Session Road

Session Road is the central thoroughfare of Baguio — a 1.2-kilometer sloping street lined with restaurants, cafés, shops, and the heart of the city's social life. The name comes from the legislative sessions held at Baguio in American colonial times.

What makes Session Road special is the pine-tree-cool atmosphere unique to Baguio. You can sit in a sidewalk café in light wool, while every other Philippine city would have you sweating through your shirt. The cool air, the pine smell, the steep grade of the street — it doesn't feel like the Philippines.

Standout cafés include Vizco's Restaurant and Cake Shop (the famous strawberry shortcake), Café by the Ruins (decades-old institution), and Hill Station (modern Filipino in a heritage building).

The road is closed to vehicles every Sunday morning, when it transforms into a pedestrian street with markets, performers, and food stalls. Walking it on a Sunday is the best way to experience Baguio's local pace.