Festivals in the Philippines in December

📍 Baybay City, Leyte

🗓️ Late December, week-long; December 27 is a local holiday

Baybay City's thanksgiving festival since 2007, with street dances drawing on the curacha and the stages of planting and harvest, celebrating its coastal and farm bounty.

📍 San Jose de Buenavista, Antique

🗓️ December (2022 edition ran December 1–21)

Antique's provincial festival recalling the legendary landing of the Bornean datus, with a balangay fluvial parade to Malandog in Hamtic, a settlement reenactment and Malay-Ati tribal dance competition.

📍 Calasiao, Pangasinan

🗓️ About a week in early-to-mid December

Calasiao's festival for its famous puto (steamed rice cake), with a thanksgiving Mass, puto stalls and street events, timed for the holiday rush of buyers.

📍 Loay, Bohol

🗓️ First Saturday of December

Loay's festival for St. Francis Xavier, with masked street dancing, boat races and a fluvial parade on the Loboc River mouth, plus an agro-industrial fair.

📍 Cotabato City, Maguindanao del Norte

🗓️ Mid-December, about a week (Dec 15–19 in recent years)

Commemorates the arrival of Islam in mainland Mindanao with Shariff Kabunsuan; the highlight is a fluvial parade of guinakit boats re-enacting his landing, plus Qur'an reading and heritage booths.

📍 Roxas City, Capiz

🗓️ First week of December, up to the Immaculate Conception feast (Dec 8)

Roxas City's 'joy of sharing' festival for the Immaculate Conception, combining a fluvial procession and religious rites with street dancing, a bazaar and seafood food fair.

📍 Maasin, Iloilo

🗓️ Late December, around December 26

Maasin's bamboo festival celebrating the town's bamboo heritage, with performers in bamboo costumes and bamboo-instrument music; its dance troupe also competes in January's Kasadyahan.

📍 Tarlac City and towns, Tarlac

🗓️ Early November through the Christmas season

Province-wide nativity-scene (belen) competition. Large belens built from mostly recycled materials go up at churches, plazas and town halls across Tarlac.

📍 Tangub City, Misamis Occidental

🗓️ December 1 to early January

Tangub's month-long display of giant lighted Christmas symbols and replicas of world landmarks put up by agencies and barangays, running since 1992.

📍 City of San Fernando, Pampanga

🗓️ Competition in mid-December; lantern exhibitions until about Jan 1

Barangays compete with roughly 20-foot parol lanterns whose thousands of bulbs flash in patterns timed to music. San Fernando calls itself the Christmas Capital of the Philippines.

📍 Morong, Bataan

🗓️ Late November or early December

Sea-turtle conservation festival at the Pawikan Conservation Center: hatchling releases on the beach, street dance and sand sculpture contests, and a trade fair.