Bacolod City is a fantastic place to spend your next holiday. Not only does Bacolod rank as one of the most livable cities in the Philippines, it is also one of the friendliest. And with its small town feel, it is easy to get around while experiencing all the amenities a half million citizens require.
The city proper features such attractions as the Bacolod Public Plaza, Capital Park and Lagoon, Negros Museum, and the San Sebastian Cathedral. However, if you are wishing for a shopping trip instead, you have nothing to worry about. Bacolod is home to nine major shopping malls and many small outlet stores. No matter what you want, Bacolod is bound to have it somewhere.
Nonetheless, if you plan on visiting other areas outside the city, you have nothing to worry about. Bacolod offers transportation to many great attractions in the metropolitan area and beyond. Whether you are planning to go to Mambukal Resort, one of the many beaches of Negros, or a heritage sight in Negros, there is a bus or jeepney to get you there.
Frankly, public transportation is one of Bacolod’s many bright spots. It’s easy to travel just about anywhere in the Philippines. Local flights are almost hourly to Cebu or Manila and a boat leaves to Iloilo or Cebu every couple of hours. You can even find ships that go to Manila, Cagayan de Oro, and Davao.
Of course, if you are planning to visit Bacolod in October, you won’t want to leave. This is when the city’s famous Masskara Festival takes place. Despite what various biographical websites and newspapers state, the festival really lasts up to three weeks. It begins on the first day of October and ends on the weekend closest to October 19, the city’s charter day.
The Masskara Festival features street dancing, rooftop parties, cosplay competitions, fantasy costume competitions, masquerade parties, midnight sales, and music concerts. Actually, in recent years the festival has become so popular that hotels are sold out all across the metropolitan area the final weekend.
If you are lucky enough to reserve a room at one of the many three and four star hotels in the city, you won’t be let down with the quality service and hospitality the people of Negros are known for.
Wherever you decide to stay and whenever you decide to come, there’s always something to do and somewhere to go. Bacolod is a first class city with first class people.