Tourists enjoy chilly weather as they flock to Baguio, Tagaytay for long weekend

Tourists took advantage of the long weekend in celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary as they headed to Baguio City and Tagaytay City to enjoy the chilly weather. 

According to Darlene Cay's report on "24 Oras" Monday, the temperature in the City of Pines reached 12.6 degrees Celsius and 13.6 degrees Celsius on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. 

The tourists embraced Baguio's cold weather as they had their photos taken at the iconic Lion's Head along Kennon Road bundled up in jackets and scarves. Others strolled and cycled around Burnham Park, eating strawberry taho to keep warm. 

According to PAGASA Climate Monitoring and Prediction Section Chief Ana Solmoro Solis, this is just the beginning of the chilly weather and temperatures are expected to go down in the next few days. 

"Around between 11.4 to 14.3 [degrees Celsius) po 'yung lowest temperature po ng forecasted ng PAGASA ngayong December, and then between 7.9 to 11.8 [degrees Celsius], 'yan po 'yung mga possible na mga lowest temperature na fino-forecast po ng PAGASA mula January up to February 2026, so medyo mas papalamig pa at mararanasan pa rin natin 'yung mga tinatawag nating cold surges," she said. 

Solis cautioned against the cold, which can cause frost to form and destroy high-value crops.

"Mag-ingat 'yung ating mga kababayan lalong-lalo na po diyan sa may mountainous areas ng  Luzon..." she said. "Possible din po 'yung mga formation ng mga frost so posible din po maka-apekto sa kanilang mga tanim sa ating mga high-value crops diyan po sa may CAR region." 

Similarly, in Mark Salazar's report on "24 Oras" Monday, many tourists headed to Tagaytay City to enjoy the cold weather, with some hailing as far as Visayas and Mindanao. 

"Nanggaling po kami sa outing, Christmas party po namin sa Batangas po then dumaan na lang po kami dito, syempre Tagaytay po," said one tourist from Negros Occidental. 

Per Salazar's report, the recent opening of the Tagaytay-Mendez Flyover helped ease the traffic along Tagaytay-Mendez crossing.

However, Salazar noted that parts of Aguinaldo Highway and Tagaytay-Nasugbu Highway remain congested, adding that he heavy traffic is bound to continue until the new year. 

—CDC, GMA Integrated News