunted by his fellow centurions for converting to Christianity.

Photo by Bar Fabella

During the festival you will see Marinduqueos dressed up as
centurions (Moriones) looking for Longinus. One person acts as
Longinus, hiding from them while the townspeople play along and allow
him to hide in their houses. Via Crucis or the reenactment of the
Passion of Christ also happens during this Philippine festival.

Aliwan Fiesta
Last weekend of April | Pasay City, Manila
Aliwan Fiesta is more of a competition than it is a festival. However, it
has undeniably added great value to the growing interest in Philippine
festivals. Although it just started in the early 2000s, it has already gained
a strong fan-base nationwide with more than 5,000 young men and
women from all over the country joining the competition.
For a lot of people who are in Manila, heading to the CCP Complex is
the cheapest way to see quality performances from tribes representing
festivals in their respective provinces. Plus, its always great to see
tribes from Dinagyang and Sinulog give their A-performances to grab
the million-peso grand prize.
Pahiyas Festival
15th of May | Lucban, Quezon
One of the Philippines most colorful harvest festival, May 15th marks
that time of the year when people in Lucban decorate their houses with
different-colored produces in an almost competitive manner.

Photo by Chareze Stamatelaky

Its not uncommon to
see singakamas (turnip), talong (eggplant), sigarilyas (winged bean)
and all the other vegetables and fruits mentioned in the Bahay
Kubo song hanging on the exteriors of their homes. You can actually
bring a basket and pick the produce from the walls for free.
Pintados Festival
29th of June | Tacloban City
Pintados is another festival in honor of the Sto. Nio (yes, this is the 4th
of its kind in the list). It just goes to show how Filipinos want to be
reminded to be childlike in their ways and to place hope in their children.

Photo from jelynnc on Flickr

This festival has been growing in popularity because of the contingents
they send to the Aliwan Fiesta every year. They dont fail to amaze.
Leyte is also the home base of other festivals like Alikaraw, Pasaka, and
the 2009 Aliwan Fiesta champions, Buyogan.

Kadayawan Festival
3rd week of August | Davao City
Kadayawan comes from the Dabawenyo word madayaw, a friendly
greeting which means good or beautiful. Probably the biggest festival in
Mindanao, Kadayawan has everything all other festivals have: street
dancing, beauty pageants, fireworks displays, floral floats.

Photo by Constantine Agustin

It is a celebration of Davaos as well as the rest of Mindanaos
abundance; showcasing flowers, fruits, and other produces that abound
the countrys second largest island. Just two years ago, they even
introduced a week-long street food fiesta in Freedom Park, Roxas
Avenue called Kaan sa Dan.
MassKara Festival
19th of October | Bacolod City
Colorful masks, street dancing, electrical displays and best of all the
sweet smiles of Bacoleas! What more could you ask for?

Photo from oleyography on Flickr

MassKara is a combination of the words mass which means crowd
and kara which means face. You will see participants wearing smiling
masks signifying a multitude of smiling faces, solidifying Bacolods title
as the City of Smiles.

Like Sinulog, it is also swarmed by the younger party crowd as it is

conveniently scheduled during the semester break.

There are still a lot of Philippine festivals not mentioned in this list. The
next time you book a flight, you might want to consider scheduling it
during that destinations festival dates.

Verse 1]
Elementary pa lang, napapansin na nila
Mga gawi kong parang hindi pambabae kasi
Imbes na chinese garter, laruan ko ay teks at jolens
Tapos ka-jamming ko lagi noon
Mga sigang lalaki sa amin

[Verse 2]
Nung ako'y mag high school ay
Napabarkada sa mga bi-curious na babae na
Ang hanap din ay babae
Sa halip na makeup kit, bitbit ko ay gitara
Tapos pormahan ko lagi ay long sleeves na
T-shirt at faded na lonta
[Pre-Chorus 1]
Pero noong nakilala kita
Nagbagong bigla ang aking timpla
Natuto ako na magparebond at
Mag-ahit ng kilay at least once a month
Hindi ko alam kung anong meron ka na
Sa akin ay nagpalambot nang bigla
Sinong mag-aakalang lalake pala
Ang bibihag sa tulad kong tigreng gala

[Chorus]
Kahit ako'y titibo-tibo
Puso ko ay titibok-tibok pa rin sa'yo
Isang halik mo lamang, at ako ay tinatablan
At ang aking pagkababae ay nabubuhayan
Na para bang bulaklak na namumukadkad
Dahil alaga mo sa dilig at katamtamang
Sikat ng araw-araw mong pag-ibig
Sa 'king buhay nagpapasarap

[Verse 3]
Nung tayo'y nag-college ay
Saka ko lamang binigay ang matamis na oo
Sampung buwan mong trinabaho
Sa halip na tsokolate at tipikal na mga diskarte
Nabihag mo ko sa mga tula at sa mga kwento mong pabebe

[Pre-Chorus 2]
Kaya nga noong makilala kita
Alam ko na agad na mayroong himala
Natuto akong magtakong at napadalas
Ang pagsuot ng bestidang pula
Pero 'di mo naman inasam na ako ay
Magbagong tuluyan para patunayang
Walang matigas na tinapay sa mainit na kape
Ng iyong pagmamahal

[Chorus]
Kahit ako'y titibo-tibo
Puso ko ay titibok-tibok pa rin sa'yo
Isang halik mo lamang, at ako ay tinatablan
At ang aking pagkababae ay nabubuhayan
Na para bang bulaklak na namumukadkad
Dahil alaga mo sa dilig at katamtamang
Sikat ng araw-araw mong pag-ibig
Sa 'king buhay nagpapasarap