Baguio City's 2023 Panagbenga Festival comes to a beautiful close
When it comes to Philippine festivals, who doesn't know about the month long flower festival of Baguio City? The Panagbenga Festival is an annual fiesta that locals and tourists all over the Philippines and abroad look forward to celebrating.
Published Mar 6, 2023 09:02 am
When it comes to Philippine festivals, who doesn’t know about the month long flower festival of Baguio City? The Panagbenga Festival is an annual fiesta that locals and tourists all over the Philippines and abroad look forward to celebrating.
The term “Panagbenga” comes from a Kankanaey term meaning “season of blooming.” The festival is always celebrated during February, a month when Benguet flowers are abundant and in full bloom. Besides showcasing the abundance of flowers, the festival is also a celebration of the culture and history of the Cordilleras.
2023’s theme was “A Renaissance of Wonder and Beauty.” The festival opened with a grand parade of people, cultural dancers, and marching bands, with a route that started from Panagbenga Park, ending at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds.
*The Panagbenga Festival opens with a grand parade highlighting the culture and talent of the Cordilleras. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
That marked the beginning of a month full of festivities. February was filled with different celebrations of parades, cultural performances, trade fairs, and competitions that would highlight the beauty of the Cordilleras.
*The entrance to the trade fair and stalls at Burnham Park’s Rose Garden. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Panagbenga also allowed different communities and hobbyists of Baguio City to make their presence known and be part of the festival.
*Aside from the ethnic communities of the province, modern communities and hobbyists of the city also get to participate in the parades of the festival. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
Among the multiple competitions held, one especially interesting was the landscaping competition. Landscapers of Benguet went head to head and displayed their creativity and skill in creating a wondrous garden. The competition entries were displayed at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds.
Accompanying the garden masterpieces were different plant and flower sellers hailing from the different provinces of Benguet. Plants from Buguias, Atok, Bahong, and other areas were displayed and sold to the crowd of tourists flocking to the grandstand to watch the concerts and events held there.
*The landscape competition showcased the skill and creativity of the landscapers of the North. Landscape entries are displayed at the Melvin Jones Football Grounds and accompanied by plant sellers from different areas of Benguet. (Jazz Quiambao)*
One of the most-awaited events of Panagbenga is, of course, the Grand Float Parade. People come in crowds to watch floats decorated with flowers of the province. The Grand Float Parade is also a competition for the best float design.
*TIEZA won first place for the big float category. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
The parade’s route began at the province’s Department of the Interior and Local Government office and ended at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds, where the floats were displayed for several days.
*A local flower farm, Zaparita Garden, won first place for the small float category. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
For the last few days of Panagbenga, the festival holds what it calls “Session in Bloom” held in Session Road, the city’s center of commercial activity. Both sides of the 1.7 km road are closed to vehicles and are instead filled with stalls set up by a wide variety of local businesses. From clothes, to shoes, to snacks, to coffee, and even woodworks and furniture, there’s nothing that Session Road doesn’t offer during this time.
*Flowers and ornamentals from different farms in the province of Benguet are gathered to be sold at Panagbenga’s Session in Bloom. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Some of the stalls sold ornamentals grown from many different farms of Benguet. Others also took the opportunity to sell locally grown produce.
*One of the many fruit and produce stalls at Session Road. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Session Road was also full of mascots and street performers who entertained the crowd with comedic acts or a show of talent.
*In the spirit of Panagbenga, street entertainers decorate their costumes with flowers. (Jazz Quiambao)*
The upper part of Session Road had another stage set up for more concerts and performances. The awarding and closing ceremony was held at this stage.
There’s nothing more perfect to close the festivities than an explosion of flower-like lights in the sky. For a grand finale, major areas of Baguio arranged a grand fireworks display. Session Road and Burnham Park each had their own display of fireworks that lit Baguio City’s night sky.
*For a grand finale, fireworks bloom like flowers and light up Baguio City’s night sky. (Noel Esquejo)*
With that, 2023’s Panagbenga Festival has come to a glorious and beautiful end. It’ll be another year till Baguio gets to experience this again.
*Photos courtesy of Jazz Quiambao*
*The Panagbenga Festival opens with a grand parade highlighting the culture and talent of the Cordilleras. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
That marked the beginning of a month full of festivities. February was filled with different celebrations of parades, cultural performances, trade fairs, and competitions that would highlight the beauty of the Cordilleras.
*The entrance to the trade fair and stalls at Burnham Park’s Rose Garden. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Panagbenga also allowed different communities and hobbyists of Baguio City to make their presence known and be part of the festival.
*Aside from the ethnic communities of the province, modern communities and hobbyists of the city also get to participate in the parades of the festival. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
Among the multiple competitions held, one especially interesting was the landscaping competition. Landscapers of Benguet went head to head and displayed their creativity and skill in creating a wondrous garden. The competition entries were displayed at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds.
Accompanying the garden masterpieces were different plant and flower sellers hailing from the different provinces of Benguet. Plants from Buguias, Atok, Bahong, and other areas were displayed and sold to the crowd of tourists flocking to the grandstand to watch the concerts and events held there.
*The landscape competition showcased the skill and creativity of the landscapers of the North. Landscape entries are displayed at the Melvin Jones Football Grounds and accompanied by plant sellers from different areas of Benguet. (Jazz Quiambao)*
One of the most-awaited events of Panagbenga is, of course, the Grand Float Parade. People come in crowds to watch floats decorated with flowers of the province. The Grand Float Parade is also a competition for the best float design.
*TIEZA won first place for the big float category. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
The parade’s route began at the province’s Department of the Interior and Local Government office and ended at the Melvin Jones Grandstand and Football Grounds, where the floats were displayed for several days.
*A local flower farm, Zaparita Garden, won first place for the small float category. (Baguio City Public Information Office)*
For the last few days of Panagbenga, the festival holds what it calls “Session in Bloom” held in Session Road, the city’s center of commercial activity. Both sides of the 1.7 km road are closed to vehicles and are instead filled with stalls set up by a wide variety of local businesses. From clothes, to shoes, to snacks, to coffee, and even woodworks and furniture, there’s nothing that Session Road doesn’t offer during this time.
*Flowers and ornamentals from different farms in the province of Benguet are gathered to be sold at Panagbenga’s Session in Bloom. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Some of the stalls sold ornamentals grown from many different farms of Benguet. Others also took the opportunity to sell locally grown produce.
*One of the many fruit and produce stalls at Session Road. (Jazz Quiambao)*
Session Road was also full of mascots and street performers who entertained the crowd with comedic acts or a show of talent.
*In the spirit of Panagbenga, street entertainers decorate their costumes with flowers. (Jazz Quiambao)*
The upper part of Session Road had another stage set up for more concerts and performances. The awarding and closing ceremony was held at this stage.
There’s nothing more perfect to close the festivities than an explosion of flower-like lights in the sky. For a grand finale, major areas of Baguio arranged a grand fireworks display. Session Road and Burnham Park each had their own display of fireworks that lit Baguio City’s night sky.
*For a grand finale, fireworks bloom like flowers and light up Baguio City’s night sky. (Noel Esquejo)*
With that, 2023’s Panagbenga Festival has come to a glorious and beautiful end. It’ll be another year till Baguio gets to experience this again.
*Photos courtesy of Jazz Quiambao*