22/06/2026
Honoring Tabaco City’s Metalcraft Heritage
For over two decades, Tabaco City has hammered out a unique legacy through a festival every June. Since 2002, the city has celebrated the annual Tabak Festival—a vibrant tribute to its generations-old blacksmithing industry and the local artisans keeping the traditional craft alive.
The city’s very name is rooted in this heritage, derived from the tabak (bolo) used by local farmers since the early 1900s. Today, Barangay Cobo serves as the city’s hub for this traditional cutlery art.
The festival was established in 2002, a year after Tabaco achieved cityhood under Republic Act 9020. Beyond promoting blacksmithing, the weeklong event showcases the city's diverse culture. Highlights include the Sibidan Race, a boat race celebrating Tabaco's coastal heritage, and the Padyak Race, a competitive nod to the city's pedal-powered tricycles.
To allow residents to participate, Malacañang has declared June 24 a special non-working day in Tabaco City. The date also coincides with the annual town fiesta held in honor of the city’s patron saint, St. John the Baptist.
Through its colorful cultural shows, parades, performances, agro-industrial fairs, and lively competitions, the Tabak Festival does more than draw tourists. It ensures Tabaco City’s rich artistry and tradition survive—not just as history, but as a lived and shared identity. Supporting this heritage is as simple as attending the festivities and buying handmade metalcrafts from the local artisans.
Photo: Tabaco City Tourism, Culture and the Arts Office (left), Department of Tourism Bicol Region (right)
