CAGAYAN PROVINCE
Cagayan Province (northeastern corner of Luzon, 12 hours by bus from Manila) covers a land area of 9,295 square kilometers, which constitutes three percent of the total land area of the country and makes it the 5th largest province in the Philippines. Home to about 1.2 million people, with a population density of 130 people per square kilometer, Cagayan province has 28 municipalities, 816 barangays and one city and is divided into three congressional districts. Tuguegarao City is the provincial capital, regional seat, and center of business, trade, and education. It has a land area of 144.80 square kilometers and a population of 120,645 as of 2000.
Caayan Province is bounded by the Pacific Ocean on the east, Isabela province to on the south, the Cordillera Mountains to the west, and the Balintang Channel and the Babuyan Group of Islands to the north. About two kilometers from the northeastern tip of the province is the island of Palaui, a few kilometers to the west is Fuga Island. The Babuyan Group of Islands, which includes Calayan, Dalupiri, Camiguin, and Babuyan Claro, is about 100 kilometers north of Luzon mainland.
Undeveloped by tourism but known as good place for caving, trekking in the mountains and fishing, Cagayan is a center for adventure and ecotourism with some ancient cultures, wild, picturesque beaches, volcanic islands and centuries-old churches thrown into the mix. The name Cagayan is derived from the word “tagay,” a kind of plant that grows abundantly in the northern part of the province. “Catagayan” which means a place where the tagay grows abundantly, was shortened to “Cagayan.” The main languages of the province — each associated with a different ethnic group — are Ybanag, Ytawit, Malaweg, and Ilocano. Other ethnic groups that migrated to the province speak their own dialects. People in places where literacy is high speak and understand English and Pilipino.
The wet and dry seasons in the province are not very pronounced. The relatively dry season occurs from March to June and the relatively rainy season is from July to October. It is relatively cold during the months of November to February. The main agricultural products are rice, corn, peanut, beans, and fruits. Livestock products include cattle, hogs, carabaos, and poultry. Fishing various species of fish is an important income earner in coastal towns. Woodcraft furniture made of hardwood, rattan, bamboo, and other indigenous materials is also produced in the province. The waters off province has 73 percent of the region’s potential fishing area.
PRICING INFORMATION Items Price
Accommodations — Hostel bed Php 600
Accommodations — Hotel room Php 1,500
Accommodations — Family room Php 2,000
Accommodations — Resort cottage Php 2,000
Dining — Seafood meal Php 100 — 250
Dining — Chicken BBQ meal Php 150
Dining — Longganisa Meal or Pancit Batil Php 100 — 250
Transportation — 10 minute tricycle ride Php 10 & up per person
Transportation — Jeepney ride Php 20 & up per person
Transportation — boat ride starts at Php 500
Transportation — Van rental Php 5,000 a day
Shopping — souvenir t-shirt Php 280
Activity — 1 day hike & spelunking with guide Php 750
Tourism Office: Regional Office Ii, Ms. Blessida G. Diwa, Regional Director, 29 Rizal Street, Tuguegarao City, 3500 Cagayan, Tel: (6378) 844 1621 / 844 1530, Fax: (6378) 846 2435. E-Mail: dotr2@yahoo.com, Website: www.dotregion2.com.ph, www.visitmyphilippines.com
Getting There: By Air: Tuguegarao City is entry if you arrive by plane. There are daily flights from Manila, weekly flights from Cebu.By Land: Tuguegarao City is accessible by provincial bus. There are daily or overnight buses from Caloocan or Cubao in Metro Manila. The trip will take 12 hours. Buses to Claveria will pass through Tuguegarao as well.
Sights in Cagayan Province
Claveria at the top of Cagayan’s northeastern shoulder is known for its pastoral grassland, windswept islands, emerald mountains, rugged coastline and verdant jungles. Callao Cave has an amazing seven chambers, one of which sometimes holds Catholic mass. The Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape features a scenic boat rides on Pinacanauan River at dusk when thousands of bats emerge from the wilderness and begin their nightime feeding.
The Callao cave system is also home to the Callao Man, the oldest human remains excavated in the Philippines, dated to about 67,000 years ago. Shell middens dating back to the Neolithic Period have been found on the banks of the Cagayan River in the towns of Lal-lo and Gattaran. at Cagayan Provincial Museum and Historical Research Center in Tuguegarao City check out the ancient artifacts, fossils of animals that once roamed the valley, and liturgical works gathered from around the province.
