Philippines

The oldest stone church in the Philippines, built inside the walled district of Intramuros in Manila by the Order of Saint Augustine between 1586/1587 and 1607 to a design by Juan Macías. Having withstood major earthquakes in 1645, 1863, and 1880, it features 1875 trompe l'oeil ceiling frescoes by Cesare Alberoni and Giovanni Dibella and was inscribed in 1993 as one of the four UNESCO World Heritage Baroque Churches of the Philippines.

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Baroque Churches of the Philippines, 1993), National Cultural Treasure and National Historical Landmark (Philippines)General Luna Street, Intramuros, Manila

Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The oldest Roman Catholic church established in the Philippines, founded in Cebu City on April 28, 1565, by Augustinian friar Andrés de Urdaneta and conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi on the exact spot where the wooden image of the Santo Niño de Cebú (gifted by Ferdinand Magellan to Queen Juana at her baptism on April 14, 1521) was rediscovered. Built of hewn coral stone between 1735 and 1739 (enthroned in January 1740) under Fray Juan de Albarrán in Earthquake Baroque style, it was elevated by Pope Paul VI in 1965 to a Minor Basilica and honored as the Mother and Head of all Churches in the Philippine Islands.

Minor Basilica (1965), National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (1973), National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines (2021)Osmeña Boulevard, Barangay Santo Niño, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines

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The metropolitan cathedral of the Archdiocese of Manila facing Plaza de Roma inside the walled city of Intramuros, originally established as a parish church in 1571 by secular priest Juan de Vivero and elevated to a cathedral in 1579 by papal bull of Pope Gregory XIII. Following the destruction of seven successive structures by fires, major earthquakes (1600, 1645, 1852, 1863, 1880), and the devastation of 1945, the eighth cathedral was rebuilt from 1954 to 1958 under Archbishop Rufino Jiao Santos to a Neo-Romanesque design by architect Fernando H. Ocampo, and was raised to a Minor Basilica by Pope John Paul II in 1981.

Minor Basilica (1981), National Historical Landmark of the PhilippinesCabildo corner Beaterio Streets, Plaza de Roma, Intramuros, Manila, 1002 Metro Manila, Philippines

Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

A masterpiece of Philippine Fortress Baroque architecture standing atop the Tacas hill in the coastal municipality of Miagao (Iloilo Province, Panay Island), constructed between 1786/1787 and 1797 under Augustinian friar Francisco Máximo Gonzales and gobernadorcillo Domingo Libo-on with 1.5-meter-thick ochre sandstone walls and two asymmetrical watchtower belfries. Celebrated for its tropical bas-relief facade depicting Saint Christopher in native trousers carrying the Child Jesus while bracing against a coconut tree amid papaya and guava flora, it was inscribed in 1993 as one of the four UNESCO World Heritage Baroque Churches of the Philippines.

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Baroque Churches of the Philippines, 1993), National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (1973)Zulueta Avenue, Poblacion, Miagao, 5023 Iloilo, Panay Island, Philippines

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The largest mosque in Metro Manila, situated on Globo de Oro Street in the Muslim Town quarter of Quiapo, Manila, begun on August 4, 1976, to a design by Filipino architect Jorge Y. Ramos with a capacity of up to 22,000 worshippers. It is distinguished by its gleaming 12-meter-diameter gold dome and facade tilework integrating traditional okir curvilinear and geometric motifs of the Maranao, Maguindanao, and Tausug peoples of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago.

Largest mosque in Metro ManilaGlobo de Oro Street, Muslim Town, Barangay 384, Quiapo, Manila, 1001 Metro Manila, Philippines

Photo: Patrick Roque, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The architectural pinnacle of Philippine Earthquake Baroque in Paoay, Ilocos Norte, founded as an Augustinian parish in 1593 and built of marine coral stone, brick, and sugarcane-molasses mortar between 1694 and 1710 under Father Antonio Estavillo, OSA. Inscribed in 1993 as one of the four UNESCO World Heritage Baroque Churches of the Philippines, the sanctuary is celebrated worldwide for its 24 colossal 1.67-meter-thick volute buttresses, its Javanese-and-Chinese-inflected triangular facade, and its detached 1793 coral-stone bell tower that served as a revolutionary watchtower in 1898 and World War II.

