Cotabato City - Tourist Attractions

Tourist Attractions

• Rio Grande de Mindanao. The second largest river in the Philippines and the longest in Mindanao crisscrossing, with its tributary, the city's vast area. Estimated to be 182 kilometers long and 96 meters wide. Water sports and boat racing are the popular attractions of the river, usually held to coincide with the Shariff Kabunsuan Festival and the Feast of Hariraya Puasa.
• Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid – The largest mosque in the Philippines
• Tamontaka Church – Built in 1872 of Spanish architecture and design. It is the oldest church in the city, a relic of the living past.
• Lourdes Grotto – A replica of Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto in France. The compound is equipped with a retreat house for recollection and seminars, a mini zoo and a children's park.
• Kutang Bato Caves – The only cave in the country that is right in the heart of the city. Its various entrances, all within traffic a rarity that can only be had in the "Heart of Mindanao". These caves were also the source of the city's present name for "Kuta" means "Fort" and "Bato" means "Stone" hence the name "Fort of Stone" which later on became Cotabato.
• Old Cotabato City Hall – A century old structure which houses almost all of the city government offices. It showcases the architectural design of the Maguindanaon Art.
• Takumi Butai Memorial Shrine – A monument in honor of Takumi Butai and the Japanese soldiers who died here during the Second World War. Takumi was the Provincial Commander of the Japanese forces assigned in Cotabato City. Before he died, he requested that some of his ashes be buried in Cotabato City. This shrine was put up by the Lion's Club of Kyoto, Japan in cooperation with the City Government of Cotabato.