After visiting Mall of Asia and SM City Baguio, I've learned that mall culture is big in the…read morePhilippines. Having a third place is important and being in an air conditioned, cool space is a life saver too. We decided not to hire a driver for this trip plus our fam member who usually drives was unavailable. We took rideshare here from our hotel. We got dropped off at the load/unload area on Luneta Hill Drive. SM City Baguio has a nice variety of restaurants and retail. I'm envious of their variety of brick and mortar shops and restaurants. Our malls back home are lacking so it's refreshing to see everyone gathering at the mall and enjoying themselves. The Sky Terrace view of the city was really nice. The sheer volume of visitors at SM Baguio was shocking. At least at Mall of Asia there was space to walk around. It was crowded here. The age demographic of teens-20s was evident because of the close proximity to the universities. A couple of my family members attended the University of Baguio and they told me they used to spend their free time at this mall. I just wasn't prepared to walk around with so many people. Even getting on the escalators and elevators was a challenge. The line was crazy long for taxis but the rideshare pick up area was empty. We got our ride in less than 5 minutes. It was time efficient and convenient. While waiting for our rideshare driver I saw the LEED Gold Certification right outside the drop off/pick up area. It's nice to know they've considered sustainability and the environment in their design process.

Always love visiting a good SM when we're visiting the Philippines, and this one was no exception…read more I will say that this location was bigger than I expected. Plenty of stores and restaurants to explore as well as terrace areas on the higher floors to look out over Baguio. I was pleasantly surprised by how nice the view over Baguio was from here, especially since we were here for sunset. Parking looked like it would be a bit difficult, but we were able to walk here without any issues. Great stop to spend a few hours while in Baguio.

This review is based on their supermarket…read more A smaller scale in comparison to, let's say, SM stores, and that kinda came in handy during my time of need. I needed some toiletries and I really didn't have the time to go through some kind of maze to find them. Everything in their supermarket was clean and organized. I found everything I needed and was in line for payment in no time. I was almost surprised at how easy it was to maneuver myself around the store. Service with a smile. Unlike some stores they compete with, the cashiers here came with a "HI" and "HOW ARE YOU." They look like they actually liked working here. I don't live anywhere near here, but it's good to know I have options.

This was a lifesaver when I needed to find everything from food, beauty needs, clothes, furniture,…read moreetc. It was a Safeway, Costco, Target, and Marshall's all in one. When you're in the Philippines and you see one of these stores, stop by and take a look.

Thank goodness for Savemore! I swear I found myself here every few days during my vacation in the…read morePhilippines. We don't have grocery stores in my hometown and have to drive out to Candon to get a decent selection of goods. Savemore is pretty much your one-stop shop for mostly everything you need. You've got the grocery store downstairs stocked with fresh produce, meat, dairy products, snacks, alcohol, etc. They've got a little bit of everything, but if you want more selection, it's best to hit up the bigger grocery stores in the area. They also have a Western Union located within the store if you need to exchange money or do money transfers, etc. There's also 2 ATM's by the checkout counters if you want to use an ATM card to withdraw from your account. Upstairs you'll first come upon a "wholesale" type of section on the right. It's pretty much geared towards the restaurant types of businesses with various tableware, disposable utensils, bulk ingredients, & even barstools and chairs. Take a left at the escalator and you'll find clothes, furniture, electronics, imported Asian Items, & your basic home goods to meet any household needs. Parking is pretty ridiculous here (hence not quite 5*). There's a tiny parking lot off of Liquete street, right in front of the entrance. There's maybe 10 stalls, but you'll have to fight delivery trucks, motorcycles, tricycles, etc. We were pretty lucky almost every dang time we came though and found one empty stall. Thank goodness! My favorite part about this shop is that there's a Kookee House bake shop in the same building :)

Huge mall in the area, gotta love it. Has regular PI stores and a few of the staples from other…read moreparts of the world. Uniqlo, Guess, for food Pizza Hut, Shakeys, Mikey D's. Enjoy the food stay for the AirCon, there is a cinema on the second floor so take in a movie while your here. It is one of the noisiest malls I have ever been in. Despite a moderate crowd.

So, I came through twice during my recent PI visit…read more THE FIRST TIME: We should have checked first. The crowd was annoyingly (and unusually) huge, especially in the middle of the afternoon in the middle of the week. It got to the point we couldn't walk a few stops without bumping onto complete strangers every second or so. Big Bro and I along with a couple other family members checked out a couple of stores, and we would have wanted to check out more, but with this crazy crowd, we decided to just bounce to the hypermarket (for groceries) and SM store (for basic necessities.) Then we learned some famous artist named Coco Martin made an appearance and was clearly the reason for all that chaos. I really wish they found a better way to control the flow of the crowd. I did not enjoy that visit AT ALL. THE SECOND TIME: Much MUCH better. Still crowded, but nothing like the madness we experienced the first time. I finally got the opportunity to see the mall for what it really is. They had good selections in the food court. They also had good selections of eateries. Same with shops. They maintain cleanliness overall. Except for the horrendous traffic you'd have to go through just to get inside, it hasn't changed much since my last visit a couple of years ago.