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Baroque Churches of the Philippines, 1993) and National Cultural Treasure (1973)Marcos Avenue, Poblacion, Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Luzon, Philippines

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A hilltop fortress-sanctuary among the four UNESCO World Heritage Baroque Churches of the Philippines, built of hand-molded red clay brick in 1765 by friars of the Order of Saint Augustine atop an isolated hill overlooking the valley of Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur. Ringed by nineteenth-century defensive stone retaining walls and approached via a monumental 85-step granite stairway built in 1822, the church is paired with an elevated convent bridge and a slightly leaning four-story octagonal bell tower erected in 1810.

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Baroque Churches of the Philippines, 1993) and National Historical LandmarkChurch Hill, Poblacion, Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur, Luzon, Philippines

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The beating heart of popular Catholic devotion in the Philippines, standing on Plaza Miranda along Quezon Boulevard in the historic Quiapo district of Manila. Founded as the Franciscan parish of Saint John the Baptist in 1586, the church enshrines the revered dark mesquite-wood image of Jesus Nazareno (the Black Nazarene) brought from Acapulco, Mexico aboard a Manila Galleon in 1606 and transferred to Quiapo in 1787. Designed in its modern Mexican Baroque form by two Philippine National Artists for Architecture (Juan Nakpil in 1933 and Jose Maria Zaragoza in 1984), it is the center of the world-famous January 9 barefoot Traslacion procession.

Minor Basilica (1987), National Shrine of Jesus Nazareno (2024), and Historic Landmark of ManilaPlaza Miranda, Quezon Boulevard, Quiapo, Manila, 1001 Metro Manila, Philippines

Photo: Ralff Nestor Nacor, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The only all-steel prefabricated church in Asia, raised in Quiapo, Manila between 1888 and 1891 by the Order of Augustinian Recollects after four earlier churches of wood, brick, and stone on the site perished in the fire of 1651 and the earthquakes of 1859, 1863, and 1880. Designed in Neo-Gothic style by Spanish engineer Don Genaro Palacios y Guerra and cast in over 1,527 tons of steel sections by the Société Anonyme des Entreprises de Travaux Publics at Binche, Belgium, its hollow metal interior is covered in trompe-l'oeil faux-marble paintings by Filipino master Lorenzo Rocha, illuminated by stained glass from the Heinrich Oidtmann studio in Germany, and enshrines the revered 1618 ivory-and-wood image of Our Lady of Mount Carmel brought from Mexico.

Minor Basilica (Pope Leo XIII, 1890), National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (1973), and National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines (2011)Plaza del Carmen, Pasaje del Carmen Street, Quiapo, Manila, 1001 Metro Manila, Philippines

Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The spiritual and urban centerpiece of the UNESCO World Heritage Historic City of Vigan in Ilocos Sur, northern Luzon. Established as a wooden mission chapel by Spanish conquistador Juan de Salcedo in 1574, designated the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Nueva Segovia by royal decree of King Ferdinand VI in 1758, and rebuilt in its present monumental form by Augustinian friars between 1790 and 1800, the cathedral exemplifies Ilocano Earthquake Baroque architecture enriched with Hokkien-Filipino (Sangley) carved stone guardian lions on its cream-yellow facade, a hammered silver and mother-of-pearl main altar, and a detached 25-meter octagonal bell tower standing on Plaza Burgos.

UNESCO World Heritage Site (Historic City of Vigan, 1999) and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Nueva SegoviaBurgos Street, fronting Plaza Salcedo and Plaza Burgos, Vigan City, Ilocos Sur, Philippines

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The premier Marian pilgrimage basilica of northern Luzon, administered since 1605 by the Dominican Order (Order of Preachers) atop a scenic hill in Manaoag, Pangasinan. Named from the Pangasinan and Ilocano verb mantaoag (meaning to call), commemorating the circa 1610 apparition in which the Virgin Mary called to a local farmer from a treetop asking that a church be built on the hill, the sanctuary enshrines a revered early seventeenth-century Spanish ivory-and-wood statue of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary (affectionately called Apo Baket), canonically crowned by Pope Pius XI in 1926, affiliated with the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome in 2011, and elevated by Pope Francis to a Minor Basilica in 2014.

