Cagsawa Festival 2023 by Travel to Bicol
The Cagsawa Festival aims to celebrate the indomitable spirit and resilience of Albayanos, not the memory of the disaster’s horrors. The month-long Cagsawa Festival, celebrated every February, kicks off at the historic and world-famous Cagsawa Ruins. The Cagsawa Festival is held every February and is a month-long province-wide observance celebrating Daraga’s history and heritage.
A wide array of activities is held: entertainment shows, musical tilts, sports tournaments, socio-civic activities, pageants, culinary activities, and special interest events. The festival commemorates the 1814 catastrophic eruption of Mayon Volcano, which buried the Cagsawa church and hundreds of people. To date, the Cagsawa Ruins Park, one of the popular attractions in Bicol, has become the center of activities of the week-long Iona festivity.
The ruins also stood as an image of the Bicol region’s magnificent landscape for almost two centuries. It symbolizes Bicol’s rich history, together with the strength and flexibility of the people towards the calamities and ravages of Mother Nature. Cagsawa was derived from the word “Kag,” which means owner and “sawa” for python.