Laoag City & Paoay Church

OVERVIEW

Explore the most representative cities in the northwestern Ilocos region, starting with the provincial capital of Laoag City. One of its more unusual attractions is St. William’s Cathedral, known as the Sinking Bell Tower because it sinks into the ground at a rate of one inch every year. You will also see the Abolition of Tobacco Monopoly monument, an obelisk erected in 1882 that commemorates the end of the corporate monopoly that abusively controlled tobacco farming. For a deeper look into the political landscape, you will browse the opulent Malacañang of the North, a former residence of President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda. Now a museum, it overlooks Paoay Lake. Saint Augustine Church in the town of Paoay is even more notable architecturally. It is one of four baroque Roman Catholic churches that together UNESCO deemed a World Heritage site. The pyramid-like early 18th-century structure features heavy buttresses to withstand earthquakes.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Discover some of the definitive urban attractions in the northwestern Ilocos region.
• See a cathedral that’s slowly sinking into the ground and a World Heritage site church.
• Browse an opulent home of former President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife, Imelda.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.