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Santo Tomas is a town in La Union.
Understand
[edit | edit source]Santo Tomas was founded in 1764. Previously part of Pangasinan province, it became part of La Union province when it was founded in 1850. Like neighboring Rosario, it owes its importance as a junction town on the roads between the Ilocos provinces, coastal Pangasinan, Benguet and Metro Manila via eastern Pangasinan, with most commercial activity being concentrated in Damortis Junction in the southernmost edge of town rather than the old downtown (Poblacion). It is home to about 43,000 people (census, 1 July 2024) 
Get in
[edit | edit source]Santo Tomas, particularly the southern barangay of Damortis at the boundary with Rosario, is at a junction marking the end of Route 55 (Pangasinan-La Union Road). The road merges with Route 2 (Manila North Road), at which point the latter highway veers sharply to follow the South China Sea coast northwards to the rest of the Ilocos Region. From Metro Manila and Dagupan in Pangasinan, buses heading to Candon, Vigan and Laoag also pass through the town.
Get around
[edit | edit source]Tricycles are the main form of transportation in town.
See
[edit | edit source]- 1 Sungyot Island, Narvacan. Actually part of mainland Luzon, albeit connected by a very narrow sandbar, it is a round "island" with white sand beaches and mangroves that forms a breakwater along Santo Tomas Bay. The area is part of Agoo–Damortis Protected Landscape and Seascape, a nature reserve extending south from the neighboring town of Agoo.
- 2 Diocesan Shrine of Nuestra Señora Virgen del Mar Cautiva (Holy Guardian Angels Parish Church), Poblacion, ☏ +63 917 674 5158, hgapsynod@gmail.com. Santo Tomas' main Roman Catholic church. The building itself is a drab modern structure. The highlight is the venerated Marian image of the Nuestra Señora del Mar de Cautiva (Blessed Virgin Mary, the Star of the Sea), whose left arm was cut off by pirates as it was being transported by sea in 1845 and replaced with a substitute arm after two previous replacements were mysteriously detached.
- 3 Bantay Pokles, Fernando. A ridge with treeless summits (Pokles means "bald" in Ilocano). The site features a hiking trail and crosses venerated by Catholic pilgrims.
Do
[edit | edit source]Buy
[edit | edit source]- 1 Santo Tomas Public Market (Damortis Public Market), Manila North Road, Damortis.
- 2 Santo Tomas Satellite Market, Poblacion (beside Cautiva Shrine.).
Eat
[edit | edit source]Drink
[edit | edit source]Sleep
[edit | edit source]Connect
[edit | edit source]The town's postal code is 2505.
Go next
[edit | edit source]| Routes through Santo Tomas |
| San Fernando ← Agoo ← | N  S | → Rosario → Urdaneta |
| END ← | N  S | → Rosario → Dagupan |