Outstanding Churches in Cagayan Valley
Tuguegarao City is the home of the brick-walled Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, the biggest church in the area built during the Spanish era. The Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat is a popular pilgrimage site. The Old Bell in the Far East is tucked in the municipality of Camalaniugan. In Lal-lo, Cagayan you’ll find another archaic church — St. Dominic de Guzman Parish. St. Philomene Church on the other hand is located just along the highway in the town of Alcala.
Nestled on a hill in the quiet town of Iguig is the Church of San Antonio de Galicia, the only church in the province with traditional flying buttresses. Walk towards the side to meditate within the serene and scenic Iguig Calvary Hills. This area is well known for its massive life-size statues of the 14 Stations of the Cross, strung along sprawling hills overlooking the Cagayan River or Rio Grande de Cagayan — the longest and widest river in the Philippines.
Tumauini Church stands in Isabela and was constructed by the Dominicans in the 18th century. It is widely regarded as one of the most artistically accomplished brick churches in the country, distinguished by its elaborate façade and uniquely tiered bell tower adorned with decorative elements that give it a “wedding cake” appearance. Inside the adjoining convent, the vaulted ceilings still bear impressions of woven mats that were used as molds during the application of wet plaster—an enduring trace of traditional construction methods.
Parish Church of San Vicente Ferrer is located in Dupax del Sur, Nueva Vizcaya. Also built by the Dominicans in the 18th century, this historic church is notable for its finely carved stucco work, particularly in the baptistry and entrance lobby—features considered exceptional within the Philippine context. The adjacent convent retains narrow wall openings designed for defense, allowing archers to fire upon potential attackers, reflecting the dual religious and protective functions of colonial-era churches.
Paleolithic Archaeological Sites in Cagayan Valley
Paleolithic Archaeological Sites in Cagayan Valley was nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. According to UNESCO: Paleolithic sites are located within the Cagayan Valley Basin which is bordered by the Sierra Mountain range on the East; the Caraballo on the South; the Cordillera Central on the west; and the Babuyan Channel on the north. Found in two municipalities of the province, namely, Solana and Penablanca, Paleolithic sites yielded the earliest stone tools and remains of extinct and extant species of animals.[Source: UNESCO]
Archaeological excavations undertaken in Solana and vicinities resulted in the discovery of more than 68 Paleolithic sites in the Awidon Mesa formation. These sites yielded stone tools and fossils of extinct animals that include stegodons, elephants, rhinoceros, and large tortoise. The sites tended to confirm previous reports by prominent paleontologists and archaeologists from Europe that both Pleistocene mega-fauna fossils and chopper-chopping stone tools were present in the valley, suggesting mid-Pleistocene date for tool technology in the area at the earliest and later periods.
The frontiers of prehistory is thus being broadened and pushed back. Tentative results of radio-metric reading in the valley have yielded at tektite date of approximately .92 — 1.7 m.y. The Mid-Pleistocene dating of the presence of man in the Philippines has been established.
On the eastern flank of the valley in the Municipality of Penablanca, archaeological exploration specifically in the Callao Limestone formation revealed the presence of 93 archaeological sites that yielded stone tools of Paleolithic industry and bones and shells of animals still living in the vicinities. Of these sites, 78 are caves and rock shelters. The archaeological study of the caves in the Callao limestone formation suggests post-Pleistocene sites where a Paleolithic type of technology persisted. The materials recovered indicate that the people were hunters and gatherers who exploited forest and riverine environments.
