Places to go in Baguio City
Baguio City is a popular vacation spot in the summer due to its cold climate. Named a UNESCO Creative City of Crafts and Folk Art, many people also visit Baguio to dip their toes into this melting pot of cultures and explore the city’s artsy nooks and crannies.
Whatever it is that you’re planning on going to Baguio for, this list of things to do in Baguio can guide you so you can have a holistic experience of what this mountain city has to offer without breaking the bank.
Table of Contents
- Places to go in Baguio City
- 1. Learn about Cordilleran culture at Museo Kordilyera
- 2. Buy books by local authors at Mt. Cloud Bookshop
- 3. Discover local textiles at Easter Weaving Room
- 4. Take the time to look at flowers at the Baguio Botanical Garden
- 5. Spend a day at Camp John Hay
- 6. Dine at the eccentric Ili-Likha Artists’ Village
- 7. Get the chills at the Diplomat Hotel
- 8. Go ukay-ukay shopping at the Night MarketÂ
- 9. Shop for pasalubong at the Baguio City Public Market
- 10. Get lost in the maze that is the Igorot Stone Kingdom
- Things to do in Baguio City
1. Learn about Cordilleran culture at Museo Kordilyera
An exhibit featuring the art of traditional tattooing
Image credit: Museo Kordilyera
Being home to many different indigenous groups, there is so much to learn about the Cordilleras. For a crash course, tourists can go to Museo Kordilyera.
The museum displays Igorot tools, weapons, textiles, ceramics, and ritual items such as the minahu and bul ‘ul, both wooden representations of Ifugao deities.
You will also find a Qing dynasty jar that’s estimated to be from 1732 to 1735, previously owned by an Ifugao family. One of its handles was removed so the family can keep its alimadduwan or life source.
The museum has a shop where you can buy Cordilleran books, accessories, and home decor made with indigenous textile, and beautiful stoneware.
Museo Kordilyera is located inside the University of the Philippines Baguio. Not to worry, though – visitors are free to enter the campus during the daytime.
Address: UP Drive, Governor Pack Road, Baguio City
Opening hours: Tue–Sun, 9AM-5PM | Closed Mondays
Telephone: (074) 423 0119
Entrance fee: P30 (~USD0.58) for students, P60 (~USD1.17) for adults, 20% discount for senior citizens and PWDs
Museo Kordilyera’s Facebook | Instagram | Website
Image credit: @ict.books
Mt. Cloud Bookshop is an independent bookstore in Baguio that carries a wide selection of Filipino titles, including comics, children’s books, novels, and cultural books.
Some of the popular local titles they carry are the Trese graphic novels and Manix Abrera’s graphic novel spin of Ricky Lee’s Si Amapola.Â
The bookstore also holds open mic events where you can share your poetry with a small audience every third Monday of the month.
Artists also hold exhibits here from time to time, so be sure to check Mt. Cloud Bookshop’s social media pages to get updates on their events.
Address: 1 Yangco corner Brent Road, Baguio City
Opening hours: 9.30AM-6.30PM, Daily
Telephone: (074) 420 9154
Mt. Cloud Bookshop’s Facebook | Instagram
3. Discover local textiles at Easter Weaving Room
Image credit: Lolay/Creative Commons
Cordillera’s textile varieties are as rich and diverse as its cultures. At Easter Weaving Room in Baguio, you can watch local weavers create these cultural pieces, including the pakpako (wild fern) design by the Itnegs in Abra further north.
Here, you can buy their indigenous textiles in the form of clothes, bags, and various home decors such as table runners and rugs. These are ideal for Bohemian-inspired home interiors.
In case you don’t find the fabrics in the form that you want, you can also get these colorful, handwoven textiles by the yard to DIY when you get home.
Address: 2 Easter Road, Guisad, Baguio City
Opening hours: Mon–Sat, 8AM-5PM | Closed Sundays
Telephone: (074) 442 4972
Entrance fee: Free
Easter Weaving Room’s Facebook | Instagram
4. Take the time to look at flowers at the Baguio Botanical Garden
Flower field
Image credit: @reyesalisa
The Baguio Botanical Garden was renovated over the pandemic lockdowns with more plants and flowers, better pathways, and new spots to check out so even repeat visitors will feel like it’s their first time going.
Its new structures include a greenhouse that looks like a smaller version of the iconic rain vortex at Singapore’s Jewel Changi Airport.
New Changi Airport-inspired structure
Image credit: @gyleandreilozares_
There also remain the long-existing structures that were made in honor of other countries the city is on friendly terms with, such as the Taebaek Park dedicated to Baguio’s sister city in Gangwon, South Korea.
To best enjoy the garden’s scenery, you can bring food or have food delivered here for a picnic.
Address: 37 Leonard Wood Rd, Baguio City
Opening hours: 6AM-6PM | Daily
Entrance fee: P10 (~USD0.19)
5. Spend a day at Camp John Hay
One of the many areas in the vast Camp John Hay
Image credit: @grldstvs
Formerly a US military base during the American occupation, Camp John Hay is now a popular vacation spot in Baguio for those who want to be surrounded by pine trees.
You can have a picnic at the tables among pine trees or on vast areas with Bermuda grass. There’s also an eco-trail where you can pick wild berries. These activities won’t cost you anything.
