Lanzones Festival

Lanzones is a small round fruit with translucent segments, sweet and slightly resinous, and Camiguin's volcanic soil produces what most Filipinos will concede are the best in the country. The island has held a festival for it since the 1980s, in the third or fourth week of October when the harvest comes in: street dancing by contingents from the island's five municipalities in costumes built from lanzones leaves and fruit, a parade, a beauty pageant, agricultural displays and an enormous quantity of eating and drinking, with the fruit sold everywhere at prices lower than anywhere else. It is a small island's fiesta rather than a mass event - Camiguin's total population is around ninety thousand - which makes it more approachable than the big city festivals. The ferry from Balingoan takes about an hour, and accommodation on the island is limited enough that booking ahead matters during the week.

The main sights

• The leaf costumes - dancers dressed in lanzones foliage and fruit.
• The municipal contingents - the island's five towns competing.
• The harvest markets - fruit sold across the island at its cheapest.
• The island fiesta - a small-scale festival rather than a mass event.

When to go

The third or fourth week of October - confirm dates with the province, as they move with the harvest. Book accommodation well ahead; the island's rooms are few.

Things to know

Camiguin has limited accommodation and it fills for the festival. Ferries from Balingoan are busy and weather-dependent. It is a local fiesta, so much of it runs on island time rather than a published schedule.

Nearby

White Island, the Sunken Cemetery, Katibawasan Falls and Mantigue Island are all on the same small island.