Travel destinations: Baguio, Philippines

Imagine a bustling city atop a mountainous region in the Philippines. That is Baguio City. Known as the summer capital of the Philippines, it is a favorite vacation spot for thousands of Filipinos year round because of its cool crisp climate compared to other parts of the country, foggy hills, panoramic views, lovely flowers and abounding pine trees. Baguio is 8 degrees cooler on average than any place in the lowlands. Manila is on average 35 degrees centigrade or above. Baguio seldom exceeds 26 degrees centigrade. Baguio is very wet during the Philippine rainy season, which is from June to October. It gets the biggest amount of rainfall in the country, twice the volume of rainfall in the country as compared to Manila. However from November to May, Baguio becomes a refreshing break from the hot and humid Philippine climate. Christmas season is when Baguio glows with chilly cool air. In the summer month of March to May, Baguio is busiest when Filipinos from lowlands flock up to enjoy the cool air. Casual clothing is recommended worn with jackets or sweaters in the late afternoons or evenings.

Through the numerous decades Baguio has morphed from what was once a grassy marshland into an urbanized city in the country. It has made its mark as a premiere tourist destination in the Northern part of the Philippines. Being the ideal convergence zone of neighboring highland places, Baguio is the melting pot of different peoples and cultures and has boosted its ability to provide a center for education for its neighbors. Its rich culture and countless resources have lured numerous investments and business opportunities to the city. The developed portion of the city corresponds to the plateau that rises to an elevation of 1,400 meters. Most of it lies in the northern half of the city. The City is landlocked within the province of Benguet, thus bounding it on all sides by its different municipalities; on the North by the capital town of La Trinidad, on the East by Itogon and to the South and West by Tuba. With City Hall as reference point, it extends 8.2 kilometers from East to West and 7.2 kilometers from North to South. It has a perimeter of 30.98 kilometers. The City has twenty administrative districts among which its barangays are divided.

Baguio city is approximately 250 kilometers north of Manila, situated in the province of Benguet. It covers approximately 57 square kilometers of hilly land in a portion of the Cordillera Central Mountain Range in Northern