Dangwa flower market

What it is

Dangwa is the name Manila gives to a few streets of flower stalls in the Sampaloc district. It is named after a bus company whose terminal here brought flowers down from the cool Cordillera mountains around Baguio. Stalls sell roses, chrysanthemums, Malaysian mums, lilies, sunflowers and orchids, loose or made up into bouquets on the spot, and trade runs around the clock. Demand explodes twice a year: for Valentine's Day, and for All Saints' Day on 1 November, when Filipino families take flowers and candles to the graves of their relatives. At those times the streets are closed to cars and packed with buyers.

Before you go

• Go late at night or very early, when deliveries arrive and it is cooler.
• Prices rise steeply before 14 February and 1 November.
• Keep valuables close in the crowd.

The flowers you will see

RoseWoody perennial plants with showy, often fragrant flowers in many coloursChrysanthemumAutumn-blooming flower with thousands of varieties, cherished in East Asia and beyondLilyTall bulb flowers with large, colourful blooms in many gardens and culturesArabian jasmineA small white jasmine with a strong, sweet scent, treasured in Asia for garlands and ceremonies

Also part of it, and being written: Helianthus annuus.

More in Philippines

🇵🇭 Baguio · Feb to MarPanagbenga, the Baguio flower festivalA month-long flower festival in the Philippine highlands, with parades of floats covered in blooms.