Cauayan (Isabela)

Cauayan is a city of over 143,000 (2020) in Isabela. It is the center of the tobacco industry in Cagayan Valley, and being in the approximate center of the province, it is also an important economic center, mostly concentrated on agriculture and industry.

Understand
Founded on the ancestral lands of the Gaddang people, Cauayan started in what is now the barangay of Calanusian, along the Cagayan River, around 1740. Flooding along the Cagayan forced the moving of the town into its present location further inland. In 2006, it became a city under law. Most of the city's inhabitants are Ilocanos, but there are still some of the indigenous Gaddang living here.

Cauayan is a relatively young city, and is largely a stopover and a commercial center. It does have hotels, an airport, and malls, but little in the way of sights.

By bus


Major bus companies serving Cauayan include Dalin Bus Lines, Victory Liner, and G.V. Florida Transport. There are also smaller individually-owned companies that have buses coming from nearby towns.

Buses not terminating at Cauayan stop at the intersection of Maharlika Hwy (Rte 1/AH26), Governor Dy Blvd (Rte 53), and Quezon St, south of SM City Cauayan.

By jeepney
Modern jeepneys connect Cauayan with the city of Ilagan to the north, and Roxas to the northwest.

By car
Cauayan is along Asian Highway 26 (also Rte 1, locally, the Maharlika Highway or the Cagayan Valley Road/CVR). It is ( away from Manila, from Santiago City and  from Ilagan.

From Tuguegarao and the north, the main route is through the Santiago-Tuguegarao Rd (Rte 51) and the connecting Cabatuan Road (Rte 53, becomes Governor Dy Boulevard upon entering Cauayan City), through Roxas and Cabatuan.

Get around
Tricycles are widely available, especially within downtown and at the commercial district.

Do

 * Gawagaway-an Festival - Celebrates the cityhood of the city and the numerous ethnic groups inhabiting the city