Modern Humans in Callao Cave 63,000-73,000 Years Ago
Earliest evidence of modern humans in Philippines —67,000 years before present — Callao Cave: Here, archaeologists, Dr. Armand Mijares with Dr. Phil Piper found bones in a cave near Peñablanca, Cagayan in 2010 have been dated as ca. 67,000 years old. It's the earliest human fossil ever found in Asia-Pacific [Source: Wikipedia ]
Colin Barras wrote in New Scientist: “In 2007, researchers found a 67,000-year-old human foot bone on the island of Luzon. It was provisionally suggested that it belonged to an unusually early Homo sapiens to the east of the Wallace line. But there are also unpublished reports that more human fossils were found on Luzon in 2014 — and that these additional finds suggest that the Luzon hominin may have been a more primitive species. [Source: Colin Barras, New Scientist, 13 January 2016]
In 2010, The Philippines Star reported: “A team of archaeologists has confirmed that a foot bone they discovered in Callao Cave in Cagayan province is at least 67,000 years old, older than the so-called Tabon Man of Palawan, which has long been thought to be the archipelago's earliest human remains at 50,000 years old, a report on GMANews.TV said. “So far this could be the earliest human fossil found in the Asia-Pacific region. The presence of humans in Luzon shows these early humans already possessed knowledge of seacraft-making in this early period," Dr. Armand Mijares, of the University of the Philippines-Diliman who led the team of archeologists, told GMANews.TV. The actual discovery of the bone occurred in 2007 but it was not clear then just how old the fossil was. Mijares said they were able to approximate the fossil's age through a method called “uranium-series dating." [Source: Philippines Star, August 3, 2010]
The primary theory is that Callao Man, or his ancestors, reached Luzon from what is now Indonesia by raft at a time when experts did not think human beings were capable of traveling long distances by sea. Some signs found by the scientists also indicated that Callao Man might not have been fully human, but only a species akin to modern humans. Dr. Victor Paz, a UP colleague of Mijares who was not part of the excavation, told GMANEWS.TV that the bone could be evidence of human “speciation" or the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise, taking place in Luzon. “If speciation did take place in the region and more evidence comes out of older modern human remains, it may seriously challenge current conventions on the spread of modern humans to our region," Paz said.
“Based on the single bone, it is not clear that Callao Man was male. But they do know that its physical size was similar to the modern Negrito, or Aytas of Luzon. The bone was the third metatarsal of the foot, thus is referred to scientifically as Callao MT3. The human bone was found in the town of Peñablanca, Cagayan in an excavation site where Mijares had started digging four years before. “We were initially frustrated that during the excavation we were only finding animal remains. But when my colleague Dr. Phil Piper, our team's zoo-archaeologist, was looking at the finds, he said to me, 'Mandy, this is a human bone,'" Mijares said. “When we verified that it is a human bone, I knew that we discovered something very important."
“The presence of the remains of butchered animals in the same layer of sediment, but no stone tools, has raised interesting questions about how Callao Man killed them. “We can only speculate that they were using different tools. From our initial analysis of the cut marks on the animal bones, they could have used organic tools such as bamboo which is ubiquitous in the region," Mijares told GMANEWS.TV."
According to one academic journal: “In the Philippines, a hominin fossil from Callao Cave in Luzon has not yet been identified to species. It was referred to Homo species ( Mijares et al. 2010) and favorably compared with small-bodied Homo species, such as Homo habilis and H. floresiensis (Larick and Ciochon 2015), although provisionally attributed to H. sapiens by Mijares et al. (2010). It has a minimum age of around 50,000 years old. ( Gr?n et al. 2014) and is found in association with several large taxa: the native brown deer (Cervus mariannus), the Philippine warty pig (Sus philippen- sis), and an extinct bovid (Piper and Mijares 2007).
Prehistoric Man in the Cagayan Valley
According to UNESCO: Cagayan is undoubtedly one of the richest archaeological sites in the Philippines. Excavations by the National Museum and field research by the Cagayan Museum have yielded vast archeological findings including artifacts dating back to: the Paleolithic Age; the Neolithic Age, a time when man started to produce his own food through domestication of plants and animals; Iron Age which covers the transition from 2000 B.C. to 1000 A.D. Culture has progressed to a point where there is already knowledge of smelting and forging iron, the use of more advanced agricultural techniques, and weaving. Cagayan Valley, like many other provinces in the Philippines, was never isolated from foreign influence as was earlier believed. It was once a part of the long prehistoric international trade with neighboring countries. The Historic Age likewise chronicled the date when Juan Salcedo visited the valley. Such discoveries give a diachronic view of the technological and cultural evolution of Cagayan. [Source: UNESCO]
“The National Museum archaeologists and experts at the University of the Philippines and research institutions in several countries have been engaged in significant archaeological researches in Cagayan Valley. Their findings revealed the earliest trace of the emergence of man in the Philippines projected back in time to the middle of the Pleistocene Epoch at about 800,000 years before the present. These evidences came in the form of stone tools identified as man made. Man probably in the form of Home erectus roamed the valley at that time.
