We produced this fun taste of what life is like at the beautiful Shangri-La Resort and Spa on Mactan island, Cebu, Philippines.
We wanted to steer away from a traditional hotel promo video with this one, and instead try and capture something that felt more genuine and spontaneous. As this wasn’t the main video for the homepage but a piece for social media, we did not feel the need to include absolutely everything but instead concentrated on just a few activities and features. We follow a group of tourists who visited for the day and through their activities showcase the beach and shoreline, the stunning chapel and its infinity pool, delicious poolside lunch, a 5 star PADI scuba lesson, banca boat sailing from the jetty, and evening luxury dining at the restaurant. A perfect day!
The hotel’s tagline is ‘where adventure meets luxury’, and it certainly delivers. Shangri-La Mactan is spread over two wings and provides large, comfortable rooms and suites. It also offers relaxation and wellness, lively entertainment, exciting recreational activities and child-friendly facilities. The hotel’s location is great for tourists due to the proximity to many sightseeing hot spots in Cebu, including Magellan’s Cross, Fort San Pedro, and the Basilica Minore del Santo Niño. Being in Mactan island it is also far enough from the hustle and bustle of the city to unwind.
We already knew Cebu well having worked there for a few years on various television projects, and so this was a really fun project to deliver. The hotel is only 20 minutes from Mactan-Cebu International Airport and offers a terrific place to be based if you are exploring the Central Visayas region of Philippines.
Cebu is also known as the Queen City of the South and is the oldest city and first capital of the Philippines, remaining politically independent from the provincial government. The Cebu Metropolitan Area is now a main centre of commerce, trade, education and industry in the country. Being one of the most developed provinces in the Philippines, in the last few decades it has transformed into a regional hub for business processing services, tourism, shipping, furniture-making, and heavy industry. The province of Cebu is also famous for its natural beaches, sweet mangoes, guitars and costume jewellery. Museums and churches highlight Cebu’s vibrant history as a Spanish colony, and the hotel is only a stone’s throw from Lapu-Lapu’s Monument and the Magellan shrine – supposedly where the explorer Magellan was killed by the local chief Lapu-Lapu. The locals celebrate both of them!
Cebu is also know for the Sinulog, is the largest festival in the Philippines. Held every third Sunday of January, it commemorates the Santo Niño (Child Jesus). The Sinulog is a dance ritual of pre-Hispanic indigenous origin. The celebration lasts for nine days, culminating on the final day with the Sinulog Grand Parade, as is not to be missed – we visited two years in a row while working on various filming projects in the Philippines.
