Parañaque

Parañaque City is in Metro Manila, in the Philippines. It contains the Entertainment City (E-City), the Little Las Vegas of Manila containing four huge casinos, and Baclaran, a residential and commercial neighborhood containing bustling flea markets, the Baclaran Church, backpacker inns and some nightclubs.

Understand

Parañaque lies to the southwest part of Metro Manila, surrounded by Pasay to the north, Manila Bay to the west, Las Piñas and Muntinlupa to the south, and Taguig to the east. It is largely a residential community just south of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, full of large subdivisions, notably the affluent BF Homes, also a barangay in its own right. BF Homes also includes areas in Las Piñas and part of Muntinlupa.

The Entertainment City area, administratively part of barangay Tambo and Baclaran, houses the large casino complexes in the city, in sharp contrast to the chaotic scenes to the east. The area, developed by the national gambling corporation and regulator, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) from 2002, lies on reclaimed areas on Manila Bay created during the Marcos administration through the 1970s and 1980s. The area is flourishing with the ongoing casino construction, which also causes a rise in land prices.

Baclaran, once a peaceful fishing village, is a bargain hunters' paradise and a congested residential neighborhood today. It is home to the National Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Baclaran Church or Redemptorist Church), a shrine dedicated to the Our Lady of Perpetual Help, and flea markets (tiangges) selling cheap goods at bargain prices. First time visitors, especially those from the airport, are easily overwhelmed by street scenes and the people, with peddlers, beggars, buskers, and vagrants sharing space with slow-moving cars and crowds of shoppers, residents and students, but behind the chaos are a laid-back nightlife scene and some backpacker accommodations.

The Kabihasnan area is the city's historic district, but is largely a congested residential area, with scattered slum areas.

The rest of Parañaque is characterized by large subdivisions, many being barangays on their own, and interspersed slums and family-owned compounds. Sucat Road (Dr. A. Santos Avenue), a tree-lined six-lane avenue, is the area's major thoroughfare. Shopping malls and most food destinations, including those in the subdivisions, lie on this part of the city.

Get in

Parañaque is not far from Ninoy Aquino International Airport, and there are many choices to get into the city. The most practical way is to take the jeepneys that ply the busy thoroughfares.

By bus

Provincial buses

Provincial buses from Cavite or Batangas terminate at the Parañaque Integrated Transport Exchange (PITX), opened on October 1, 2018. Formerly, provincial services terminate at the Southwest Integrated Public Transport Station (SWIPTS) on Uniwide Coastal Mall. Transfers to city buses or taxis are available at the terminal. Some bus services continue to Pasay, Manila or Cubao, stopping along Roxas Boulevard in NAIA Road or Baclaran.

City buses

City buses elsewhere from Metro Manila also serve Parañaque, with the majority stopping at Baclaran or NAIA Road (MIA Road). Many ordinary (non-air-conditioned) city buses using SLEX make a stop at Sucat, where connections to jeepneys are available.

Bus routes serving Parañaque
Route	Termini	Operator[s]	Service area	Notes
Alabang—Lawton via Coastal Road	Festival Alabang (Reinalyn Transport only, during mall hours), South Station (all times); Park N' Ride	Reinalyn Transport, Igan Transport, Alabang Transport Service Cooperative	Muntinlupa, Las Piñas, Parañaque, Manila
Alabang—Malanday via EDSA	Starmall Alabang; Puregold Malanday	CEM Transport; Roval Transport	Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan, Valenzuela	Ordinary buses only.
Alabang—Navotas via EDSA	Starmall Alabang; Navotas Bus Terminal, C-4 Road, Navotas		Muntinlupa, Parañaque, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas	Ordinary buses only.
Baclaran—Navotas via EDSA	Starmall Alabang; Navotas Bus Terminal, C-4 Road, Navotas	Precious Grace Transport	Parañaque, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas	Buses make stopovers on Diosdado Macapagal Avenue (DFA, Uniwide Coastal Mall) before terminating at Baclaran
Grotto—NAIA via EDSA, Fairview	Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto (San Jose del Monte, Bulacan); NAIA Terminals 1 and 2		San Jose del Monte, Caloocan, Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Makati, Pasay, Parañaque
Grotto—NAIA via EDSA, Ayala, Buendia	Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto (San Jose del Monte, Bulacan); NAIA Terminals 1 and 2		San Jose del Monte, Caloocan, Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Makati, Pasay, Parañaque
Lagro—NAIA via Fairview	Robinsons Nova Supermarket; NAIA Terminals 1 and 2		Quezon City, Mandaluyong, Makati, Pasay, Parañaque
Malanday Terminal—NAIA via EDSA, Ayala, Buendia Extension	MacArthur Highway, Malanday, Valenzuela; NAIA Terminals 1 and 2		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Valenzuela
NAIA—Bagong Silang via EDSA, Maligaya Park	NAIA Terminals 1 and 2; Gesen Construction Supply, Langit Road, Caloocan		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan
NAIA—Malanday via EDSA	NAIA Terminals 1 and 2; MacArthur Highway, Malanday, Valenzuela		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan, Valenzuela
NAIA—SM Fairview	NAIA Terminals 1 and 2; SM City Fairview, Quirino Highway, Greater Lagro, Fairview, Quezon City		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City,
NAIA—Novaliches via EDSA, Mindanao Avenue	NAIA Terminals 1 and 2; Novaliches Bus Terminal, Quirino Highway, Novaliches Proper, Novaliches, Quezon City		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City
Norzagaray—Sapang Palay–NAIA via Commonwealth, Fairview, EDSA	Sapang Palay Bus Terminal, San Jose del Monte, Bulacan; NAIA Terminals 1 and 2		Parañaque, Pasay, Makati, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, Caloocan
SM Southmall—Lawton via Coastal Road	SM Southmall; Park N' Ride	Arabian Boy, Bensan Transport, TAS Transport, WLLH Transport	Muntinlupa, Las Piñas, Parañaque, Manila

