DAVAO City is an attractive place for eco-tourism. There is always an attraction for tourist adventurers like river rafting to most exhilarating zip-line experience.
However, the laid-back tourist would still be able to have fun with the least adrenaline pumping attractions like visiting some of the museums and sites that this largest city (outside Metro Manila) could offer.
Shoestring travelers would surely find Davao City as the best place to visit in Mindanao on a tight budget. In fact, a group visit here would only cost you a few hundred bucks if you stay away from those expensive travel tours.
A good place to visit is the Davao Museum in Lanang were you can feast your eyes on cultural artifacts of Minadanao's various tribes like the Mandaya, B'laan, T'boli, Manobo, Mansaka and Baghobo. The museum features tribal indigenous instruments for music, war and burial rituals. Entrance to the museum is set at P100 per person.
In my last visit, I took time to savor the local color of Davao City with a stroll along the downtown district and paid a short stop at the San Pedro Cathedral Church and Davao City Hall.
The San Pedro Cathedral is the oldest church in Davao built in 1847. The downtown area is the beating center of the city dotted by hundreds of merchant stalls and food outlets.
And if you are a fan of GMA7's "Amaya", you can visit the T'boli and Weaving Center for some bead ornaments and traditional tribal clothes. Here, there is a tribal weaving factory where you can buy traditional T'boli woven products like bags and other accessories.
The Lon Wa Buddhist Temple is also a popular attraction among tourists who would like to see the other spiritual side of Davao City. The entrance to the temple features a smiling Buddha that is perfect for souvenir photos.
At night, Davao City is a perfect place for bar-hopping. We visited Matina Town Square or more affectionately called by the locals as MTS for some night fun. Davao City has an emerging entertainment industry (the wholesome kind of course) with dance groups, comedians, and bands holding regular stint among bars here. Some bars do not have "cover charges" and one would only need to order a bottle of beer to enjoy music or any of the bars' night entertainment.
A word of caution though, the city implements a curfew at 2:00 am and bars here are very diligent about the city ordinance that even the entertainers would remind customers to be mindful of the city curfew.
On your way home, drop by the Magsaysay Park Fruit Stands and Davao China Town for some pasalubong for family and friends back home. I would recommend that you end your visit in Davao City with an exhilarating zip-line ride. Davao City boasts of having some of the best zip-line rides in the country. And for the experience, Zip City provided me with a wonderful experience that I would surely try again in my next visit to the Durian Capital of the Philippines.
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