Liliw's Tsinelas Festival

LILIW, Laguna -- Slippers can never go out of fashion, whatever season it is. One can find the some of the nicest collection of trendy slippers and shoes, not in the malls but in a small, warm town in Laguna called Liliw, a three-hour drive from Manila.

Surprisingly, although Liliw has been quietly into the footwear industry for almost 50 years now, it was only three years ago when the Liliw Tourism Council made it formal to mark an annual "Liliw Gat Tayaw Tsinelas Festival" for the town. Through the festival, the council hopes to boost local tourism; have a vibrant industry which in return, will help the town improve economically.

The footwear industry in this part of the province is a sought-after attraction especially by local tourists. Liliw is now known as the "Footwear Capital of Laguna" and people all over Metro Manila are going all the way down South to check out the latest designs in slip-ons, sandals and slippers.

Thanks to the first festival and all the attention it had then, businessmen and plain customers are mostly returnees going ga-ga over the thriving town of Liliw, especially during summer and Christmas seasons.

At recently "Liliw Gat Tayaw Tsinelas Festival", store owners admitted that the sales escalated due to the festival. With the help of print media and television, curious travelers troop to Liliw just to see what the town had to offer.

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Unang Hirit's Coverage of Liliw's 2008 Tsinelas Festival
video courtesy of Unang Hirit, GMA Network