5 Exciting Things in Store for This Year’s MassKara Festival (And Schedules to Put on Your Calendar)

Bacolod City has finally come to the post-pandemic phase of scrapping away the use of face masks, just in time for the comeback of the famous, much-awaited festival in the City of Smiles—the Masskara Festival! Ironically, face masks are not the ‘masks’ highlighted in the Bacolod festival, but rather the smiles engraved in festive face cover-ups decorated with feathers, sequins, glitters, and more! Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson has just recently released a local executive order allowing the optional wearing of face masks in outdoor and open spaces applicable to all individuals within the territory of Negros Occidental, as Executive Order (EO) 22-45 states.

It is expected that there will be a massive influx of festival goers in the highly anticipated Bacolod Masskara Festival. Therefore, the Negros Occidental Provincial Health Office is gearing up preparations for the Bacolod City festival by strengthening border protocols in the province. Heightened protocols to be implemented are also coordinated with other authorized sectors such as the City Government of Bacolod and Bacolod City Health Office. Some protocols under the Bureau of Quarantine, Bureau of Immigration, and Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines are also being finalized. It is to regulate the crowd and risk of disease during the festivities.

The Masskara Festival does not just reflect the resiliency of the Bacolodnons. The Bacolod City festival is also the perfect avenue for people to showcase their talent and skills through the various competitions to be held during the festival. The Masskara Festival wouldn’t also be complete without the food bazaars and stalls along the streets of Bacolod that can be found anywhere you look. Pageants and street dance competitions have always been the festival’s most-awaited highlights. People often flock in crowds to witness participants vying for the crown or the trophy with their unique, God-given talents and stunning, Negrosanon faces. The competitions under the highly-anticipated Bacolod Masskara Festival excite the hearts and minds of people from all walks of life in Bacolod City. These highlights are often where they can feel the joys of the festival the most.

For the pageants and talent competitions, there would be the following events with their schedules and venues:

● Super Mardi Gras – October 7, Bacolod City Public Plaza

● Masskara Battle of the Bands – October 9, Bacolod City Government Center

● MasskaReyna – October 10, 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM, Bacolod City National High School Gym

● Mr. Bacolod – October 11, 2:30 PM, Central Hall, Ayala Malls Capitol Central

● Mr. and Ms. Teen Masskara – October 15, 6:00 PM, BCC Activity Center

● Mr. Grand City of Smiles – October 15, 6:00 PM, John B. Lacson Colleges Foundation

● 1st Masskara Circuit Race and Motor Show – October 15 to 16, The Upper East

● Ginoong Bacolod – October 16, 8:00 PM, CHMSU Fortune Towne Campus

● Miss Bacolod Masskara Coronation Night – October 19, 7:00 PM to 10:30 PM, USLS Coliseum

● Electric Masskara Float and Dance Off Competition – October 22, 6:00 PM, The Upper East Megaworld to Bacolod City Government Center

● Masskara Street Dance and Arena Competition – October 22, 1:00 PM, Rizal Street to Araneta Street to Paglaum Stadium

Bacolod City is a vast city, and holding the Masskara Festival in one setting cannot suffice the festival’s surprises and activities, especially with its comeback this year. That is why the Bacolod Masskara Festival and its activities will be held at significant sites in the city proper of Bacolod, namely Lacson Street, Bacolod Public Plaza, and the Bacolod City Government Center. More activities, programs, bazaars, and stalls under the agenda of the Masskara Festival this year shall be extended at the Baywalk Reclamation Area, Megaworld Upper East, and at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Barangay Mansilingan.

You can now plan out your Masskara Festival itinerary, not just in one place but in all landmarks of Bacolod City! With this, you can enjoy more and, at the same time, have a tour around the urban city.

Of course, the Masskara Festival wouldn’t be complete without the most exciting thing about Bacolod - the food! One thing travelers and tourists love the most about the Masskara Festival is the homegrown taste of the food in Bacolod. Chicken Inasal in the streets of Lacson and cansi houses near hostels in Bacolod City are just some of the iconic dishes people are looking for when they come to Bacolod. During the Masskara Festival, more of your favorite foods in the City of Smiles is coming as there will be food bazaars and food festivals that are also part of the festivities of the Bacolod City festival! From street foods to international tastes, you’ll find your tummy full of an overwhelming array of food options in Bacolod City’s Masskara Festival! Anywhere you go, you sure won’t get hungry when you visit these food havens during the Masskara Festival:

● Masskara Food Fest – October 1 to 23, 4:00 PM to 2:00 AM on weekdays; 4:00 PM to 3:00 AM on weekends, Bacolod City Government Center and Bacolod City Public Plaza

● Megaworld Coffee Festival – October 10 to 23, The Upper East Megaworld

● Tatak Bacolod Food Festival – October 21 to 23, North Capitol Road

● There will also be bazaars, perya, and many other booths selling Masskara Festival souvenirs and merchandise. Watch them out on the following dates:

● Masskara Trade Fair – October 10 to 16, 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM, SM City Bacolod Main Atrium

● Masskara sa Panaad – October 10 to 16, Panaad Park and Stadium

Special shout out to the partygoers who missed partying in the streets of Bacolod! Masskara Festival has heard your party woes and is now ready to give you the best parties of the Masskara Festival this year. Other than the Bacolod festival dances and competitions, there will be a lot of upbeat programs to further your enjoyment, especially when the sun is down and the colorful party lights are out. Watch out for performances, concerts, and music festivals in the following programs and party schedules:

● Masskara By The Bay – October 1 to 30, Baywalk Bacolod

● Masskara Battle of the Bands – October 9, Bacolod City Government Center

● The Kings of 6100 – October 13, Bacolod City Government Center

● KPOP Night – October 14, 6:00 PM, The Upper East Megaworld

● Masskara DJ Controller Battle – October 15, Aces Sports Bar

● Masskara Music Festival – October 20, Bacolod City Government Center

● Masskara Street Parties – October 21 to 23, Lacson Tourism Strip

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