Dalaguete, Finally!

Two weekends ago, I was finally able to see the town church of Dalaguete. True, it wasn’t my first time in Dalaguete. However, it was the first time that I saw the awesome structure with my own eyes. One time, I tried to ‘discover’ where the church was and I ended up taking pictures of the town market. My mistake was that I didn’t ask around. Because the church was just literally behind the town market.

When you first look at the town church of Dalaguete, you will remember two other southern churches because of its size, shape, and appearance – the town church of Oslob, and the town church of Argao. The town church of Dalaguete, like most heritage churches in Cebu, is also facing the sea. And it is surrounded by stone walls to keep it safe from Moro pirates who frequently attacked these structures in the past. Of course, there’s the Bantayan sa Hari or watchtower which was constructed for security purposes.

Anyway, I thought that the church was the only thing that I could blog about during this trip. Well, it turned out that Dalaguete is such a beautiful place that we ended up staying longer that expected. There is just a lot of things to see in Dalaguete.




Take this gorgeous spot, for example. Dalaguete is truly a gem!


The municipal hall and museum of Dalaguete along the South National Highway.

A small grotto/altar right beside the town church.

Belfry of the church.

One of the many doors of the church. And me, of course. Hahaha.

The centuries-old tree is now taller than the bell-tower. Wow!

The town church of Dalaguete. Gorgeous.

The convent looks wonderful!

View of the convent and the small plaza in front of the church.

A small ‘covered bridge’ connecting the convent and the church. Gorgeous!

An angel near the door.

Main altar of the church. Really beautiful.

One of the smaller altars inside the church.

Virhen sa Guadalupe.

Closer shot of the statue of Cebu’s Patron Saint.

And Cebu’s protector Senyor Santo Niño.

A statue of Jesus in the middle of the town plaza in front of the church. The image is facing the church.

Age-old trees in front of the church. Nice!

A recently-rehabilitated watch tower just outside the walls of the church compound.

The seawall facing Negros. And by the way, that’s Sir Jay from Makati. He taught me a few things about photography. He has a nice camera. 🙂

Awesome! Awesome! Awesome!




Visit Dalaguete, today!

44 thoughts on “Dalaguete, Finally!

  1. Seeing your pictures of this town make me think of planning to go there and see it for myself also! Nice, nice one you got here.. I wanted to go see their old church and especially those huge trees. Thanks for your blog! ^_^

  2. Another BIG WOW, Ley. Great pics. You have really enticed me to visit the South again in my next Cebu visit puhon with my hubby since we went North the last time we were there years ago before your blog was even born.

  3. Maybe I can visit in 2012 because we are planning to have a two month’s Holliday in Carcar.
    Also our son ho will be born in April this year will be baptist in Carcar.

  4. i really.. really missed this place where my bones grown… i have to be here few months later… and Ley maybe you forgot already.. yesterday was the annual fiesta of Dalaguete… nindot e laag unta da kay naa’y gitawag ug.. UTANON FESTIVAL(^_^) i missed a lot of this place.. my loving hometown..

  5. those were nice pictures Ley..gimingaw man hinuon ko sa akong lungsod nga natawhan..it’s our town fiesta today feb 10,2011 and it marked the 300 years of the town of Dalaguete..I’ve heard from my family that it is gonna be a 4-day fiesta celebration. Viva Sr. San Guillermo!!!Utanon Festival..mananghid pod ko unta nimo nga akong ishare ang link sa akong FB aron sad daghan makabisita sa imong blog,kay proud baya ko nimo…Thank’s for bringing me home even if i’m here from afar.

      1. “This town is situated in the southern coast of Cebu, in a plain on the shores of the sea; it is more than 14 leagues from Cebu and borders at its northeast with Argao at southwest with Alcoy, an annex of Boljoon about 1 1/2 leagues; and at the east, the sea which separates it from Bohol, about 5 or 6 hours of crossing.” (source: Felipe Redondo, 1880, pp. 154-155 as quoted in the coffee book ‘Balaanong Bahandi’)

  6. Wow! What a beautiful, clean and peaceful looking town! That’s so wonderful that the church also happens to face the sea. That’s a huge old church–I love the sweet angel by the door..
    How far is Dalaguete from the city?

  7. It is where the original municipality was established now it is transferred along the seacoast and the town s church was constructed..Based on the church records the construction started in November 2 1835 under Fr. The church is the very place where the Christianization of the natives took place.

    1. hi nickle. i think i’d pick oslob or dalaguete in the south and carmen and catmon in the north. 🙂

      these municipalities are not too far from cebu. and they have excellent coastal roads. 🙂

  8. Once again… you did an awesome jobs with your photo blog. Keep up the good work bai and CONGRATS for job well done. I’m gonna share this one too on my FB for my friends to see ug mawala gamay ilang homesick 🙂

  9. Someday, bisita ko didto. Kanang Dalaguete, Ley, mao ba nang lugara nga ang kalayo nikalatkat sa balumbong? Wa ko ka sure. Sayop siguro ko.

    1. THAT IS COMPLETELY HYPERBOLE…They are just exaggerating.I was born and was raised in Dalaguete but i could not remember any single instance that i said “kalatkat sa Balumbong”…siguro mas maayo mahinumduman ang among lugar as the vegetable basket of Cebu..so i guess,di na siguro maayo nga atong i-tag akong mahal nga lungsod ana nga statement. Daghang Salamat..

      1. No offense meant to your beautiful hometown, Anthony. The comment is indeed juvenile. “Vegetable Basket of Cebu” sounds much better. I haven’t been there, but this moniker conjures an image of bountiful farms, hardworking folks, and an artisanal community.

        1. thank you takdol..you are very welcome to our humble town of Dalaguete. If naa lang ko didto,i would like to personally give you a tour around town and bring you to the famous local landmarks and also visit the Little Baguio of Cebu which is Mantalongon,Dalaguete. God Bless

  10. This is where I grew up, my beautiful hometown. Tho I’ve been away for so long, passing thru it on my way to the city from where i now live in Oroquieta City, or staying for a while on occasions, it never fails to bring tears to my eyes, knowing how i loved this place so much with all the happiest memories of my childhood. Thanks so much for the wonderful fotos, you really captured the beauty and soul of Dalaguete. We wanted so much to attend the Tricentennial Celebration as we were among the 300 sponsoring couples, but other matters kept me away, I so miss my beloved hometown and all my Osorio relatives and childhood friends. I wish them all well. Thank you, thank you so much for this blog!

  11. Hi Ley, dugay na ko nagsunod ining imong page. Everytime mo open ko sa internet, mobisita gyud ko dinhi kay mawa akong kamingaw sa Pinas. But karon lang gyud ko mo comment kay gikan gyud ko sa Dalaguete. Nindot kaayo ang mga pictures Ley.
    Thanks for bringing us home thru this page.
    God bless you more!

  12. This is my mom’s hometown..we had our prenup there as well..at the same church and the plaza..how come ur pics are more beautiful than our prenup pics???hehhehe=) i so0o love ur pics..

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