Airport bus

If you are coming from Ninoy Aquino International Airport, you may take the Airport Loop minibus service to Line 3 Taft Avenue. Most Airport Loop services stop at Baclaran.

Minibuses ("baby buses")

The colorful minibuses (sometimes called "baby buses") serving coastal Cavite also serves Parañaque. Passengers alight either on NAIA Road or at the Baclaran minibus terminal.

By jeepney

You can take a jeepney from other cities to Parañaque; most jeepneys share a hub at Baclaran.

By car

The NAIA Expressway (NAIAx), an elevated toll expressway opened in 2016, terminates at Paranaque, making this easily reachable by car from Ninoy Aquino International Airport. The older Manila—Cavite Expressway (CAVITEx, or its older name, Coastal Road), terminating at NAIA Road, is the major road access from the south. The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) and Skyway also serves Parañaque, with exits at Sucat and Bicutan, but the Skyway exits are only accessible southbound.

From Manila, you might take Roxas Boulevard which terminates at the city, then continues as CAVITEx. A toll-free alternative from the south is Route 62 (Quirino Avenue), which includes Diego Cera Avenue in Las Piñas, but it is a narrow four-lane highway through the coastal barangays of San Dionisio, La Huerta, Don Galo, and Tambo, which forms the "Kabihasnan" area.

Get around

If you use public transportation try sakay.ph , it will show you the right type to your destination.

By jeepney

Of among the public transport options to take, the ubiquitous jeepney is the common way to go around. Jeepneys ply the major thoroughfares of the city, and are almost commonplace, except in the affluent subdivisions and minor roads, where tricycles or walking is the option. You can find the route through their route names promimently displayed outside, in addition to the destination signs. The jeepney routes through Parañaque are as follows:

• Alabang-Baclaran (via Kabihasnan or Coastal Road)
• Sucat-Baclaran (via Sucat Road)

By taxi

By car

Bringing a car is not recommended because of its traffic jams, especially in its main thoroughfares, Dr. A. Santos Avenue (aka Sucat Road) and Ninoy Aquino Avenue, as well as lack of convenient parking spaces.

See

• Baclaran Church
• St. Andrew's Cathedral
• Duty Free Philippines

Do

Gamble

Parañaque is a growing destination for gambling, and can be called a "Little Las Vegas of Metro Manila" for being home to enormous resorts and casinos that became integral to the city's economy. Integrated resorts and casinos are being built in the Entertainment City development on reclaimed portion of Manila Bay.

• Solaire Resort and Casino, 1 Aseana Avenue, Tambo. Opened in 2013 as the first resort and casino constructed in Entertainment City. Solaire Resort and Casino houses 5-star hotels and a casino, as well as a theater and other entertainment facilities. 
• City of Dreams Manila, Aseana Boulevard. Originally planned as the Belle Grande Manila Bay, it is the second resort and casino to be built in Entertainment City. It houses six five star hotel buildings and a casino, as well as a animated movie-oriented theme park named DreamWorld Manila built with collaboration with DreamWorks Animation. 
• Okada Manila

Buy

Tiangge at Baclaran

Perhaps one major destination in Parañaque is its major shopping center, Baclaran, home to its numerous tiangges (flea markets) flocked beside the streets. From the surroundings of Baclaran Church to the main streets of that area (Redemptorist Road, Taft Avenue Extension, and Quirino Avenue), you can find vast numbers of vendors selling almost anything, which you can purchase through haggling and bargaining for the best price. Indoor malls around the Line 1 Baclaran station also hosts numbers of tiangge vendors. Not also to forget are the ukay-ukay (used clothes) stores where you may find high-end brands at the least cost.

