Liliw Footwear Town

Liliw sits on the slopes of Mount Banahaw in Laguna and has made footwear since the early twentieth century - Gat Tayaw Street, the main road through town, is lined end to end with shops selling locally made slippers, sandals and shoes at prices that make the drive worthwhile for people from Manila, and behind many of the shopfronts are the small workshops that produce them. The trade has adapted repeatedly to cheap imports, and what survives is a mix of traditional abaca and leather work and contemporary designs. Above the street stands the church of St John the Baptist, an eighteenth-century building in distinctive red brick with a bell tower, damaged by earthquake and rebuilt. The town is cool and green, with cold springs in the surrounding barangays that local families swim in, and it is usually visited together with Nagcarlan's underground cemetery a short drive away.

What you actually see

• Gat Tayaw Street - the footwear shops end to end.
• The workshops - slipper and sandal making behind the shops.
• The red-brick church - St John the Baptist above the town.
• The cold springs - swimming pools in the surrounding barangays.

When to go

November to May for dry travel; the Tsinelas festival in late April celebrates the trade. Weekdays are quieter than weekends, when Manila shoppers arrive.

Honest expectations

The street is a shopping strip - the appeal is buying, not sightseeing. Weekend traffic and parking in the narrow streets are difficult. Workshop access depends on the shop owner.

Nearby

Nagcarlan's underground cemetery is minutes away; San Pablo's seven lakes and Majayjay Falls are close.