City On The Rise

The City of Butuan is a the regional center of the Caraga Region and one of the highy urbanized cities in the Philippines. It is located at the northeastern part of Agusan Valley, sprawling across the Agusan Rive. It is bounded to the north, west and south by Agusan del Norte, to the east by Agusan del Sur and to the northwest by Butuan Bay. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 298,378 people.

The name “Butuan” is believed to have originated from the sour fruit “Batuan”. Other etymology sources say that it comes from a certain “Datu Buntuan”, a chieftain who once ruled over Butuan.

As early as the 10th century, people from Butuan had already established trading relations with the Kingdom of Champa (now southern Vietnam) and Sri Vijaya Empire of Java.

By the 11th century, Butuan was the center of trade and commerce in the Philippines. The evidence to prove this fact is the discovery of 9 balangays (the Butuan Boat) and other archaeological find in the vicinities of Butuan City, particularly in Ambangan, Libertad near the old El Rio de Butuan and Masao River.

Butuan City has a land area of 10816.62 km², which is roughly 4.1% of the total area of the Caraga region. With an estimated total population of 300,000, it has an average density of 367 persons per km², higher than the regional average density of 101 persons per km².

The existing land use of the city consists of the following uses: agriculture areas (397.23 km²), forestland (268 km²), grass/shrub/pasture land (61.14 km²) and other uses (90.242 km²). Of the total forestland, 105 km² is production forest areas while 167.5 km² is protection forest areas.

Butuan City Hall Complex in Doongan

Butuan City is politically subdivided into 86 barangays. Of these, 27 are classified as urban and the remaining 60 are classified as rural.

BUTUAN FAST FACTS

Location
Northeastern part of the Agusan Valley sprawling across the Agusan River

Area
81,728 hectares
27 Urban Barangays
59 Rural Barangays

Dialect
Multi-lingual predominantly Butuanon, Cebuano and English

Climate
Dry – March to September
Wet – October to February

Temperature
Minimum – 66 F
Maximum – 85 F

Holidays
May 19 – City Fiesta (in honor of St. Joseph)
August 2 – Adlaw Hong Butuan (Charter Day Anniversary)

What to Wear
Lightweight clothing is recommended. Informal clothing is acceptable when visiting churches or offices. For formal occasions, the traditional barong tagalong is accepted for men. Bars, restaurants and hotels have no dress code but it is considered improper to wear shorts and slipper.

Business and Banking Hours
Shops are open from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm Mon-Sat. Government agencies and offices, from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm from Monday to Friday. Banks have no noon break.

Hotels and Convention Facilities
Butuan has hotels with convention facilities which can accommodate between 50 to 20,000 people. These establishments can provide audio-visual equipment upon request.

Water
Water is potable. Mineral water is available in all grocery stores, drugstores, hotels and restaurants.

How to get there
Butuan is accessible by plane or boat from Manila and Cebu. Land transportation to any point of Mindanao is available.

Air
Butuan has one domestic trunkline Airport, the Bancasi Airport .It is served by major Philippine carriers offering Airbus A320 and Boeing 737-400 and  jets.

Sea
Butuan is easily accessible by boat from Manila, Cebu and Bohol. A trip from Manila takes 26 hours. Fares vary according to accommodations.

Land
Bright colored tricycles are common in Butuan. They go around and even outside the city proper. Jeepneys are used in the main city streets, with corresponding route numbers. Cars for rent are available upon request in most hotels and at the airport, but all are not metered, so remember to agree on the fee before boarding. Metered taxes are also available in the city. but metered taxi are also available. Buses company ply the routes from Butuan to other cities and provinces of the region.

Butuan City Icons of Progress

The fast changing urban landscape of Butuan signifies dynamism as the city sets sights on achieving greater heights despite these challenging times.