DUMAGUETE CITY — Ask people in Dumaguete where they’re spending the afternoon and many will say “sa Pantawan.” Pantawan People’s Park is the open, brick-paved waterfront along Rizal Boulevard, facing the sea. It runs in sections that locals and event organizers call Pantawan 1, Pantawan 2 and Pantawan 3, and a walkway now joins the first two sections.
A park that is used all day
BNNO’s coverage of the park shows the same pattern every day. People come early to walk and jog. In the afternoon and at night, families, students and tourists arrive. Our February 2026 coverage showed pickleball matches, other sports and Zumba sessions going on at the same time. The park has also been used for martial arts demonstrations, chess, videoke and free evening programs.
The October 2026 BNNO photo set lists the regular activities as evening walks, family time, pickleball, chess, exercise, food stalls and small businesses. It describes the park as a place that draws residents and visitors every night.
Vendors and service workers are part of the park too, including massage therapists, foot reflexologists, coconut sellers and food stalls. Their story is told separately in our report on Pantawan’s livelihoods.
Landmarks inside the park
The Rizal monument. An 8-foot bronze statue of Dr. José Rizal stands on a granite pedestal near the flagpole, facing toward Dapitan. It was unveiled on September 30, 2024. It marks Rizal’s stop in Dumaguete on August 1, 1896. Read the full story of the monument.
The Victoria replica and the Panilongon marker. At the center of a recreated ship Victoria is the 17th Historical Panilongon (Negros) marker. It is part of a national set of quincentennial markers commemorating the first circumnavigation of the world by the Magellan–Elcano expedition. In BNNO’s February 2025 report, the site was described as the first-place winner in the National Search for the Best Site Development of the quincentennial historical markers. BNNO’s September 2024 photo of the lit ship, crowded with visitors, drew more than 2,000 reactions.
The Tourist Information Kiosk. Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco and city officials opened the Dumaguete Tourist Information Kiosk on February 3, 2025. It stands near the park along Rizal Boulevard, in front of Bethel Guest House. The kiosk gives information on places to visit in Dumaguete and Negros Oriental, bus and inter-island ferry schedules, maps, and lodging and hotel options. While touring the park the same day, Secretary Frasco said she supported a city request for a DOT Tourist Rest Area at Pantawan. Such a facility would offer restrooms, a charging station, a lounge and a pasalubong center.
The multipurpose building. A two-story multipurpose building at the park was formally turned over on June 16, 2025. When it was nearly finished in March 2025, BNNO reported that it would house city offices.
The #DumaGetMe sign. For more than nine years, the white #DumaGetMe letters were one of the park’s best-known photo spots. The sign was a donation from the Negros Oriental Association of the United States of America (NOA-USA) and carried a plaque dedicating it “to the peace-loving people of Dumaguete City.” Crews took it down in October 2025.
Events
The park also serves as the city’s open-air events ground. It has hosted concerts, festival showdowns, a triathlon, a marathon, school sports meets and a historic-car rally. See our rundown of major events at Pantawan.
How it was built
The park includes shoreline protection work along Rizal Boulevard. That work involved a 360-meter section between Pantawan 1 and Pantawan 2, which was built in 2024 and 2025. Read how the shoreline and walkway were built. The project has also been the subject of complaints and regulatory questions for years. BNNO’s editorial on the park, “Adto ta sa Pantawan,” looks at that history.
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