Heritage Village of Vigan

Philippines / Ilocos / Bantay /
 village, cultural heritage / national heritage, UNESCO World Heritage Site
It is listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, because of its Hispanic like towns in the Philippines, and is well-known for its cobblestone streets, and a unique architecture that fuses Philippine building design, and construction with colonial European architecture.

This is the preserved tourist attraction of Vigan, Ilocos Sur . This is the only place in Vigan where the cobblestone street have been preserved and the houses/buildings retained their relic-like appearances .

Only calesas ( a horse driven carriage, transportation used during Spanish era)are allowed to pass through here. It is such a short stretch that people are encouraged to just walk and enjoy eating their "empanada" ( a local bread with meat and potato fillings. It ante-dates Nueva Segovia(Lallo, Cagayan) by at least 20 years since the Legaspi expedition to the north by Spain was via land!!Note that the church architectures are quite similar with San Agustin Church in Intramuros (Manila) and Legaspi Cathedrals(Albay in Bicol).

whc.unesco.org/en/list/502
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigan
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   17°34'24"N   120°23'16"E

Comments

  • i miss vigan so much...i have never been home for almost a year and i am opting i can visit my hometown with my son....i terribly miss the most my family in san julian norte vigan city
  • VIGAN IS REALLY A PLACE TO BE... it may be a small place a lot of things you can do.... anywhere you can see food...just simply drop by and have b-b-q or empanada..fishball...kikiam and miki...sinanglao... balut..oh my, i tell you, yopu'll love eating them want to ride with mr horsie...try using the CALESA...feel like going to the beach?well there are a lot where you can go to its just that it will be cheaper if you have your own wheels so menus gastos...hahahaha...VIVA VIGAN...IM PROUD TO BE A BIGUENO
  • Turn Back time at Vigan....
  • Vigan is a nice place to stay, its just that its too much commercialized. Especially the heritage. I was hoping to see really old houses with people living in it the traditional style but what I saw was the boutiques and food chains scattered around the place. The building were of course renovated but the renovation was also commercialized(using cheapest materials). The roofs were supposed to be made of bricks just like in Cagayan de Oro(Mindanao) but instead were made of metal!!! The place in the outskirts were fun though, visiting old clans and tasting their secret clan recipes were something you should do(bagnit, bibingka, empanadas(trust me, the commercial empanada is way low compared to the feeling you get eating homemade clan empanada), and the barbecue). If you like, you can even eat vegetable ice creams(ampalaya, malunggay, squash flavours). Visit Vigan! lots of things to see in there!
  • If you really want to turn back the clock, Vigan is the best place to be in.It was not bombed in WWII and has survived the rigors of time and you could eeriely feel the ghosts of those who peopled the area during the old days.Try Vigan and you will not regret it a bit since it is not just a historical delight but a culinary heaven as well!! I am proud that my ancestry leads back to Vigan, Ilocos Sur!!! Percy
  • I'm a Batangueno but my wife is from Manabo, Abra. And We're planning to go here at next oppurtunity on my next vacation. I was working at sea for 23 years now. Hoping our planned will pushed through because I've been already in different and far away places and sailed around the world; however, I've not yet been here in Vigan, Ilocos Sur. So excited and can't wait anymore to see this place so nice, nostalgic and full of good foods.
  • Show all comments
This article was last modified 12 years ago