Discover 11 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in San Fernando (Philippines). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Paskuhan Village, Pampanga Provincial Capitol, and San Guillermo Parish Church. Also, be sure to include Santa Monica Parish Church in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in San Fernando (Pampanga).
Table of Contents
Paskuhan Village
Theme park in San Fernando City, Philippines. The Paskuhan Village, officially known as the Philippine Christmas Village also known as Hilaga, is a Christmas-themed park located in San Fernando, Pampanga, Philippines. It is operational all year-round and is under the management of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority.[1]
Pampanga Provincial Capitol
Local government office in San Fernando City, Philippines. The Pampanga Capitol is the seat of government of the province of Pampanga in the Philippines. The original building was constructed shortly after the provincial capital of Pampanga was transferred from Bacolor to San Fernando in 1904. Annexes were added before the war. It was the site of a major battle between the Philippine Commonwealth troops and local guerrilla forces and the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II.
The Pampanga Provincial Capitol is one of the most beautiful civil architectural landmarks in the province.[2]
San Guillermo Parish Church
Catholic church in Bacolor, Philippines. San Guillermo Parish Church in Bacolor, Pampanga, Philippines is named after San Guillermo, the town's patron saint. The church was originally constructed by the Augustinian Friars in 1576 – also the town's founding – with Padre Diego de Ochoa, OSA, becoming the town's first parish priest two years later.
In 1880, the church was destroyed by an earthquake, and rebuilt by Fr. Eugenio Alvarez in 1886. On September 3, 1995, lahar flow from the slopes of Mount Pinatubo which erupted on June 15, 1991, buried the church to half its 12-metre (39 ft) height, prompting more than 50,000 town residents to evacuate to safer grounds in resettlement areas. Near the façade of the parish church is a museum on the history of the church. It also contains paintings of the Pinatubo eruption in 1991.[3]
Address: McKinley Rd., 2001 Bacolor
Santa Monica Parish Church
Catholic church in Minalin, Philippines. The Santa Monica Parish Church, commonly known as the Minalin Church, is a Baroque church, located in poblacion area of San Nicolas in Minalin, Pampanga, Philippines. The church, built during the Spanish era, was declared a National Cultural Treasure by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the National Museum of the Philippines on August 27, 2011, one of 37 churches in the country bestowed that honor.
The parish church is part of the ecclesiastical province of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando, under the Vicariate of Christ The King. The church is under the patronage of Saint Monica of Hippo, with a feast day celebrated annually every second Sunday of May. The current parish priest is Rev. Fr. Eric de Guzman succeeding Rev. Fr. Greg Vega.[4]
Minalin
Municipality in the Philippines. Minalin, officially the Municipality of Minalin, is a 4th class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 48,380 people.
Originally known as Minalis, it has a land area of about 48.27 km2 (18.64 sq mi), and it is located south-west of the capital city of San Fernando.
The town is known for its 400-year-old church, the Santa Monica Parish Church, with its unique design that incorporates pre-colonial architectural motif alongside its European Catholic iconography. Minalin is also known for its "Aguman Sanduk" New Year's Celebration, where in which the town's straight men dress up as beauty queens and ride through town on festive floats. The town is also referred to as the "Egg Basket of Central Luzon" because of its large-scale production of eggs and chickens, prompting the town to put up the Philippines' first egg festival in 2008.[5]
Mexico
Municipality in the Philippines. Mexico, officially the Municipality of Mexico, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 173,403 people. It was also formerly known as Nuevo México during the Spanish period.[6]
Bacolor
Municipality in the Philippines. Bacolor, officially the Municipality of Bacolor, is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 48,066 people.
Bacolor is the birthplace of Father Anselmo Jorge de Fajardo, considered the "Father of Kapampangan literature" for writing the 1831 Kapampangan "kumidya" Don Gonzalo de Cordova.[7]
Camp Olivas
Elementary school in San Fernando City, Philippines. Camp Olivas is the regional headquarters of the Police Regional Office 3: and is located in Brgy San Nicolas along Mac Arthur Highway, Camp Olivas, City of San Fernando, Pampanga. It was named after Captain Julian Olivas.[8]
Augusto P. Hizon House
The Augusto P. Hizon House is a heritage house in the City of San Fernando in the Pampanga province of the Philippines. The house is located along Consunji Street in the city.[9]
Lazatin House
Historical landmark in San Fernando City, Philippines. The Lazatin House is one of the two heritage houses owned by the Lazatin family in the City of San Fernando, Pampanga province in the Philippines.[10]
Hizon–Singian House
Historical landmark in San Fernando City, Philippines. The Hizon-Singian House is a Bahay na Bato heritage house located in the City of San Fernando, Pampanga. Built in 1870 by the couple Don Anacleto Hizon, gobernadorcillo of San Fernando from 1877-1879 and 1886-1887, and Victoria Singian de Miranda y de Ocampo. Inherited by their daughter Victoria Hizon y Singian who was married to Godofredo Rodriguez y Yabut from Bacolor. It was occupied during the 1896 revolution by Spanish General Antonio Ruiz Serralde, appropriated by the Japanese Imperial Army to serve as a military hospital and barracks from 1943 to 1944, and served as headquarters of American General Walter Krueger of the 6th American Army during the liberation period until the end of 1945. Inherited by their son, the late Gerry Catalino Rodriguez Y Hizon, former president of the Pampanga Sugar Development Company, who was married to Aurora Angeles. This bahay na bato of the Spanish colonial period was declared a Heritage House by the National Historical Institute on 27 January 2003 by virtue of Resolution No. 4, S. 2003.[11]