• Take a swim at the nearby Mindoro Beach Resort.
• Visit Baluarte, the governor's fortress. It also features a mini zoo with exotic animals and you can get a free ride with the small horses.
• Try your hand at pottery. Vigan's Pagburnayan makes burnay jars which are made of sand and fire-blasted in a huge kiln.
• Ride a calesa, a horse-drawn carriage, around Vigan and the surrounding towns.
• Witness old women weave abel at Camangaan.
• Visit St. Augustine Church in nearby Bantay and climb up its belfry to get a breath-taking view of the town.
• Join the Viva Vigan, Kannawidan, and Binatbatan Festivals when it happens.
• Try the Heritage River Tour, with its main base at Celedonia Garden in Beddeng Laud.

• The Mestizo District offers a wonderful glimpse into the Philippines' colonial past. The ancestral houses were mostly built by Chinese traders using a mixture of local, Asian and Spanish architectural styles. Movie fans recognize the streets from the movie Born on the Fourth of July. If someone looks closely, there are still evidence left from the shooting, e.g. signs in Spanish but hastily and thinly painted over with white paint.

• St. Paul's Metropolitan Cathedral (admission free) was built by Augustinians around 1790 and features a unique design intended to minimize earthquake damage; a style that came to be known as "earthquake baroque". Look out for the brass communion handrails forged in China, complete with Chinese characters scrawled by its ancient installers (if you look closely). The eight-sided bell tower is just south of the cathedral. Its position was actually the safety measure of the earthquake baroque style: it was built separately from the church so that it would not topple into the church in the event of an earthquake. Its eight-sided design reflects its Chinese Feng-shui influences. One would look closely inside the cathedral and one would find the tombstone of the great Ilocano poet Leona Florentino (in the column near the entrance facing Plaza Burgos).

• Just adjacent to the Cathedral is the Archbishop's Residence, which dates back to the Spanish Era--the oldest archbishop's residence still in use in the Philippines.

• Plaza Salcedo west of the cathedral features a 17th Century monument to Juan de Salcedo, and was also the site of resistance leader Gabriela Silang's public hanging in 1763.

• Plaza Burgos is a favourite hang out for locals. It is also used for staging major public events. It has also food stalls selling native snacks, notably the empanada.

• The Ayala Museum used to be the home of Father Jose Burgos but now houses Ilocano artifacts, weapons, kitchen utensils, basketry, costumes, jewellery and Burgos Memorabilia. There are also some dioramas showing important events in the history of Ilocos Sur, and a mini library. Beside the museum is the Ilocos Sur Provincial Jail, where the Philippines first Ilocano president, the late Pres. Elpidio Quirino, was born.

• The Crisologo Museum used to be the home of the late Congressman Floro Crisologo and wife Carmeling, former governor of Ilocos Sur. It contains memorabilia of the late Congressman.

• The Syquia Mansion used to be the Vigan residence of President Elpidio Quirino. There are memorabilia inside the residence, which includes a campaign portrait of Quirino.

By bus or car

It's seven to ten hours' drive along the scenic Ilocos Highway from Manila to Vigan. Partas Bus Co., Dominion Bus Lines, Viron Transit, and St. Joseph/Aniceto Transit have regular trips to Vigan. Bus lines like Philippine Rabbit Bus Line, Farinas Transit, Maria de Leon, Florida, and RCJ Transit have regular trips plying the Manila-Laoag route, which passes by Vigan.

By plane

Interisland Airlines [1] flies to Mindoro Airport [2], also known as Vigan Airport, the airport serving the general area of Vigan City. Alternately, you could go to Laoag's airport (1.5 hours by car), the Laoag International Airport. Philippine Airlines flies to from Laoag everyday of the week from Manila. Cebu Pacific flies daily from Manila.

A fun throwback to colonial days are the calesa horse-drawn carriages that still clip-clop through Vigan's streets. Rates for calesa rides should be the same as those for the many tricycles (P8-P10 within the city limits) that will undoubtedly by vying for your custom. But you could also hire a private calesa for around 150php per hour. Unless you're absolutely sure you have a tour guide that will give you in depth information about the sites you're visiting, A whole day calesa adventure for about 1000 (roughly 6-7 hours) would be advisable. You can take your time visiting the sites and not being rushed by a guide, as well as picking and choosing the areas you want to visit.

There are dozens of antique and souvenir shops dotted about the city, particularly on Crisologo and Plaridel Streets in the mestizo district. Although most of the antiques are only reproductions, you'll still enjoy browsing odd items, religious paraphernalia (look out for the toddler Jesus figurines) and some unique foods. You can also buy hand-rolled cigars, sold in packs of three.

You can buy native handwoven abel cloth at the Vigan Public Market, as well as delicacies like longganisa (native pork sausages) and bagnet (deep-fried crispy pork) at its Meat Section.