Cebu City i Filippinerna - våra bästa tips

Writer: Helena Bergström

Cebu City is a bustling Filipino city on the eastern side of the island of Cebu. The city is perfect to explore for a few days before heading out to enjoy the Philippines' stunning island world, with crystal clear waters and beautiful beaches.

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Cebu City in the Philippines

Cebu City has the second-largest international airport after Manila, and this is where we landed when we travelled to Cebu. flew from Stockholm, via Doha. We spent a few days here at the start of our trip, and although we only managed to scratch the surface of the city, we have a few tips to share.

Cebu City is located on the eastern side of the island of Cebu in the Philippines.

Attractions in Cebu City

During our days in Cebu City, we were mostly focused on shopping and preparing for our boat trip around the Philippine islands, and we didn't really prioritise sightseeing. Nevertheless, we did find some interesting places, all in close proximity to each other.

Among other things, we looked at Yap-San Diego Ancestral House at 155 Mabini Street. The house, now a museum, was built in the late 17th century and is considered one of the oldest residential buildings in the Philippines. Don Juan Yap and Maria Florido once lived here.

Right next to the old house you will find another attraction, namely Heritage of Cebu Monument. The monument tells the story of the city, including scenes from the period when the city was under Spanish colonial rule.

Not far from the monument you will find another interesting place, in the form of the street Colon streetwhich is often considered the oldest national street in the Philippines. The street, built in 1565, is named after Cristóbal Colón (Christopher Columbus).

This used to be a major shopping street, but nowadays much of the shopping has moved into large shopping centres. As we understand it, however, a lively night market is organised here during certain months of the year.

Shopping in Cebu City

Cebu City is definitely a shopping city. There are lots of large malls, where you'll find fashion, interior design, tech stores, fast food restaurants and more. You can check out Ayla Centre, SM Seaside and Robinsons Galleria.

In addition to the shopping centres, there are lots of small shops along the roads. Often it seems that a certain type of shop is concentrated in one street. For example, if you want to find tech stuff, there's one street for that, and if you're looking for tools, there's another street...

Restaurants and local specialities

What to eat when visiting Cebu City? Well, that depends on what you're looking for, and what price point you want to be at. Cebu is a big city and there is a lot to choose from. We've read about a popular fish restaurant called Parr't Ebelle, and you can also try Filipino specialities such as "balut" (day-old duck fetus in eggs).

You can also try the Filipino fast food chain Jollibee or sit down at one of the countless simple eateries that line the roads. You can eat things like grilled chicken and pork with rice, but also soups, stews, sausages, offal and fish.

Our favourite place was "Kuya Henry Litson Manok & BBQ" on Juan Luna Ave. Both the chicken and the pork were delicious. so goodso we happily overlooked the fact that you can only buy soft drinks to drink and that you eat with your hand in a plastic bag instead of using cutlery ...

We found beer at our other favourite place, James & James Restobar in Persimmon Square. Here you can drink the common beers Red Horse (dangerously strong!) and San Miguel, and also get a bite to eat if you want, while listening to the bar's playlist of old favourites.

More to see and do in Cebu City

Of course, there's more to see and do in Cebu City than what we've covered. Among other things, you can visit the Jesuit House Museum, Cebu Taoist Temple, Fort San Pedro and Magellan's Cross. It is of course also possible to make various excursions on the island of Cebu, for example to the Cebu Safari Park or to Oslob, where you can dive with whale sharks.

Where can you live?

There are of course lots of different hotels and other accommodation options in Cebu, with varying locations and price ranges. We stayed at the hotel Grand Emilia Hotelwhich was an excellent choice for us. The hotel has a good location and a reasonable price (we paid about 290 SEK/night including breakfast).

Whilst not luxurious by any means, it is fresh, you have everything you need and the staff are friendly. When we were here, breakfast every morning consisted of coffee, water, rice, a simple little omelette and some meaty side dish, such as ham or sausage.

How to get around Cebu City?

There are many ways to get around Cebu. If you're only travelling short distances, walking is fine. If you want to go further, you can choose to go by bus, jeepny, tricycle or moped. We mostly used the app "Grab", which works much like Uber or Bolt. This is a really convenient way to get from A to B, and at a reasonable cost.

More to see and do in the neighbourhood

The Philippines is an amazing island kingdom, and there is always a new island around the corner to explore. Starting in Cebu, we can recommend a trip to the beautiful island of Malapascua. The touristy island Boracay also offers great beaches and a wide range of restaurants and waterfront experiences.

Have you visited Cebu City?

Have you visited Cebu City in the Philippines? How was your experience? Do you have any other tips on what to see and do in Cebu City? Please let us know!

Facts about Cebu City in the Philippines

Country: Philippines
State: Central Visayas
Location: In the centre of the eastern coast of the island of Cebu. There are also suburbs on the island of Mactan.
District: The city is divided into 80 smaller districts, known as barangays.
Metropolitan area: Cebu City is the centre of the Metro Cebu metropolitan area, the second largest in the Philippines, comprising seven cities and six municipalities.
Population: About one million, or about 3 million if you count the entire metropolitan area of Metro Cebu.
Historical facts: Ferdinand Magellan, known as the first circumnavigator, was killed on the island of Mactan off Cebu in 1521, in a battle with the locals under Chief Lapu-Lapu.
Important information: The city has the Philippines' second largest international airport and an important harbour.
Read more: You can find more information on the Philippines' we bbplace f ör tourism.

6 Comments

Add yours →

Kenneth Risberg says:

As a (now retired) diver I have also visited the Philippines, Cebu and Moalboal as shown on your map. The dive centre Kasai Village was just completed in April 2006. The diving was quite ok with a rich wildlife and fine corals. White lovely beaches and curious people. Rented a motorbike and visited the surroundings of Moalboal was a really good experience.
Have a good trip!

04 February 2023 - 7:58

- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Great to hear! We understand that diving is popular here! Nice that you had good experiences!!!
  
  04 February 2023 - 15:32
  
Ditte says:

Have only been here for a couple of nights as a transfer. There is nothing else that attracts more in the Philippines than Cebu. so it was good enough.
Keep up the good work.

04 February 2023 - 15:29

- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  Completely agree that it is other than the big cities that attract the most in the Philippines! However, interesting to see a bit of Cebu too, subject to time of course!
  
  04 February 2023 - 15:34
  
BP says:

Honestly, I had never heard of Cebu. Manila as the capital is the city you read/hear about.
Oh how incredibly cheap it is there. There are no major expenses on the food account. Oh you should take the custom where you come, both in terms of dishes and how to eat them. However, the limit goes to duck foetus;-) Have you tried?

04 February 2023 - 17:29

- Comment by post author
  
  Helena says:
  
  The pricing here is really hospitable, so to speak. No, we haven't tried the eggs with duck foetus. It's considered a delicacy here and we'll see if we feel like trying it one day, but well, we honestly don't feel very attracted to this delicacy.
  
  05 February 2023 - 12:24

Cebu City in the Philippines - our top tips

Writer: Helena Bergström

Cebu City in the Philippines

Attractions in Cebu City

Shopping in Cebu City

Restaurants and local specialities

More to see and do in Cebu City

Where can you live?

How to get around Cebu City?

More to see and do in the neighbourhood

Have you visited Cebu City?

Facts about Cebu City in the Philippines

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6 Comments

Kenneth Risberg says:

Helena says:

Ditte says:

Helena says:

BP says:

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