It’s time to celebrate Cebu’s best delicacy at the Halad Inasal Festival!
Are you excited for the Halad Inasal Festival? Because there is a lot to look forward to this year!
The Talisay City government has announced a list of Halad Inasal Festival activities for the month-long celebration in October. Expect lots of fun things to do aside from having a taste of some of the best local delicacies.
You can take part in several social activities, watch stellar performances, and many more.
The main highlight of the festival will be on October 13th, where the event takes place on the streets with impressive choreographed dances, expertly-designed props, and stunning musical performances.
This is one of the biggest festivals in Cebu where thousands of locals and tourists come out to witness the dazzling performances live. Of course, everyone is also looking forward to trying out the island’s most popular delicacy, the one and only lechon.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT THE HALAD INASAL FESTIVAL 2024
The Sunday celebration will be held at the vacant lot near Talisay City Hall at Cebu South Road Properties. It will include the Street Dancing Competition, the Festival Queen Coronation Night, and the Grand Ritual Showdown.
Contingents consist of students from various public schools in Talisay, with a Festival Queen representing the different barangays in the city.
The Street Dancing Competition starts at 1:00 PM, while the Coronation Night starts at 6:00 PM. The Grand Ritual Showdown, where all contingents perform on a massive stage, starts at 8:00 PM.
During the street parade, expect to see massive floats showcasing the famous lechon, fashioned in all kinds of colorful setups. In previous years, floats would carry actual suckling pigs, but participants have since switched to styrofoam to preserve supply.
Many festivals in the Philippines include a religious celebration, and the Halad Inasal is no different. This cultural celebration pays homage to the patron saint of the host city, St. Therese de Avila.
Religious events include a mass followed by a traslacion, wherein they will take the image of St. Therese from the Sta. Teresa de Avila Church in Poblacion to Our Lady of Consolation Parish-Recoletos in Laray.
A day after the main celebration, the festival will have a fluvial procession at 4:00 AM from Barangay Tanke to Poblacion, and a foot procession at 5:00 PM from Poblacion to Dumlog and vice versa.
The festival will host its own night market at the city hall, which opened on September 27th.
There is also a lechon food park, in which some of the city’s biggest lechon makers gather to showcase their lechon. This will take place at the Liberation Park in Poblacion.
Guests can try out a variety of flavors and recipes that have made Talisay one of Cebu’s lechon capitals.
Both the night market and lechon food park opens from 5:00 PM onwards and will run until October 15th.
The last day of the festival will include the third Nochella Concert, which will feature popular local music acts performing their hit songs. Previous iterations featured the likes of Ely Buendia, Gigi de Lana, Kurt Fick, Jacky Chang, and December Avenue.
As of writing, no confirmation has been made of who will be performing during this year’s event.
A BRIEF HISTORY
The city takes pride in the festival as it showcases its history, people, and most importantly, food.
Talisay is world-renowned for serving what many believe to be the first and best lechon in Cebu, with its simple seasoning that requires no sauce. It’s played an important part in the history of lechon, as many come to try their version of this famous delicacy.
Cities and towns around the country commonly make lechon a centerpiece for celebrations. Talisay aimed to bring more exposure to their product, using it as a theme for their own cultural celebrations.
In 2005, the Talisay City government opened the first Halad Inasal Festival. It is celebrated on October 15th, which is the feast day of St. Teresa de Avila. The lechon serves as an offering to the patron saint to give thanks.
The Halad Inasal Festival is popular for gathering all of Talisay’s lechon vendors in one location. Aside from getting to witness different local talents, guests can also get a taste of the famous Talisay lechon.