“Archaeological work covering the Pleistocene and Post Pleistocene time frames in the Philippines has been intensified and is now marked with growing precision and systematics. At the present, a project entitled "The Litho-, Bio-, and Chronostratigraphy of the Fossil Mammal Bearing Deposits in the Philippines" is being implemented in close collaboration with paleontologists from the National Museum of Natural History at Leiden, the Netherlands. So far, explorations and excavations undertaken have provided evidences needed in the reconstruction of the chrono-stratigraphic framework of the fossil bearing deposits in the Philippines. Furthermore, re-excavations in the Post-Pleistocene sites associated with stone tools of Paleolithic industry have been conducted by NM archaeologists.
“Considerable data have been gathered on the distribution of extinct fauna and paleo-environment in Southeast Asia, such as Sulawesi, Java, Timor and Flores and the Philippines (Aziz, 1988; Fox 1971; Glover 188; Hooijer 1948, 1975; Koenigswald 1958; Shutler 1988, Sondaar 1988; de Vos 1988, Bautista 1988). The discovery of earliest evidence of the presence of mega-fauna in the Philippines has widened the knowledge of distribution of these extinct animals in Southeast Asia. Through these findings, the reconstitution of the local faunal evolution and the position of the Philippines in relation to a large scale migration pattern of vertebrates including man in Southeast Asia are known.”
Neolithic Shell Midden Sites in Lal-lo and Gattaran Municipalities
The Neolithic Shell Midden Sites in Lal-lo and Gattaran Municipalities has been nominated to was nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006 According to UNESCO: “Neolithic shell midden sites are located along the banks of the Cagayan River in the Municipalities of Lal-lo and Gattaran, about 500 kilometers northeast of Manila. The shell middens are in varying sizes and extent; and made up mostly of one type of freshwater clams, Batissa childreni. The biggest deposits of shells are found in Magapit and Bangag in Lal-lo. The thickest is more than six feet. Associated with these shell middens are polished stone tools, chert flakes, bones and teeth, and red slipped earthenware with incised and impressed designs. Most of stone tools are ground, polished with a trapezoidal cross-section; and made of sandstone, claystone and shale. [Source: UNESCO]
“In Magapit, Lal-lo, the shell middens are centrally or strategically located on tope of the highest hill, panoramic views down stream on the north and up stream on the south can be seen. In some areas, burial grounds are found associated with earthenware in varying forms and designs. Carbon dating indicates first and second millennium B.C. for limestone shell midden and ca. 100 AD in the river banks shell midden.
“The size and intensity of the shell deposit yielded valuable information as to the nature of Neolithic in Cagayan Valley. The Neolithic Period is known as the period when man first started to domesticate plants and animals and to make pottery at the end of the Pleistocene. Studies on the shell middens of Lal-lo and Gattaran revealed that the ancient people who exploited their environment gathering shells as well as hunting animals like deer and pig. Pottery shards were decorated not only at the exterior surface but also at the exposed interior surface of the vessel. Most of the shards could be reconstructed into forms resembling shallow platters. Incising and impressing of the shards give their distinctive character.
“Archaeological activities have resulted in the discovery of significant archaeological sites in the Municipalities of Lal-lo and Gattaran. These sites range from Neolithic into the Contact period. In these areas, the discovery of 21 shell midden sites associated with earthenware, stone tools and bones provide the opportunity to apply an interdisciplinary approach involving several fields of endeavor to solve archaeological problems including paleo-environmental reconstructions. Experts from Japan, Taiwan, Australia and the Philippines have gathered in the study area to discuss these archaeological problems and the most recent results of significant findings.
“These sites are very unique and crucial for the understanding of the emergence of agriculture and the links which we have with Island Southeast Asia and South China during the Neolithic. Furthermore, the shell midden sites along the Cagayan River can be considered one of the most extensive middens in the region being found along both banks of the Cagayan River extending through at least two municipalities, and through to some extent further into the interior. The amount of art factual materials found with the discarded shells evidenced the presence of extensive communities along the areas covered.”
