Things to Do in Pasig and Ortigas: A Weekend From Kapitolyo to Maybunga

Breakfast in Kapitolyo

Kapitolyo fills up early on weekends, when cyclists and runners stop for coffee after their rides. Most of the places worth your time sit within a few blocks of East Capitol Drive, so park once and walk.

For a big Filipino breakfast, go to Kanto Freestyle Breakfast on 1st Street, an open-air converted garage. Order a silog plate: tapa, tocino or Lucban longganisa with garlic rice.

For coffee, Habagat on San Rafael Street makes a coconut milk latte called the Sa Isla. Hakid on Brixton Street does a Dirty Horchata by day and turns into a cocktail bar at night.

If breakfast runs into lunch, walk to Cafe Juanita on West Capitol Drive, a long-running Filipino restaurant in a house full of antiques and lamps. Come with a group and share the kare-kare.

Capitol Commons and Estancia

Capitol Commons stands on the site of the former Rizal Provincial Capitol, which is where Kapitolyo gets its name. Ortigas Land has built it into a 10-hectare estate of homes, offices and shops, with a paved plaza of outdoor tables in front of the towers.

Come in the late afternoon, once the heat drops. The kids get room to run on the plaza while you sit outside with a drink.

Estancia Mall is the estate's mall. Ortigas Cinemas runs four halls here, plus two smaller halls called The Screening Room in the East Wing, with reclining leather seats, a waiting lounge, and the option to book a private group screening.

Ortigas Land says Estancia hosts special events over the holidays. It had not posted its 2026 Christmas programme when we checked on 4 November, so watch our December 2026 calendar.

Ortigas Center on a rainy day

When it pours, go to Shangri-La Plaza on EDSA corner Shaw Boulevard. Shops, restaurants and the Red Carpet cinemas sit around one tall atrium, so you never step outside.

On the ground floor, in the Streetscape row, Juniper is Josh Boutwood's restaurant built around the gin and tonic. It is open Monday to Sunday from 10am to 9pm.

Shangri-La Plaza had not announced its 2026 tree lighting when we checked on 4 November. Our Christmas lights guide is updated as malls confirm, and our mall hours for Christmas and New Year covers holiday opening times.

A short ride up EDSA, SM Megamall hosts Paskomiket 2026 on 14 and 15 November, a Christmas market of Filipino komiks and independent art in Megatrade Hall 1. Our Christmas markets guide has the rest of the season's fairs, and our rainy day guide has more ideas when the weather turns.

Maybunga Rainforest Park with kids

Maybunga Rainforest Park is Pasig City's public park on F. Legaspi Avenue, near Pasig City General Hospital and Pasig City Science High School. The city says it is open Monday to Sunday from 7am to 5pm, with some facilities open until 10pm, unless an advisory says otherwise.

Inside are a waterpark, a gym, a butterfly house, a flower field, a maze garden, a camp site and a boating lagoon. Start with the lagoon: ₱50 buys a 15 to 20 minute boat ride, Monday to Sunday from 7am to 4:30pm except holidays.

The flower field costs ₱10 to enter and keeps the same hours. Kids with remote-control cars can take them to the RC Park, opened in July 2026 with trails, ramps, rocks, logs and a water bed. The city says the RC Park is free and open daily from 6am to 9pm.

Facilities close now and then for holidays and maintenance, so check the Pasig City advisories before you drive over. For more family plans this season, see Christmas with kids in Manila.

On the way home, stop in old Pasig around Kapasigan. Panaderia Dimas-Alang on Mabini Street still bakes in a wood-fired pugon (brick oven), and Grid Magazine dates it to 1919; take home pandesal and pan de coco. For sourdough, Likhang Harina is on C. Raymundo Avenue.

Indoor climbing next door

Climb Central Manila is just over the border in Mandaluyong, at The Portal on Mayflower Street in Greenfield District. It has about 750 square metres of indoor, air-conditioned climbing wall.

Walk-ins are welcome. First-timers sit a ten-minute safety briefing, rent shoes and a harness, and then climb at their own pace. It opens 1pm to 10pm on weekdays, and 10am to 10pm on weekends and public holidays.

Children need to be at least 5 years old, 20kg and 1.1m tall, with one adult for every two children, and the crew teaches parents how to hold the ropes. Wear knee-length pants, bring socks and a photo ID for the gear deposit, and expect a queue on weekends.

Our guide to bouldering and climbing in Manila compares the city's climbing gyms.

Dinner in Ortigas Center

Ortigas Center is where this side of the city goes for a proper dinner. Cantabria by Chele Gonzalez is the Spanish restaurant on the top floor of The Westin Manila, listed in the MICHELIN Guide, with a rooftop terrace over the skyline.

Its menu runs from tapas to seafood and Spanish comfort meats, and the wild turbot is prepared at the table. It serves daily from 11:30am to 2pm and 5pm to 10pm; reserve through its website. For more, see our Spanish restaurants guide.

Summer Palace, the Cantonese restaurant at Edsa Shangri-La, is listed in the MICHELIN Guide too, which singles out its shrimp dumplings. Add the roasted Peking duck from the signature menu, and book ahead for a family celebration.

For Italian, Osteria Antica is on the sixth floor of The Podium, with city views and exposed brick. The MICHELIN Guide names the mango bruschetta and the tiramisu.

Kapitolyo after dark

Kapitolyo stays awake later than the malls. Hakid pours cocktails at night; ask for the Bachata, or for something off the menu. Kanto Freestyle Breakfast has served late-night silog for years; check its Facebook page for current hours before a 2am run.

For dinner first, Warung Kapitolyo cooks Indonesian food in a bungalow on East Capitol Drive. Order the sate ayam.

The Beach House fills three floors with thrifted furniture and travel photos. Try the Kamote Cold Brew, made with sweet potato.

The late cafes are in the "Open late" section of our Kapitolyo cafes guide. For more of the city after dark, read Manila After Dark. Our Pasig, Ortigas and Mandaluyong pages list every place we cover nearby.

Questions people ask

What is there to do in Pasig? Eat your way around Kapitolyo's cafes and small restaurants, spend an afternoon at Capitol Commons and Estancia Mall, and take the kids boating at Maybunga Rainforest Park. Ortigas Center adds Shangri-La Plaza and hotel restaurants for dinner.

What is Kapitolyo known for? Food. Kapitolyo is a residential area of Pasig off Shaw Boulevard, with cafes and small restaurants along East Capitol Drive, West Capitol Drive, San Rafael Street and Brixton Street.

What is at Capitol Commons? A 10-hectare Ortigas Land estate on Meralco Avenue corner Shaw Boulevard, on the site of the former Rizal Provincial Capitol. It has homes, offices, shops and Estancia Mall, which has Ortigas Cinemas and The Screening Room.

What are the Maybunga Rainforest Park hours? Pasig City says the park is open Monday to Sunday, 7am to 5pm, with some facilities open until 10pm, unless an advisory says otherwise. The boating lagoon and the flower field run from 7am to 4:30pm, except on holidays.

How much is the boat ride at Maybunga Rainforest Park? ₱50 for a 15 to 20 minute ride on the lagoon, according to Pasig City. The flower field costs ₱10 to enter.

What can you do in Ortigas at night? Have dinner at Cantabria on the top floor of The Westin Manila, Summer Palace at Edsa Shangri-La or Osteria Antica at The Podium. For a later drink, Hakid in Kapitolyo turns into a cocktail bar at night.

Can kids climb at Climb Central Manila? Yes, if they are at least 5 years old, 20kg and 1.1m tall. One adult has to supervise every two children, and the crew teaches parents how to hold the ropes.