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Hidden Gems of Manila with Mari Tondo: Explore Authentic Philippines & Local Food
4.8
13 Ratings
Manila
Discover the hidden gems of Manila’s oldest district, Tondo, with Mari. Immerse yourself in Filipino culture, try local food, and explore off-the-beaten-path locations.
Discover the hidden gems of Manila’s oldest district, Tondo, with Mari. Immerse yourself in Filipino culture, try local food, and explore off-the-beaten-path locations.
Duration:
2 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Lucky Chinatown Mall - Immerse yourself walked to Chinatown alley.
-
Santa Cruz - Explore different types of street food.
Explore Oldest buildings and structure during 1595 - Divisoria Market - Walking to the shopping market includes housewares, clothes, fruits, and the wet market. That’s where you can find items at cheap and reasonable prices.
- Lucky Chinatown Mall - Immerse yourself walked to Chinatown alley.
-
Santa Cruz - Explore different types of street food.
Explore Oldest buildings and structure during 1595 - Divisoria Market - Walking to the shopping market includes housewares, clothes, fruits, and the wet market. That’s where you can find items at cheap and reasonable prices.
What's Included
- Experience Local Transportation (Jeepney/Tricycle)
- Bottled Water Provided
- Photo Ops
- Experience Local Transportation (Jeepney/Tricycle)
- Bottled Water Provided
- Photo Ops
What's Not Included
- Food tasting
- Food tasting
Additional Information
Tondo is one of the oldest districts in Manila and has undergone various developments over the years. It’s a vibrant area with a mix of residential, commercial, and industrial zones.
This is a walking tour that may include sampling some Filipino food. Expect a cultural tour rather than a typical tourist spot visit.
Immerse yourself in the essence of…
Tondo is one of the oldest districts in Manila and has undergone various developments over the years. It’s a vibrant area with a mix of residential, commercial, and industrial zones.
This is a walking tour that may include sampling some Filipino food. Expect a cultural tour rather than a typical tourist spot visit.
Immerse yourself in the essence of Filipino culture by riding our iconic Jeepney, a unique mode of local transportation.
Embrace the authenticity of local life as you shop at a traditional Filipino open wet market.
Explore the town’s oldest apartments and hidden gems, where residents lead lives off the beaten path, often involving open-air bathing and dining.
Venture into the heart of local existence, wandering through the back alleys and side streets, far from the glaring lights and bustling traffic.
Take the opportunity to savor our delectable local coffee and cuisine, just as Filipinos do.
Looking forward to see you soon.
Location
1919 Grand Cafe
Juan Luna Street
Let’s meet up at Grand 1919, Juan Luna street. Binondo Manila
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.8
(13 Ratings)
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O4523dimartinm
Jul 13, 2024
Excellent tour - The tour is very interesting, it hsows you the real Manila that you would never see if it wasn't for Mari. Mari is great, fun, and nice person. She know a lot about the area, she explains everything you see in the visit, and make you experience the filipino real life, by using the usual transportation or tasting the delicious street food. I highly recommend doing this tour with Mari.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Northstar11122849637
Jun 20, 2024
Great tour - I enjoys the tour a lot and Mari is knowledgable and friendly! We visited the residence and wet market nearby the Chinatown. Mari introduced history as well as the culture there, I tried some local food and spent a great to talk with the locals. The tour is amazing! I recommend to everyone who wants to experience the unique side of this beautiful city.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Chris
May 28, 2024
Learn the Culture! - Mari was such a great tour guide. She knew a lot of the people we met, and really gave us a chance to learn Filipino culture.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Geofanclub
May 11, 2024
“Gem of a Tour” - The tour was wonderful and Mari was great. I accidentally took the Grab taxi to the wrong location. Fortunately for me, Mari and the other person on the tour agreed to wait for me. I was so happy that they were kind enough to wait so that I wouldn’t miss the tour. Word of advice to those of you taking a Grab taxi to the 1919 Grand Cafe meetup point, be sure to pick the correct location in Binondo (2 locations show up on Google’s GPS). Otherwise you’ll end up being dropped off somewhere else near a random alley! 😅
I really enjoyed the fact that we got to witness the local's day to day lives and the bumbling zest of the Divisorio market. We got to try several bites along the way. This definitely was not a food tour, so bring small change in “pesos” to make some food purchases in the streets of Binondo and in the market as well. We got to try the Halu-halo, a Filipino desert (meaning mixed in Tagalog) as well as few other treats. I also bought amazing fresh fruit at the Divisorio market..