Minor Basilica (Pope Francis, 2014 / proclaimed 2015), Papal Affiliate of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome (2011), and Canonically Crowned Marian Shrine (1926)Milo Street, Poblacion, Manaoag, 2430 Pangasinan, Luzon, Philippines

Photo: EyeTrick, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The largest Catholic church in the Philippines and in Asia, measuring 88.6 meters long and 48 meters wide atop the central hill of the heritage town of Taal in Batangas Province, Luzon. Originally founded by Augustinian friar Diego Espinar in 1575 on the shores of Taal Lake and relocated to its present coastal hilltop in 1755 after the catastrophic 200-day eruption of Taal Volcano in 1754 buried the old town, the current monumental coral-stone and adobe sanctuary was begun in 1856 by Fray Marcos Antón, OSA and designed by Spanish architect Luciano Oliver with a 24-column Ionic and Corinthian facade, completed in 1865 to 1878, and elevated by Pope Pius XII to a Minor Basilica in 1954.

Minor Basilica (Pope Pius XII, 1948 / 1954), National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (Presidential Decree No. 375, 1974), and Largest Catholic Church in AsiaCalle San Martin, Poblacion, Taal, 4208 Batangas, Luzon, Philippines

Photo: Allan Jay Quesada, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

A historic coral-stone and limestone Catholic church standing beside Radiwan Seaport in Ivana on Batan Island in the northernmost Philippine province of Batanes. Founded as a Dominican mission in 1784 by Fray Bartolomé Artiguez, OP, begun in stone in 1795 by Fray Francisco de Paula Esteban, OP, shortened and completed in 1814 by Fray José Fausto de Cuevas, OP, and crowned with a fortress-like crenellated square bell tower in 1817, the sanctuary is built with meter-thick cal y canto lime-mortar walls engineered by indigenous Ivatan stonecutters to withstand Pacific super-typhoons sweeping the Luzon Strait.

National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (NHCP, 2008) and UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List Site (Batanes Protected Landscapes and Seascapes, 1993)Barangay Radiwan, beside Ivana Seaport, Ivana, Batan Island, Batanes, Philippines

Photo: Suzanne Rona Bermudez, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

The oldest mosque in the Philippines and a foundational cradle of Islam in Maritime Southeast Asia, established in 1380 CE at Barangay Tubig Indangan on Simunul Island in the southernmost province of Tawi-Tawi by Arab Sufi missionary and scholar Sheikh Karimul Makhdum together with the indigenous Sama people. Raised more than 140 years before Ferdinand Magellan's 1521 arrival in Cebu, the modern white-and-emerald-domed sanctuary preserves in situ the four original fourteenth-century round hardwood pillars (saka) of iron-hard ipil timber carved with traditional ukkil motifs, alongside the revered gravesite (maqam) of Sheikh Karimul Makhdum.

National Historical Landmark of the Philippines (NHCP, 1995), National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines (National Museum, 1998), and National Commemorative Site under Republic Act No. 10866 (2016)Barangay Tubig Indangan, Simunul Island, Tawi-Tawi Province, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, Philippines

Photo: National Historical Commission of the Philippines, Phạm vi công cộng, Wikimedia Commons

A multi-tiered Taoist temple complex rising 300 meters above sea level on the breezy slopes of Beverly Hills Subdivision in Lahug, Cebu City, built in 1972 by Cebu's Chinese Filipino community. Entered through a crenellated stone gateway modeled after the Great Wall of China and approached via 81 stone steps representing the 81 chapters of Laozi's Tao Te Ching, the sanctuary honors Taishang Laojun (Laozi), the Jade Emperor, Guandi, and Guanyin while offering sweeping views across downtown Cebu and the Mactan Channel.

Largest and Most Prominent Taoist Architectural Complex in the Central Philippines (Visayas)Beverly Hills Subdivision, Lahug, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines

Photo: Martin Michlmayr, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

One of the world's largest Marian shrines, administered by the Redemptorist Fathers (Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer) since 1932 along the shore of Manila Bay in Barangay Baclaran, Parañaque City, Metro Manila. Rebuilt between 1952 and 1958 to a Modern Neo-Romanesque design by Filipino architect Cesar Concio with a total capacity of 11,000 worshippers, the shrine is renowned worldwide for its Wednesday Perpetual Novena begun on June 23, 1948, which draws over 100,000 Filipino and overseas Vietnamese devotees every week.

