Mambajao is Camiguin’s capital and largest town — a relaxed place with a market, the parish church of San Nicolas de Tolentino, a few old wooden houses, the main banks and ATMs, and most of the island’s shops. Most travellers pass through to stock up before heading back to the beaches.
Each October the town hosts the Lanzones Festival, celebrating the harvest of the island’s famously sweet lanzones fruit with street dancing, parades and costumes decorated with fruit and leaves. It is the busiest week of the year — book accommodation early if you plan to go.
What to see and do: Mambajao & the Lanzones Festival
Join the Lanzones Festival
The festival takes place in October (usually in the second half of the month); exact dates are announced each year by the provincial government — check before you travel.
Taste pastel
Camiguin’s soft buns filled with sweet custard are sold in town and make a popular souvenir.
Visit the church and market
The parish church and the market give a feel for everyday island life.
Use the banks
Mambajao has the island’s main ATMs; stock up on cash before heading to beaches and falls.
How to get to Mambajao & the Lanzones Festival
- On the north coast; the airport is just outside town and the beach resorts of Agoho and Yumbing are a few kilometres west.
- Multicabs and tricycles connect Mambajao with the rest of the island.
Insider tips
- ATMs can run out of cash at weekends and festival time — bring a reserve.
- Lanzones season is roughly September to November; the fruit is cheap and sweet then.
- For the festival, book a room weeks ahead.
Tours that include Mambajao & the Lanzones Festival
These GetYourGuide experiences are the easiest way to see Mambajao & the Lanzones Festival without arranging your own transport:
Private land tour from €102 Camiguin: Land Tour with Tongatok Viewpoint
A private day around the island by road, taking in its best-known natural and historical sights — the Sunken Cemetery, the church ruins of Gui-ob and more — with a stop at the Tongatok viewpoint. The lowest-priced Camiguin day tour on GetYourGuide when we checked.
- The Sunken Cemetery cross
- The old Spanish-era church ruins
- Tongatok viewpoint over the coast
Craft workshop from €29 Camiguin: Sea Glass Jewelry-Making Workshop
A one-hour hands-on workshop: choose your pieces of sea glass and learn to turn them into a necklace or earrings to take home. A low-cost, low-effort option for an afternoon when it rains or the sea is too rough for boats.
- Choose from pieces of local sea glass
- Make a necklace or a pair of earrings
- A rainy-afternoon activity
Private island-hopping tour from €117 Camiguin: White Island & Mantigue Island Hopping Private Tour
A private day on the water: a boat to the White Island sandbar off the north coast, a stop at the Katunggan mangrove park and a crossing to Mantigue Island’s marine sanctuary for swimming and snorkelling. Pickup is available and it is the only Camiguin product on GetYourGuide with reviews so far.
- Boat out to the White Island sandbar
- Swim and snorkel at Mantigue Island
- Stop at Katunggan mangrove park