I'm not a resident of the Philippines but even so I've been coming to the Philippines almost yearly…read moresince I've been little. And each and every time I take my vacation that my relatives and I shop here for certain things if not more than half of our grocery list. I cannot compare to how malls are in the US to that of the Philippines. That would be unfair in more ways than one. And due to being here overtime, nothing fades me. This mall has been here for what feels like forever for me. Parking is limited and can be difficult especially during lunch hours. There are security who helps as much as they can. Most people have the driver to wait while the remaining passengers go into the mall and get their groceries. There are security at the doors which is a good thing especially with how crowded the mall is and is necessary to keep the environment as safe as possible. There are always plenty of tricycle drivers trying to find anyone who needs a ride to get somewhere. There are plenty of ATM machines outside. There are lots of kiosk all throughout. So many choices if hungry. There is one appliance store and a huge grocery store. For a foreigner, all of this can be overwhelming and not for one who is claustrophobic. It can get crowded to the point of running into anyone and everyone. Even in the grocery store it's just as crowded and the aisles are quite small. All the workers are nice though and respectful regardless of how many people are around and need to be served. One thing I was sad about was when they took out internet cafes. It was the one thing that I looked for as a way for me to keep in touch with loved ones back in the US. Now I'm being forced to buy load or get a portable WiFi with load. But even then, that's more frustrating to deal with in comparison to going to a internet café. If only there would be a way for this mall to expand in order to provide more room. Even in the cafeteria area, it's too crowded and rather difficult to find seating to the point one might as well do take out. The main reason for it being as crowded as it is is the fact that many students use this mall as well. The environment hasn't changed no matter how much time has passed. However, I'm used to it. Even though it is the way it is, it still has a system in which everyone is capable of following.

SM store inside is much like your American stores Target, Walmart ect. From groceries to…read moreappliances to clothing, they have it. The rest of the mall is small boutique stores as in any mall. Enjoy a variety of food on every single floor. Arcades for kids and Bingo for adults 21 and over.

One of the bigger (and more popular) shopping centers in the city…read more Located where Central II Elementary School used to be, it is a prime location for exactly just that. There's always ample parking, mostly because some spaces are unnecessarily occupied by trikes. Not sure how this happens when they have allocated spots right outside the parking lot. But in the years I've been coming here, I've never really had trouble finding a spot. It's crowded at any given time. You can come here early in the morning or mid-afternoon in attempts of avoiding a throng of people, but it's basically futile. There will be a crowd regardless. But it is at its worst at the end of the day. What makes it even worse is there is also a Chow King as well as a McDonalds inside. Those two spots seem to be always filled every time I come by. They have the most basic groceries and dry goods. Most cashiers are open to accommodate the mob of people coming here for their needs. Whenever I'm in need of locating a product, the staff never fail to point out where they are. Most times, they'll escort me to the proper aisles. There are also kiosks for other products. Big Bro and I tried a couple of things from the fish ball stand once. That was a mistake we will never commit again. (Yes, it was THAT horrible. We ended up giving them to the pack of dogs at home who ended up ignoring them. That tells you something. No Bueno.) Albeit the crowd and chaos, they're pretty organized. Even the security guard at the parking lot will assist you with your parking needs. (He'll flag you to an open space and guide you in and out of it.) So, yeah. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Centro has been a staple in the city of Solano for as long as I can remember. They sell a variety…read moreof items from clothing to toys to appliances. The structure hasn't changed much, but the variety of the items they have to offer have expanded. Most of the items they sell are local brands but you can find some that are sorta on the higher end (Converse, Skechers, etc.) Service was always phenomenal in this place. I've never had to complain about any of their sales people. In fact, most are helpful and willing to go out of their way trying to find something that you may be interested in. The cashiers are a bit on the slower side, but that's due to inputting sales people's codes in on top of keying the bar numbers in for items being purchased. Otherwise, it's an okay place to shop. I don't remember a time I came by for a stop in the neighboring cities and not make a stop here. I guess I can proclaim myself a loyal customer. (I never leave empty handed.) Will most likely return at first opportunity.

Magic Mall as a decent place to shop for grocery goods which is located at the first floor. On theread more