Cebu City is the main city on Cebu Island in the Philippines and is known as the Queen City of the South. It is the capital of Cebu Province, a transport hub, and a popular tourist destination in its own right. Cebu is part of the country's second largest large urban area, Metro Cebu, whose other main components are the cities of Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu. This is a booming metropolitan area with all the conveniences of a modern city, as well as many of the problems of squalor, traffic, noise and pollution.
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The term "Cebu" is somewhat ambiguous; it can refer to the city itself (the commonest usage), to the whole Metro Cebu urban area, to Cebu Island or to Cebu Province which includes Cebu Island and a few nearby smaller islands. The Colon district near the port is the oldest part of Cebu; it was the first Spanish city in the country and has tourist sites from that era, listed under #See. It also has much of the low-cost accommodation and a lot of department stores or small malls which, while not as large and modern as those in other areas, are often more affordable. Osmeña Boulevard is one of the city's main streets, running approximately north from Colon district out to the provincial capitol.
See the Metro Cebu article for a more general discussion of getting around in the large urban conglomerate of which Cebu City forms a part. Do as the locals do and catch a colorful jeepney. They are available 24 hours and cover most of the nooks and crannies of the city. Ask around for which route to take, or read the signs on the sides of the vehicles showing their routes. Routes within the city are also listed on Google Maps; Google Maps lists certain stops but you don't actually have to get on or off at any particular stop -- you can get on and off anywhere along the jeep's route.
The city was well established as a trade center and regional capital even before the first Europeans, under Magellan, arrived in the 1520s. When the Spanish returned to colonize in 1565, Cebu became the first Spanish city in the country and (briefly) the capital. Many of today's tourist sites go back to the period of Spanish rule which lasted until the Americans took over in 1898. 1 Basilica of Santo Niño (Basilica del Santo Niño (Basilica of the Holy Child)), Osmeña Boulevard, ☏ +63 32 2556697. A large and venerable church that traces its history to the founding of the convent of the Santo Niño de Cebu in 1565.
1 Tops Lookout. This sits at the top of the Mt Busay and has an unobstructed view of the entire city at night. A few shops and restaurants stand along the way for a short stop. Taxi drivers may want as much as ₱1000 for a trip to Tops, so the best way to get there is by mountain bike. This is a world class climb and on any given day, Cebu's bikers are humping the 45-minute to 1-hr trek filled with switchbacks and views better than you see actually at the very top. Ask your hotel where you can rent a mountain bike. They may have to ask around a bit, but it's worth it. Ride a tartanilla - Head to Cebu's old quarters in Carlock St and try riding a horse drawn carriage called a tartanilla.
Cebu City has a wide range of reasonably good places to eat, from restaurants and buffets to street-food stalls. All-you-can-eat buffets tend to be more expensive than in many other parts of the country. Street food is abundant, with stalls across the city selling a variety of Filipino snacks and local specialties. All the major malls (listed under #Buy) have food courts, and major chains — KFC, Shakey's Pizza, Starbucks, Bo's Coffee and others — have locations in many of them. The downtown area around Colon Street has a large number of restaurants including many budget places and many fast food chains. 1 Robinsons Fuente food court, B Rodriguez Street (Right on Fuente Circle).
Mango Avenue (officially General Maxilom Avenue) and Mango Square is where the bulk of the nightlife is. The typical venues are nightclubs, bars and karaoke boxes. There are many girlie bars, mostly along Mango Ave. It is fairly common to visit these clubs just to enjoy the show, a lot of scantily-clad dancers who compete to catch customers' eyes. However, the dancers are more-or-less all also available for sexual services.
Cebu is a relatively safe city where violent crime is rare. This being said, you should be aware of your surroundings. Beware of pickpockets. It's common to spot them in downtown Cebu and on jeepneys. Parts of downtown Cebu are unsafe at night.
Guide content from Wikivoyage contributors (CC BY-SA) — abridged; the full article has much more.
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In Jul, Cebu City typically sees ~31°C daytime highs and 23 rainy days.
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