Rizal Park

Rizal Park - the Luneta to most Manileños - is the city's central open space, a long rectangle of lawns, gardens and monuments running from Taft Avenue down to Manila Bay. Its meaning is political as much as recreational: this was Bagumbayan, the field where the Spanish executed José Rizal in December 1896, and the monument over his remains, guarded permanently, is the country's symbolic centre and the point from which distances in the Philippines are measured. Independence was proclaimed here in 1946 and the flag raised. The park holds a Chinese and a Japanese garden, an orchidarium, a relief map of the country in a pool, the planetarium, a musical fountain that runs in the evening, and the National Museum complex along its northern edge. It is busiest at dawn, when Manila comes out to exercise, and on Sundays, when families fill every patch of shade.

What you actually see

• The Rizal Monument - the guarded memorial and burial site.
• The execution site - the sculptural tableau marking 1896.
• The relief map - the archipelago laid out in a pool.
• The gardens - Chinese and Japanese sections and the orchidarium.

When to go

December to February for cooler air; early morning or late afternoon at any time, since the park is largely unshaded at midday. The fountain show runs in the evening.

Honest expectations

Several sections - the gardens, planetarium and some attractions - charge separate fees. It is crowded on Sundays and holidays. Watch belongings in the busier areas as in any large city park.

Nearby

Intramuros and Fort Santiago are just north; the National Museum buildings line the park's upper end.