Most people would not normally associate pine trees, misty mountain mornings and roaring log fires with the Philippines. Yet insiders know there is a city in these islands with all of these: Baguio City.

Baguio is nestled in the mountains of the northern Philippines island of Luzon. It is located at an altitude of about 1500 meters (5100 feet) above sea level, and has a crisp and cool climate with mists and rain a common occurrence.

Many people from the lowlands and from the capital, Manila, head up to Baguio to enjoy a few days’ relief from the tropical heat of the rest of the Philippines.

For centuries the area was known as Kafagway and was the home of a proud and independent mountain people. During the long period of the Spanish rule, the area was mostly left in peace by outsiders.

In 1903 the American colonial government of the Philippines named Baguio as the summer capital of the Philippines.

These days Baguio is a bustling and vibrant city. It is a major commercial, educational and tourist center as well as an important gold and copper mining location.

For the visitor Baguio City offers many attractions. Near the center of the city are Burnham Park with its rowing boats, the pastel-colored Baguio Cathedral, the Catholic shrine Lourdes Grotto with its statue of Our Lady of Lourdes, and the lively Baguio City Market with its tribal handicrafts.

A little further out are Mines View Park with a view across the old mines, Mansion House, the holiday residence of the President of the Philippines, and the Baguio Botanical Garden with its display of typical dwellings of the local tribal Igorot people.

For those with more time, Camp John Hay, a former American armed forces rest and recreation facility and the place where General Yamashita signed the Japanese surrender of the Philippines in September 1945, and the Philippine Military Academy, the top military school in the Philippines, are definitely both worthy of a visit.

Many tourists insist on visiting and being photographed beside the Lion’s Head, a massive 40-feet high statue located beside Kennon Road, one of the exit routes out of Baguio.

But for many visitors the foremost attractions of Baguio are its cool climate, its pine trees, its mountain views, its warm and comfortable hotels and inns, and its cosy restaurants, folk clubs and bars.

In short, Baguio City is the perfect mountain getaway destination for Filipinos and foreigners alike.