National Shrine of the Philippines (1958) and Global Center of the Perpetual Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual HelpRedemptorist Road, Baclaran, Parañaque City, 1702 Metro Manila, Philippines

Photo: Ranieljosecastaneda, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

A poignant Vietnamese spiritual and cultural heritage enclave at Kilometer 13 on the North National Highway in Barangay Santa Lourdes, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan. Born out of the historic Palawan refugee camp (Philippine First Asylum Camp, PFAC, 1979 to 1996) and established in 1996 on 12 hectares with the humanitarian support of Jaime Cardinal Sin and the Apostolic Vicariate of Puerto Princesa, Viet Ville preserves a traditional curved-roof Vietnamese Buddhist sanctuary (Chua Phap Vien / Phap Vien Pagoda) with an outdoor Avalokitesvara shrine, a Catholic chapel honoring Our Lady of La Vang, and the culinary legacy of Vietnamese Chaolong noodle soup and banh mi on Palawan Island.

Historic Vietnamese Humanitarian and Cultural Heritage Site of Puerto Princesa, PalawanKm 13 North National Highway, Barangay Santa Lourdes, Puerto Princesa City, 5300 Palawan, Philippines

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The first International Shrine in the Philippines and Southeast Asia (elevated by the Holy See under Pope Francis in 2022/2023) and seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Antipolo, perched on the breezy hills of Antipolo City, Rizal Province, east of Metro Manila. Founded by Jesuit missionaries in 1591 and rebuilt in 1954 to a circular dome design by architect Jose L. de Ocampo, the cathedral enshrines the seventeenth-century dark Mexican hardwood statue of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage (Nuestra Señora de la Paz y Buen Viaje), brought from Acapulco by Governor-General Juan Niño de Tabora in 1626 and famed for crossing the Pacific Ocean safely aboard the Manila Galleons.

First International Shrine in the Philippines and Southeast Asia (Holy See, 2023), National Shrine (1954), and Cathedral of the Diocese of Antipolo (1983)P. Oliveros Street, Poblacion, Antipolo City, 1870 Rizal, Philippines

Photo: Elmer Domingo, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The oldest and largest Mahayana Buddhist monastery in Metro Manila, situated on tree-lined Narra Street in Tondo (just north of Binondo Chinatown), founded in 1936 by Venerable Master Xingyuan (Hokkien: Seng Guan, Sino-Vietnamese: Thich Tinh Nguyen / Tin Nguyen, 1889 to 1972), the founding patriarch of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism in the Philippines. Expanded in 1966 and 1988 into a stately multi-story monastic complex crowned with imperial yellow glazed roofs, the temple is renowned for its luminous Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas, sacred Buddha relics, and warm welcome to both Chinese Filipino and overseas Vietnamese Buddhist devotees in Manila.

Premier and Oldest Canonical Mahayana Buddhist Monastery in Metro Manila (Founded 1936)1179 Narra Street, Tondo, Manila, 1012 Metro Manila, Philippines

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An open-air interfaith spiritual complex and humanitarian historical memorial spanning the rolling foothills of Mount Natib overlooking the South China Sea at Barangay Sabang, Morong, Bataan Province (now within the Bataan Technology Park). Originally operating from January 1980 to 1994 as the Philippine Refugee Processing Center (PRPC), where between 300,000 and 400,000 Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Laotian refugees studied English and cultural orientation prior to third-country resettlement and where Saint John Paul II visited on February 21, 1981, the site preserves the Boat People Bas-Relief Chapel Wall rising into a Cross, Buddhist stupas, the Papal Shrine, a four-language gratitude monument, and the PRPC Museum.

Historic Indochinese Refugee Humanitarian Sanctuary and Interfaith Memorial Landmark of Bataan ProvinceBataan Technology Park, Barangay Sabang, Morong, 2108 Bataan, Luzon, Philippines

Photo: Creator/Contributor: Project Ngoc, Photographer, Phạm vi công cộng, Wikimedia Commons