MIMAROPA Festivals: Oriental Mindoro

Banana Festivals - Baco, Oriental, Mindoro

Oriental Mindoro Festivals

Bansudani Festival, January 17-19; Bansud, Mindoro Oriental

A thanksgiving ritual for bountiful harvest which coincides with the town fiesta. It features dances and cultural presentations by schools and barangay communities.

Feast of the Divine Savior, January 17 –19; Bansud, Mindoro Oriental

Highlight is an agro-trade fair.

Feast of the Sacred Heart, February 14-15; Bansud, Mindoro Oriental

Highlight is an agro-trade fair.

Banana Festival, March 18-19; Baco, Mindoro Oriental

A celebration of the abundance of bananas. It features a banana cookfest and a “saba”-(type of banana)-inspired street dancing competition and beauty pageant. This coincides with the town fiesta in honor of St. Joseph.

Sulyog Festival, March 19; Bongabong, Oriental Mindoro

A religious festival in honor of St. Joseph. It is celebrated by way of the Sulyog (Suli and Niyog) Festival through dances, flats, and cultural shows.

Bahag-hari Festival, April 24; Pinamalayan, Oriental Mindoro

A colorful celebration highlighted by street dancing, a parade of colorful floats, and a different kind of Moriones Festival.

The Sabutan Festival and Mini- Trade Fair, April 25-29; Mabitac, Oriental Mindoro

It showcases the different native products of the province, mainly from Sabutan.

Lechon Festival and Gabi ng Pakulo, June 24; Pola, Oriental Mindoro

A religious festival in honor of St. John the Baptist, coupled with a festive social affair, usually, a banquet, preceded by a pagoda and the parade of lechon (roast pig). Its most interesting feature is the Gabi ng Pakulo, a combination of street dancing and all sorts of cultural entertainment, performed by different barangays on the streets of Pola.

Feast of St. John The Baptist / Lechon Festival, June 24; Pola, Oriental Mindoro

At the Lechon Festival, or Parada ng Lechon, in local parlance, roast pigs or lechon garbed in creative costumes are paraded around the town to the accompaniment of gay chanting and “buhusan” – a customary practice during the San Juan Bautista feast, which involves water dousing. A selection of the best from among the lechon entries follows, along with a free-for-all banquet open to the townsfolk and visitors alike.

Biniray Festival, June 29; Bulalacao, Oriental Mindoro

A grand pagoda show as a way of thanksgiving for the blessings from the sea. Other highlights are street dancing, a parade of spectacular floats, and cultural presentations of schools and communities.

Pakapya-agtike Festival, July 25-27; Socorro, Oriental Mindoro

This festivity features cultural shows, a parade of floats, and street dancing on the last day, showcasing agricultural bounty. Schools, barangays, and tribal communities participate. The festival is a thanksgiving offering to the town patron, the Holy Family.

Sayaw Lahi Festival, September 10; Naujan, Oriental Mindoro

A festival featuring all native dances performed on the streets by different schools and barangay communities. Other highlights are the school band competition, live-band concerts, and awarding of outstanding Naujenos.

Kapakyanan Festival, October 14-15; Victoria, Oriental Mindoro

Kapakyanan means abundance. The festival focuses on the bountiful harvest of fruits and crops. Its highlights are street dancing and a beauty pageant with agriculture as the central theme.

Pamugu-an Festival, 3rd week of October; Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro

It is a festive reunion of different Mangyan tribes. There are sports events, such as the Palaro ng Lahi, cultural presentations, product demonstrations, and “Barakalan” or “baratillo” or sale of native products.

Sanduguan Festival, Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro

It revives the barter trade between the Mai natives and the Chinese traders. This week-long festivity features an agro-trade fair. There is a historical parade, re-enactment of the barter trading, and the Indakan sa Sanduguan, a street dancing competition. Considered as the biggest and the most innovative festival in the province, it also features art and historical contests, workshops, and contemporary and ethnic cultural shows.

Feast of Santa Catalina, November 26; Mansalay. Oriental Mindoro

Highlight is the Palarong Lahi, an array of games very native to Mindoreños, and Filipinos, joined in by all game enthusiasts.

Feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8; Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro

Highlight is an agro-trade fair.

San Teodoro Founding Day and Immaculate Conception Feast, December 8; San Teodoro

Highlight is the Tiyakad, a dancing event wherein stilts masters systematically march and sway to the delight of the viewers; a very funny and entertaining event.

Coco Festival, December 8; San Teodoro, Oriental Mindoro

It is a religious festival honoring the Immaculate Conception. It features street dancing, a parade of floats, and other activities centered on the town’s agricultural bounty, the coconut.