Good Time to Visit
Weather
The Philippines has a tropical climate tempered by constant sea breezes. There are three distinct seasons:
- the hot and mainly dry season from March to May when temperatures range from 20 to 34°C and average monthly rainfall is less than 5 cm;
- the rainy season from June to September, where temperatures range from 24 to 31°C and monthly rainfall may be greater than 40 cm;
- the cool and dry season from October to February, when average temperatures are about 25°C and rainfall varies from 4-20 cm a month.
Typhoons occasionally occur from June to September.
Visitors are advised to bring linens or lightweight clothing, with rainwear from May to November. Warmer clothes may be required for cooler evenings.
More details on Philippine weather may be found in Climate in the Philippines.
Festivals
Dozens of colourful festivals are celebrated in the Philippines each year. The major Muslim festivals and Catholic feast days in honour of patron saints are particularly important days. Chinese New Year is also a big event. Independence Day, on 12 June, is a national holiday celebrated with military parades. In May, processions take place in honour of the Virgin Mary, with young girls in white dresses decorating the statues of Mary with flowers.
Public Holidays
The following table shows the public holidays celebrated in Philippines:
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year's Day |
| 25 February | People Power Day |
| March/April (variable) | Maundy Thursday |
| March/April (variable) | Good Friday |
| 9 April | Bataan Day (Day of Valour) |
| 1 May | Labour Day |
| 12 June | Independence Day |
| August (last Sunday of the month) | National Heroes' Day |
| 21 August | Aquino Day |
| 1 November | All Saints' Day |
| 30 November | Bonifacio Day |
| 25 December | Christmas Day |
| 30 December | Rizal Day |
| 31 December | New Year's Eve |
| Variable* | Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan) |
* Although Muslim holidays always fall on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date they are celebrated on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year, due to the fact that the Islamic calendar is lunar whilst the Gregorian calendar is solar. Because this lunar year is about 11 days shorter than the solar year, Islamic holy days usually shift 11 days earlier each successive solar year. The method used to determine when each Islamic month begins also varies from country to country.
