Experiencing the MARADULA Festival
Our family took the short road trip to Talisay City, Negros Occidental, Philippines in order to experience the MARADULA Festival. While we didn’t get to join the actual festival itself, we were able to partake of the bountiful harvest of fruits.
What is MARADULA Festival?
Maradula is the short name for the four fruits that are abundant in Talisay City. These are MAngosteen, RAmbutan, DUrian, and LAnzones. The “MA” can also stand for MArang and MAngoes, which are both quite common in the area as well.
There are many fruit orchards around the vicinity of Brgy. Concepcion in Talisay and these four fruits seem to be the most prolific fruit bearing trees.
Concepcion Lanzones
But I think that the lanzones is the most famous. Growing up, I would remember fruit vendors saying that their lanzones is from Concepcion in order to sell them fast in Bacolod City. It is widely accepted knowledge that Concepcion lanzones is sweet and has small seeds. But of course, the vendors are not always honest.
The MARADULA Festival was especially created to celebrate the abundance of these fruits in the area. The harvest is always plentiful and it boosts the livelihood in Talisay City. If I am not mistaken, this year was the first time that this event was celebrated.
What to Expect in the MARADULA Festival?
Just like any other Philippine festival, the MARADULA Festival had a fun run, caravan, zumba, a a pageant in search for the year’s Maradula Queen, and streetdancing. But what makes this occasion unique is that after the thanksgiving mass, they gave out fruit packs. Yep! Fresh fruit packs to the guests. No other festival in the country does that and it just goes to show how fruits are abundant here.
Afterwards, you can have an adventure in the neighboring fruit farms and enjoy rambutan all you can or lanzones all you can. Or you may just opt to buy fruits per kilo, as it is cheaper here than in Bacolod City.
The MARADULA Festival this year happened on October 6 and 7, the first weekend of the month. But actually, we did not go there during the actual festival. We went there the day after, when there were not too many visitors anymore. Next time, we will do it before the event, when there are still more fruits.
Fruits All You Can
You can partake of the Rambutan All You Can or Lanzones All You Can trip, whichever you prefer. The rate is P150 per person you can stay as long as you want during the day and eat to your hearts’ content.
Hubby and I love rambutan and lanzones. I was even told that my mother even favored rambutan when she was pregnant with me, hence my abundance of body hair. Blech! But we didn’t do the eat all you can thing though.
The unli-fruit rate is PhP150 and is already good for three kilos. That is because it is only PhP50/kilo of lanzones or rambutan at the farm. So in the end, we just bought a total of six kilos for PhP300 (around US$6), which we brought home to share with the rest of the family.
A Family Field Trip
Our trip to the JKN Fruit Farm in Brgy. Concepcion, Talisay City was a field trip of sorts. Being city dwellers, a time at the farm is truly a respite for us. Surrounded by greens, we are able to inhale fresh air and just refresh our eyes with a vista of green. Plus the drive going there is also very relaxing.
My children are animal lovers but sadly, our current dwelling does not allow us to care for farm animals. So whenever we go visit farms, the kids truly enjoy these animal encounters. They are just so happy to be surrounded by animals.
It was there are JKN Fruit Farm where we met a couple of tamed monkeys who know how to peel a lanzones and eat it piece by piece. What manners! haha The girls got curious. Shane was especially intrigued and didn’t want to go home because she wanted to keep the monkeys company. haha
Contact Details
JKN Fruit Farm
Zone 3, Brgy. Concepcion, Talisay City, Negros Occidental, Philippines
Mobile: (0916) 384 9815
- Follow them on Facebook: JKN Fruit Farm
- Find JKN Fruit Farm on the map.
How to Get to JKN Fruit Farm
Most people bring their private vehicles to drive to JKN Fruit Farm. They take the Circumferential Road (Bacolod-Silay Airport access road) and turn eastward to Brgy. Concepcion. Download Waze or Google maps for more detailed directions.
Or you may take the commute (jeepney) to Talisay City and then take a tricycle going to Brgy. Concepcion.
Homeschooling Activity
We are a homeschooling family so we can go whether it is the weekend on not. Although we went there on a weekday, right after the official celebration of the MARADULA Festival, the locals are still pretty amped.