We didn’t get to see the “Welcome to Manila Chinatown” sign, which would have been a nice photo opportunity but getting to walk-thru China town a little bit was a nice treat as well. If you have the opportunity, go on the tour. It was a wonderful learning experience about Filipino culture and life!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sauceinator123
May 10, 2024
‘Grab’ ride-share driver may drop you off at wrong location, but you will definitely enjoy your time with Mari - Meeting at the ‘1919 Grand Cafe’? Make sure your driver takes you to 117 Juan Luna Street in BINONDO! If he fails to load BINONDO, you are going to be let out 3km from the cafe at a run down alley. Ask me or the other patron today how we know this. Did I say BINONDO?
As others have noted, Mari is a fantastic guide. Energetic, upbeat, very informative, and emphasizes the culture here more than history, tho you’ll get a dose of both. Get a ‘behind the scenes’ look as Mari takes you thru the area. Come prepared with some PHP Philippine francs (57 = 1USD as of 5/24) as you will have several opportunities to sample regional foods, and you might want to pick up some bottles of water along the way as well.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ukjulieh
Apr 12, 2024
Brilliant discovering places I wouldn’t have ventured by myself - I did the hidden gems of Manila tour with Mari and had a brilliant morning. She’s very knowledgeable about the area and gave a great insight into daily life. Absolutely loved exploring the narrow winding streets, stopping to chat with local people and wandering through the vibrant markets. Would highly recommend Mari - a gorgeous person and great guide.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Simon903stockwell
Mar 29, 2024
An unforgettable experience, spending a short time with Manila's amazing and truly welcoming people - I took this tour with Mari on Good Friday. It was amazing. She met me at the 1919 Grand Cafe and we took a Jeepney ride to Divisoria, a bustling commercial district of Manila. As this was where Mari grew up she took me to a labyrinth of back streets where all the locals seemed to know her! There were religious ceremonies going on and the place was buzzing. I was stopped by so many smiling residents of the area who all wanted to speak, some even took their own selfies with me! We were given food by one stall holder who was cooking for the people attending the ceremonies. We stopped and chatted with her, and before we could eat, lots more smiling people came up asking where I was from, what was my name etc. The locals were genuinely as pleased to interact with me as I was to spend a short time with them and get a glimse into their lives in a place that I would never have otherwise ventured to. A truly fabulous experience and one I will never forget. And Mari was the perfect guide, she was interesting, talked about her own life growing up, and was continuously looking out for me not to get run down by a trike or barrow! I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to experience the real Manila and its amazing people.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mark
Mar 9, 2024
Wonderful Tour, highly recommended - Did this tour on my first trip to Manila as I wanted to see the old town and walk amongst its history. Mari is a wonderful tour guide who is very knowledgeable and fun to be around. Unfortunately, it rained during our tour, which limited what we were able to do. However, Mari still made it fun and was able to navigate the small, congested, and narrow alleys that make up old chinatown. It was interesting to see how it was, and to a large degree still is in lo al life. Then to see the contrast to the modern, just a short distance away was amazing! I enjoyed the tour and would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Manila! Thanks Mari
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tyson
Feb 15, 2024
A must do when you’re in Manila. - This was a true Manila experience and highly recommended for anyone visiting the city. I wanted to see the real Manila, not the shopping malls, and I got exactly that. Got to meet real local people, experience their food and way of living that you are only going to see on a tour with Mari. Being a local she is very knowledgeable of the area and history. Felt 100% safe the whole time and look forward to another tour with Mari next time I’m in the Phillipines.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Andreephilipw
Mar 21, 2024
Avoid this tour by Mari - Guide arrived 35mins late, after we rang three times. Admitted she had forgotten. Tour was good but very rushed. We returned 40mins early - robbed of 75mins touring. No coffee and tasted one hot sweet potato chip. WE WERE RIPPED OFF.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
