Iloilo-Guimaras Tour (Last Part): Iloilo City Tour

Iloilo is primarily a business district. It is highly urbanized compared to the cities of nearby provinces. So if you're looking for tropical beach setting, you'll be disappointed. But if you're into architecture, history and food tasting, Iloilo has a lot to offer.

Transportation is easy and cheap. Enjoy the local culture by travelling via jeepneys. The drivers are very helpful but you must try to understand their language since they are using Hiligaynon. Feel free to ask the people since they are very helpful. Minimum fare is just P7.50. A half-day is enough to visit relevant places.

Places to see:

1. Iloilo Museum

Iloilo Museum is located just beside the provincial capitol. It is five minutes away from the city proper. You can actually get there on foot if you're into walking around the city. You can find artifacts and Ilonggo artistry. The museum also showcased budding painters when we went there. Entrance fee to the museum is P50.

2. Iloilo Provincial Capitol and the Arroyo Fountain

What make this places significant is there architecture. The Provincial office has an impressive facade which may remind you of the White House. The Arroyo fountain is just in front of the old capitol building.

3. Old Churches

Iloilo has a lot of old churches with Gothic architecture. Almost every town has its own church. During our trip, we specifically went to Jaro Church where the famous Jaro Belfry Tower is located in front of it. We also saw the church in Molo area where a big plaza is located in front of it. Plaza Libertad is also worth seeing and it's also near the city proper. Miag-ao and San Joaquin Churches are famous but they are far from the city proper so we weren't able to see them.

4. Schools

One thing that impressed upon me during our Iloilo City tour is the presence of a lot of universities- Assumption, St. Paul, San Agustin, UP, etc. Visit these places for their old acrhitecture.

5. Smallville

Smallville is the place for nightlife in Iloilo. This is reminiscient of Timog, Eastwood and Metrowalk in Manila. This is near SM City.

6. Villa Baybay

This is where the well-known Tatoy's Manokan and Seafoods is located along with similar restaurants. You can eat along the shore if you request for it. Sunset is spectacular at around 5:45 to 6:15 pm. Food is tasty and affordable. They also have big servings.