The weekend festivities brought a lot of visitors to the place so the community was very lively. We went there for the peace and quiet and to enjoy the fresh fruits at the farm.
Read other stories where the kids had animal encounters:
It’s so nice to drive to the countryside of our province and experience these things with our kids. We love traveling as a family. So we shall keep doing it as long as we can.
Building Friendships
We often have field trips with my kumare Pynky, mother of Jam, who the girls consider as their BFF. They especially love hanging out with Jam, perhaps because this boy is tolerant of them (although there was really one time that he lost his patience over their bickering. haha)
Jam is also being homeschooled, so he can take off with us any time. We are always on the lookout for activities that stimulate discovery of nature in our kids. Our families are members of the Bacolod Homeschoolers Network.
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This looks like a really great and rewarding experience to visit a fruit farm! I love your photos also – you have a beautiful family! I would love to partake in something like this! 🙂
This sounds like a great place to spend an afternoon with your family. I love rambutan, I used to eat so much of it during my trip to Asia. This year I’ll return to Vietnam and I’m looking forward to tasting again all the local fruits, including rambutan.
This looks like such a fun festival~ I love going to festivals and checking out all they have to offer. Usually you find the most fun items and best food! But Maradula Festival is way cooler!
What a cool area. My daughter would love a visit to this fruit farm. These are such fun pictures. You can tell that everyone is having a good time.
Maradula festival sounds so fun! I love mangos and love to visit local farms with my family. We are planning to Philipines next year and I’ll put JKN fruit farm on my bucket list! thanks!
This is such a great experience for the whole family and Maradula sounds like a fun festival. Plus I always love outings that are also educational for the children.
What a fun visit to this fruit farm! It definitely looks like a great place to get some fresh air and some fresh fruit! It’s great that they are holding this thanksgiving festival to celebrate the harvests. They are going to get more harvests because of Maradula.
This fruit farm looks like heaven to me! I love going fruit picking and enjoying nature. This seems like a good day out.
Funny enough we went to a cherry and strawberry picking farm not long ago! This would be a great activity to do with the kids! Thank you so much for sharing this!
Would love to go to the MARADULA Festival and taste the four fruits! Thanks for a great post.
This festival looks like so much fun! Fruits are my favorite food group so I’m sure I’d have a lot of fun if I visit JKN Fruit Farm in Talisay City.
So much fruit just waiting to be taken from their boredom on the tree. I don’t think I have ever seen or tasted that fruit before. Let the fruit farm adventures begin!
I hadn’t heard of a Lanzones or rambutan before. But what a great trip for the entire family! That’s a lot of fruits!
so fun! I want to go to the Maradula Festival, too!
I love that you got to do so many new things … that’s the kind of vacation escape I enjoy.
Looks like a fun time. Oh I miss rambutan and lanzones from the Philippines. Definitely, a place I’d go visit when I visit the motherland again.
Looks like you had a great time at JKN fruit farm at talisay city. Looks like must visit place whenever we plan our trip to the Philippines. Thanks for sharing your experience.
I love visiting farms! Especially during such occasions. I visited an apple farm here and had such an awesome experience making wine too. So for sure, you definitely had such a great experience!
Had never heard of the Maradula festival before this. Seems similar to the the harvest festivals we have around here. I have always wanted to taste the durian fruit.
Looks like a very fun place and event too! One thing I’d like to do is visit the island where lots of my family comes from and just enjoy all the non touristy stuff!!
This festival looks like such a great experience! Looks like so much fun indeed!
This made me miss Cebu more! Thanks for sharing and you and your family seems to really enjoy the enjoy the experience!
Omg This is exciting,😍😍 harvesting and picking fruits with the kids is amazing. It’s awesome. Fruits are everywhere. I want to experience this too Mommy Sig. Ung namimitas kami Ng fruits Ng mga anak ko . So wowwww 😍😍😍😍😍
Ang Ganda naman sa Lugar na yan Mommy Sig..Nakakaexcite sa dami ng Puno..Ang daming Lanzones at Rambutan..