Bacolod is a great destination for a short family vacation. A 2- or 3-day trip is enough to see the most important sights and eat the most amazing food. For kids, it’s a fantastic opportunity to learn about colonial history, Philippine geography, Negrense cuisine, and local culture (we asked our eldest daughter to write a kid’s travel guide to Bacolod for her homeschool project).
Bacolod refers to Bacolod City, the capital of the province of Negros Occidental. Metro Bacolod, on the other hand, is the wider metropolitan area that includes Bacolod City, Silay, and Talisay. Negros Occidental is a province in the Western Visayas region, covering the northern half of the island of Negros (the other half being Negros Oriental). Got it?
The three things that come to mind when we think of Bacolod are inasal, sugar, and the MassKara Festival. But of course, there is much more to Bacolod that we discovered: heritage houses, delicious desserts, The Ruins, piaya, cansi, and KBL. Your Bacolod travel with your kids can be a fun, educational experience.
What to Do in Bacolod With Kids
Bacolod is not a beach destination. It’s not exactly a seafood haven. And it’s not a nature trip. Bacolod is really about culture and food. Here are the three best things you can do in Bacolod:
1. Visit The Ruins
If there’s one historical landmark you should see in Bacolod, it’s The Ruins in Talisay. Yes, it’s just the shell of a colonial mansion. But it’s the rich history and romantic story that makes it fascinating, and its stunning, massive beauty at night makes it a worthwhile destination.
It was built in the 1900s by a sugar baron, inspired by Italian architecture using concrete, metal, marble, and egg whites (you can just imagine how filthy rich those sugar barons were back then).
Don Mariano Ledesma Lacson built it on a 440-hectare sugar plantation in honor of his beloved Portuguese wife Maria Braga Lacson, who died during childbirth. That’s why it’s called the “Taj Mahal of the Philippines.”
2. Take a tour of heritage houses
Another must-do in Bacolod is to take a tour of some heritage houses in Silay (there are 29 in the area, so you can do a walking tour). Again, it’s a great history lesson for you and your kids (certainly better than reading boring textbooks!). What’s interesting is the diverse architectural styles of the houses given they were built during different periods.
We visited two of the most popular houses: Balay Negrense and the Hofileña Heritage House (we missed Bernardino Jalandoni Museum due to lack of time and energy). We chose them because they’ve been turned into museums and they have guided tours to make you and your kids appreciate them more (instead of just aimlessly looking around).
Balay Negrense is the older (1897) and more impressive of the two. It’s the ancestral home of Victor Fernandez Gaston, a Frenchman and 19th-century sugar baron who was one of the pioneers of sugar production in the Philippines. Made from concrete, stone, and wood, it houses period furniture, fixtures, kitchenware, decor, family portraits, clothes, and toys that will take you back to the colonial past. And the tour guide made history come alive.
The Hofileña Heritage House is unique in that it remains the residence of one of the children of Manuel Severino Hofileña, who built this house in 1934. The house was constructed using hardwood, ironwood, and narra, designed in art deco and art nouveau styles.
The chatty and sharp Ramon Hofileña himself gave a fascinating tour of how he and his family lived back then, regaling us with their family travels, the Japanese and American occupations, and daily life at home.
He also showcased their vast collection of religious artifacts, porcelain wares, books (including the first pocketbooks for American G.I.s), tektite stones (meteorite debris), the world’s smallest dolls (you need a magnifying glass to see the details), and paintings and sketches of Jose Riza, Juan Luna, Felix Resurrecion Hidalgo, Fernando Amorsolo, Vicente Manansala, among many others (yes, their family is rich).
Our children enjoyed both heritage house tours. See? Bacolod travel with kids doesn’t have to be boring.
3. Go on a food trip
This is what we were most excited about: go on a food trip! Bacolod is no doubt a culinary destination. We would go back to Bacolod just to eat, seriously.
And this brings us to our favorite restaurants! Just click on the next page to find out.
