If you hear Vigan City what comes out on your mind was the heritage village, the Kalesa (horse wagons), the old Spanish houses, the beautiful street lights during night and of course the ads of the song bird Regine Velasquez campaigning the tourist destinations of the Philippines “Tara Na, Byahe Tayo” which they feature the Heritage Village of Vigan City. Visiting Vigan City is one of our dreams as a couple and I think we are not the only one who dreamt to visit this wonderful heritage village of Vigan.
This tour is part of Travel in the Norte where we visited the famous tourist destination in Ilocos Region from North to South. The City of Vigan is located on the western coast of the large island of Luzon, facing the South China Sea and it was built in the 16th century and the Saga of this town was continued well into the 20th century. This town became a ghost after World War II and they took decades to resurrect the city. This Historic Town of Vigan was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, the structure of the houses was combining of the Spanish, Mexican, and Chinese with the colonial styles which makes this place rich in history and culture. I think there are only a few Hispanic towns left in the Philippines where its structures remained intact and Vigan City is one of these which also known for its cobblestone streets.
The purpose of naming the village as a Heritage site is to be able to preserve the culture and history of the Ilocos Region. By exploring this wonderful city you can rent a Kalesa ride which you can found them at the street of the heritage village or the best way is to walk around the village to see the details of every structure of their buildings.
During our tour around this heritage village we choose to walk than to ride the Kalesa because we want to feel how nice walking in the village who full of history and happen to the witness how this City transforms.
If you have planned to explore Vigan City don’t forget to visit the Vigan Cathedral that built in the Baroque style and withstand earthquakes.
I especially like that 3rd pic.. it creates a different feel of Vigan… sayang it’s only Calle Crisologo that looks like that. Would’ve been great if the cobble stone streets extended some more