Church of San Mattias in Tumauini, Isabela
The Church of San Mattias in Tumauini, Isabela was nominated to be a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2006. According to UNESCO: “The church walls are made entirely of brick. The façade is a magnificent display of the use ornamented brick laid out in characteristic design. Customized bricks were numbered, and placed customized to fit the walls. The interior of the church, similar to the façade is veneered with ornamented bricks. The upper half of the interior wall is laid with ornately designed brick blocks.[Source: UNESCO]
The bell tower of the church is cylindrical. The complex is fenced with brick walls, which is also ornamented like the rest of the church. The convent, located at the Gospel side of the church is now in ruins.”
Though damaged in the Second World War, the church retained and preserved most of the undamaged walls. The damaged part of the church was repaired. The church is reflective of Philippine 19th century architecture, Baroque style. Philippine adaptation of Western Style with no similarities in the Orient. The excessive use of ornamented bricks; stamped and embossed which is unique to the country.
Palanan Wilderness: the Philippines Largest Undisturbed Rain Forest
Palanan Wilderness Area (east side of northern Luzon, due east of Banaue, not near any roads) is a large tract of undisturbed forest which forms a large part of the combined nature preserve of the Northern Sierra Madre National Park and Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape. It contains the most extensive area of preserved rainforest in the Philippines (3,594.86 square kilometers). The larger of two remaining areas of intact primeval forest in Luzon (the other being a much smaller wooded area in the Cordilleras); the area is considered one of the most diverse forests in the world. Known as the Palanan Complex, Palanan Rainforest, or Palanan Wilderness Area, it was designated a wilderness area in 1979. In 1997, it was designated a national park also known as the Northern Sierra Madre National Park. In 2003 this conservation area was combined with the neighboring Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape. [Source: Kheem Caparas, Vigattin Tourism, June 22, 2012 vigattintourism.com
According to UNESCO: “Palanan Wilderness, Northeast Luzon- encompasses 200,000 ha. of prime virgin forest, revealing 10 percent of the country's protected wooodlands. The area shelters more than 200 species of birds including a small gathering of the Philippine Eagle. Along the coast of Sierra Madre, a small community of the Dumagat tribe resides with logging as their prime source of livelihood. Another group settling in the area are Negritos.”
The park consists of land and marine areas. Its landscape is hilly to mountainous, with the Sierra Madre Mountain Range running through it. There are several peaks in the north to south mountain range area rising higher than 1,000 meters. These include Mt. Divilican, Mt. Cresta, and Mt. Palanan. The Palanan River is the major river which runs through this area.
The Palanan Wilderness Area mainly attracts trekkers and mountaineers. Its coastal waters are good for snorkeling and scuba diving. Attractions that may be explored within the national park are the Fuyot Springs National Park, which includes the Isabela Sanctuary, where the Santa Victoria Caves, a zoo, and a botanical park.
The park has 12 major types of forests and marine habitats. It is home to a large number of endangered and protected animal and plant species which are indigenous to the Philippines. As much as 45 % of all plant species native to the Philippines and more than 50 % of threatened local wildlife may be found in these forests. The lowland areas are covered by lush undisturbed dipterocarp rainforest while higher altitude areas are covered by montane forest. Along its coastline are estuaries, mangrove and beach forests, beds of sea-grass, and coral reefs which serve as important ecosystems as well. Wildlife that can be found in the area Philippine eagle and Rufous-bellied eagle cloud rat, Philippine sail-fin water lizard, the estuarine crocodile, and Gray’s monitor lizard, Twelve new species of reptiles and 15 new species of amphibians that are unique to the country are found here.
Consisting of forests in the northern half of the 1.7-million-hectare Sierra Madre mountain range, the park lies in the east of the province of Isabela. To its north is the Diktayan River while Disabunga River forms its southern border. To the west is the Cagayan Valley. To the east, it reaches the coast of the Philippine Sea.
Getting There: The remote wilderness is accessible only by light aircraft or by sea. A light aircraft to the area is available from Cauayan Airport or from Tuguegarao Airport through CHEMTRAD. It is accessible by pumpboat from Sta. Ana in Cagayan and Baler in Aurora Province. One can also hike to the park from from San Mariano, Cauayan or Ilagan, Isabela. The nearest places to stay are in Tuguegarao, Cagayan Valley and Isabela.
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: Philippines Tourism websites, Philippines government websites, UNESCO, Wikipedia, Lonely Planet guides, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, National Geographic, The New Yorker, Bloomberg, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Japan News, Yomiuri Shimbun, Compton's Encyclopedia and various books and other publications.
Last Updated March 2026