Cebu, Tropical Paradise with a Rich History

Most of the South East Asian tourist destinations are famous for their scenic beauty but Cebu although blessed with stunning natural settings also has a rich 500 years long history. In 2010 it was ranked as the third best tourist destination of Asia by the Newsweek and was visited by more than two million tourists.

Also, read: Visit The Wonderful Cebu To Spend A Truly Refreshing Holiday

The colonial era Spanish architecture has always been the main attraction of the place which includes the Philippine’s largest church and the famous San Pedro Fort. This is the country’s premier tourist spot and is the main revenue engine for the tourism industry of Philippines. The trend has not changed this year as well in fact the tourist traffic has increased even more making it one of the most visited destinations in Asia.

The Philippines government has put a lot of efforts to improve the tourism infrastructure of the place and in the result, it has become one of the most accessible destinations in the region. It has its own airport and you can easily find cheap flights to Philippines from most of the major European airports. To cater to the needs of the increasing tourist traffic a lot of new hotels have opened up recently which provides quality services to the visitors. As said earlier the city is rich in natural beauty but the main attraction is its architecture as most of the buildings are part of the UNESCO’s world heritage sites.

The first place most of the tourist’s head to is the San Pedro Fort which is the oldest still surviving Spanish fort in the region. The fort is located along the shore of the island with its 14 cannons pointed towards the sea. It was recently renovated by the local authorities but it retains the vintage feel of the old fort and has a large museum within its walls to provide you with ample information about the history of the fort and of the town itself.

The second major attraction is Philippine’s oldest still standing church, Santo Nino which started as a humble wooden structure around 450 years ago but now is a large stone building which has been renovated by the local authorities while putting a lot of emphasis on the details. Just a few meters away from the church is the Magellan’s Cross which according to tradition is the place where the first cross of the Philippines was erected.

The best way to explore both the places is by taking a guided tour of them for which you can ask for one of the many tour operators in the town. Most of the historical buildings are located on the northern side of the island so it will be a good idea to get a hotel there but the prices are a little higher than the ones on the southern side. If you are interested in the scenic beauty of this tropical paradise then the southern side will be the place to head for as it has some stunning landscape, caves and waterfalls.