For adventure-seekers, Camp John Hay has paintball, zip-lining, and rappelling activities which you can experience for a fee. There are also restaurants and coffee shops in the area, such as Vizco’s Cafe that’s known for its strawberry shortcake.
Address: Ordonio Drive, Baguio City
Telephone: (074) 422 4360
Entrance fee: Free
Camp John Hay’s Facebook | Instagram | Website
6. Dine at the eccentric Ili-Likha Artists’ Village
Ililikha Artist Village’s exterior
Image credit: @greiseys
Ililikha Artists’ Wateringhole – popularly known as Ililikha Artists’ Village – is a commercial and creative space built around a tree by national artist Kidlat Tahimik.
The multi-level treehouse structure currently houses nine different food concessionaires. One of them is Little Milkyway, a vegan cafe serving mouthwatering health food such as the Mexshroom Vurger and kombucha.
A pathway inside the structure
Image credit: @sabsatizado
Art isn’t only seen in the artists’ village architecture, too. The area has five specialty shops such as Kullaaw which sells art and products from local artists and businesses, and The Living Room which carries plants and home decor.
The Living Room’s corner
Image credit: ROOTS & BONES
There’s also a small cinema filled with wood carvings where special film screenings are occasionally hosted.
Address: 32 Assumption Road, Baguio City
Opening hours: Tues–Sun, 9AM-7PM | Mon 10AM-7PM
Telephone: 0917 517 1071
Entrance fee: Free
Ililikha Artist’s Village’s Facebook | Instagram
7. Get the chills at the Diplomat Hotel
Image adapted from: @pedrouxjr
Diplomat Hotel is the ruins of what was originally a retreat house for Dominican priests that was built in 1913. After undergoing renovations following the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, it became a hotel from 1972 to 1986, thus, its name.
The place saw the horrors of the Japanese occupation, which explains why people believe it’s haunted. There are also reports of ghosts being caught on camera on the site, whether in photos or videos.
Unfortunately for those who want to do some late-night ghosthunting at Diplomat Hotel, visitors are not allowed to stay beyond 5PM for security reasons.
However, those who want to engage in dark tourism in Baguio can also check out other allegedly haunted spots such as the Laperal House and Teacher’s Camp.
Address: Dominican Hill, Diplomat Road, Baguio City
Opening hours: 7AM-5PM, Daily
Telephone: 0926 788 9234
Entrance fee: Free
8. Go ukay-ukay shopping at the Night MarketÂ
Image credit: @whereaboutss_
The Night Market in Harrison Road is a good place to go in Baguio for street food and ukay-ukay shopping, or thrift shopping.
Ukay-ukay culture is huge in Baguio City as the locals love their denim fits and cowboy boots, influenced by the US occupation. For good quality, cheap items, they go to the ukay-ukay.
Thrift shops are also popular in Baguio for wallet-friendly coats and jackets so you can be warm in its cold climate but still stay in style.
There are also plenty of other places for thrift shopping such as Sky World on Session Road, Hilltop at the Public Market, and Bayanihan Center near Burnham Park.
Address: Harrison Road, Baguio City
Opening hours: 9PM-2AM, Daily
9. Shop for pasalubong at the Baguio City Public Market
Fresh strawberries
Image credit: @ky.kusinero
Before heading home, you should drop by the Baguio City Public Market where there are plenty of stalls selling pasalubong or souvenirs, from keychains and t-shirts to walis tambo or soft brooms.
Baguio vegetables
Image credit: @ky.kusinero
You can buy fresh produce such as strawberries and Baguio vegetables that are perfect for chopsuey or pancit, or spreads such as peanut butter, strawberry jam, and ube (purple yam) jam.
Coffee lovers can also get freshly roasted and ground local coffee beans in Sagada, Kalinga, and Benguet blends. Fresh flowers from higher areas of the province are also sold here.
Address: Magsaysay Avenue, Baguio City
Opening hours: 4AM-7PM, Daily
10. Get lost in the maze that is the Igorot Stone Kingdom
Image adapted from: @iamxexen
The Igorot Stone Kingdom features castle-like, stone terraces spanning an impressive 6,000 sqm, making it look almost like a maze. For those who are unfamiliar, Igorot is a collective name for ethnic groups in the Cordillera province where the city of Baguio belongs.
The structure was based on the legend of Sab-angan, the lost Igorot kingdom. It also has towers depicting local myths and indigenous gods, such as Kabunyan, the son of the supreme god Dios Adi Kaila which translates to “the god we do not see”.
The Igorot Stone Kingdom is a fairly new attraction in Baguio City, erected just during the onset of the pandemic lockdowns.
Address: 86 Long Long Road, Pinsao Proper, Baguio City
Opening hours: 6AM-6PM, Daily
Entrance fee: P100 (~USD1.94) for adults, P80 (~USD1.55) for senior citizens and kids, free for toddlers aged 3 and below
Igorot Stone Kingdom’s Facebook
Update: the Igorot Stone Kingdom has been shut down on the 9th of November 2022 and can no longer accommodate visitors until further notice. Please read our article here for details.
Things to do in Baguio City
There are so many things to do in this mountain city that you’ll never have a dull day during your vacation. You’ll certainly find even more of these unique, budget-friendly spots by simply wandering around the city aimlessly.
With the artistic spaces and fascinating experiences it offers, you just won’t be able to help falling in love with Baguio City.
More Baguio city spots to check out:
Cover image adapted from: @greiseys, @reyesalisa, and @grldstvs