There are a few upscale shopping malls around Parañaque, such as SM City Sucat and SM BF Parañaque, where you can find a share of some high-end brands, as well as restaurants. Those malls are reachable by public transport, but wait for long times to reach those, especially on rush hour, as those are found on the notoriously clogged Dr. A. Santos Avenue (Sucat Road), which is always congested throughout the year.

Eat

Tapa at Maty's Tapsilog in Don Galo

• Sinangag Express, Phase 3 bf Homes Pque, President Ave Pque. A cheap place to get Tapsilog (fried beef strips, egg, and fried rice) for roughly ₱50. Different kinds of silogs (essentially just replace the beef strips with fried fish, corned beef, hotdogs, etc.) are also available. 
• A Veneto Pizzeria Ristorante, 57 Aguirre Ave, BF Homes, ☎ [phone]. Great pizzas for less than ₱300. Their Garlic and Anchovies pizza is to die for. 

Drink

• Jive Bar, Borakay, N. Aquino Ave.. Great food and music at an affordable price. 

Sleep

• Green Mango Inn, 365 Aguirre Ave (near El Grande Avenue & 7 houses from BPI Family Savings Bank). BF Homes, Sucat [phone], 7102223 or 4151692. E-mail [e-mail]. Metro Manila's only garden-style bed & breakfast guesthouse with charming colonial-style architecture and handmade mother-of-pearl "capiz" seashell windows. Free WiFi for your laptop computers, also affordable internet computer. air-conditioning and free locker, ₱700 or ₱800 for each private room good for 2 persons. Hot & cold showers. All new rooms and facilities with international cable TV channels. Nice extensive free library. Big clean guests' kitchen, elegant patio for dining room under giant Mango tree (eat free delicious mangoes if in season!) and also beside organic vegetable garden (you can eat fresh vegetables here), lounge & social areas in reception lobby and in the veranda with orchids and hanging plants on pillars and walls. hot meals and also ice-cold delicious beers for sale 24-hours daily. No curfews. p250. 
• Manila Youth Hostel., 4227-4229 Tomas Claudio Street, Baclaran, ☎ [phone]. 36-bed fan dorm. Near the Manila Airport. You can book the MYH via email. A 24 hour a day jeepney from the end of the street goes to NAIA 1-2-4 is ₱8. It is looking very run down now days. ₱450 per person. 
• Cozee Monkey Backpackers Manila, 10 Galatia street. corner Patmos street. (Multinational village Paranaque city), ☎ [phone]. Check-in: 24 hours, check-out: noon. Four- to ten-bed fan or a/c dorms. Fully equipped Kitchen. Free Breakfast. Free Wi-Fi. Near the Manila airport. If you check in from 1AM till noon you pay ₱150. ₱350/₱375. (updated May 2015)
• The Town House Hostel, 201 Roxas Blvd, ☎ [phone]. Fan double rooms, all with shared bathroom. You must leave to pay a deposit to stay which is hard to get back before 9AM. near Manila airport. From ₱400 a night. (updated May 2015)
• 8817 Guest house, 8817 San Juan Street (San Antonio valley 2). Check-in: 24 hours., check-out: noon. 8/13 bed fan dorms. 30 min jeepnry ride south of Manila airport. ₱169. (updated May 2015)
• Flor-Al Mansion, 1303-527 EDSA avenue (over street from the Phitranco bus Terminal). Check-in: 24 hours, check-out: 24 hours. A/C single/double rooms with own bathroom and 40-inch cable TV. Free Wi-Fi. 12 hours single ₱280. 12 hours double ₱300. (updated Jul 2016)

Stay safe

Be cautious when venturing in Baclaran, as petty crimes are common, and better avoid entering unfamiliar areas that are home to criminals, street thugs, delinquent youth, and unsanitary and unsafe conditions.

Connect

Go next

• Las Piñas - residential suburb, home to the Bamboo Organ church.
• Muntinlupa - another residential suburb with a growing central business district and mid to high-class communities.

Routes through Parañaque

END (future extension to Las Piñas) ←	S  N	→ Pasay (into for Makati) → Ermita
Continues as to Pasay ← Junction with ←	N  S	→ Las Piñas → Continues as to Tanza
END ← Junction with ←	N  S	→ Las Piñas → Bacoor
END ← Junction with ←	W  E	→ Muntinlupa → END