Argao Church

San Miguel Arcángel at Argao was finished in the late eighteenth century, a coral-stone church with a heavily decorated baroque facade, a painted trompe-l'œil ceiling in the nave and carved retablos, standing inside a walled compound with the convent, the old municipal buildings and a plaza - one of the more intact colonial town centres in Cebu, and a declared National Cultural Treasure. The walls around the complex were defensive, part of the same coastal system that produced the fortifications at Boljoon down the road. Argao is also known for two edible things: torta, a rich local cake baked with tuba, and the sweets sold around the plaza. The town sits on the southeast coast about halfway to Oslob, which is how most people encounter it, and an hour covers the church, the plaza and a cake.

What you actually see

• The carved facade - baroque stonework on the front.
• The painted ceiling - trompe-l'œil work along the nave.
• The walled plaza - convent and old town buildings enclosed.
• The torta bakeries - the local cake sold around the square.

When to go

December to May for dry travel. Weekday mornings for a quiet church; the town fiesta in late September fills the plaza.

Honest expectations

It is a working parish and closes to sightseeing during services. There is limited interpretation on site. Argao is a stop rather than a destination for most itineraries.

Nearby

Boljoon is further south; Simala Shrine at Sibonga is north, and Oslob is about an hour on.