A Land of Promise for Shoppers

By Beau Genesis G Baslao

Along with a number of business class hotels in Davao, many malls have sprouted to usher the rise of commerce in the city. Find below for the many Major Malls in Davao City:

Davao's first supermall is SM City Davao located at Quimpo Boulevard, Ecoland, Matina. It opened last November 2001 and is the first SM Mall to be opened in Mindanao. It has a wide floor area and has three floors filled with various commercial outlets to choose from such as shops, recreational and service centers, cinemas and restaurants. They also recently opened a nearby extension to facilitate more shops in order to cater more customer options. This is more popularly known as SM Davao Matina due to the fact that another SM mall has been opened in the other side of Davao, which leads us to...

SM Lanang Premier, also known as SM North Davao, is another mall destination to spend time and have fun with family and friends. It is the fourth SM mall in Mindanao with the other two being SM Cagayan de Oro and SM General Santos. This is where you can find the largest Dancing Fountain in the Philippines and the first IMAX Theater in the Philippines. They also feature a water fountain garden near several restaurants, giving one's dining experience a captivating view as well. The mall's exterior asymmetrical and abstract design is said to be inspired by Origami, the Japanese art of folding. Its location is at Jp Laurel Avenue, Lanang.

Along JP Laurel, specifically in Bajada, is another mall complex called Abreeza Mall. It features a three storey mall of retail shops. These sales outlets offer wide assortment of products and services such as restaurants, fashion concepts, and gadgets among others. Abreeza Mall also has additional community development projects such as boutique hotel, office buildings, and residential towers. They also have a water fountain which is best viewed at night when the colors are most vibrant. On the top floor is the open air supermall's food court, presenting a fresher dining experience as well as a remarkable view of the sky. Abreeza is also the location of many popular brands where they opened their first branch with Star Bucks being the most famous.

NCCC Mall is another large mall to checkout in Davao, located in the corner of McArthur Highway and Ma-a Road. This three-floor shopping complex houses a food court, restaurants, a department store, a supermarket, cinemas, electronic stores, bowling and billiard complex, appliance stores, and even a post office. This is perhaps the most wallet friendly mall among the above picks.

Gaisano Mall or otherwise known as Gmall is perhaps the most populous mall complex due to their strategic location. They offer a lot of choices for fashion, electronics, dining, and recreation with the many commercial stores. They have a VIP Cinema where the seat is most comfortable, ensuring a most relaxing movie experience. A recently opened portion called The Peak paves the way for more food options and a slightly bird's eye view of the city.