Baguio shivers at 10.6 C ahead of festival season
BAGUIO CITY—Temperatures in the country’s summer capital dipped again this week, with the mercury falling to 11 degrees Celsius early Thursday and further to a bone-chilling 10.6 C at dawn on Friday as the city heads into its busy festival month in February.
The seasonal chill coincides with the peak tourist season in the city, which typically begins during the Christmas holidays and extends through February, highlighted by the Baguio Flower Festival. The festival will open with a grand parade on Feb. 1.
Tourist arrivals are also expected to rise next month due to the Spring Festival or Chinese New Year celebrations and the annual homecoming of the Philippine Military Academy.
Peak season
The peak season usually tapers off after Holy Week, when warmer summer temperatures reach the highlands. In 2024, more than 1.56 million visitors booked hotels and lodging houses in Baguio.
However, the loval government estimates that total tourist arrivals may exceed 2 million, as weekend visitors from nearby provinces who travel to the city and return home the same day are not included in official counts, Mayor Benjamin Magalong said during a news conference on Thursday.
Travel time to Baguio from Metro Manila now takes less than four hours, while motorists from Pangasinan and La Union can reach the city in under two hours via Kennon Road.
The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) earlier forecast temperatures to dip to around 10 C yesterday, with daytime highs reaching 21 C.
Forecast
While cold conditions are expected to persist in the coming weeks, Pagasa said temperatures would gradually rise, with the coldest reading on today, forecast at 11 C, followed by 12 C on Sunday and Monday. Due to a 10-percent chance of rain, the lowest temperature on Tuesday is projected at 14 C.
Historically, Baguio’s coldest recorded temperature was 6.3 C on Jan. 18, 1961. In more recent years, temperatures dropped to 7.3 C in February 2017, close to the 7.1 C record set in 1971.
The city recorded an 8.1-degree morning in January 2014 and a 9 C degree in February 2021.
Coldest readings are typically recorded at Mt. Santo Tomas, where the oldest weather instruments are located, and where temperatures are usually about 3 C lower than in the city.
The vegetable-growing towns of Atok and Buguias in Benguet province are also typically 3-4 C degrees colder than Baguio.
Authorities have clarified that recent social media posts claiming “negative zero” temperatures in Atok are inaccurate.
The recent chilly mornings mark the coldest so far in 2026, prompting heightened vigilance among health authorities due to the seasonal rise in cases of colds and influenza.
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