The highlight of the 275^th Anniversary of the City of Cauayan was the formal opening and inauguration of the newly-restored Hacienda San Luis, located in Barangay San Luis. The delegation from Rustavi City—the first Georgian local government delegation to the Philippines and Asia—led by Rustavi Council Deputy Chairman Gocha Shavadze and Honorary Georgian Consul Thelmo Cunanan Jr. were among the guests of honor. Joining them were Teona Galogra, Head of Rustavi Economics Department; Rustavi Councilors Merab Sulaberidze and Davit Skhirtladze; and Georgian Consulate Public Relations Director Melissa Dizon.

Mr. Shavadze, Mayor Bernard Faustino Dy, Isabel Governor Faustino Dy III, and their spouses and several honoured guests, led the formal ribbon cutting marking the opening of the Hacienda San Luis Museum, which showcases the history and origins of the province and its close ties to the tobacco industry. They also later formally opened the banquet hall for the festivities marking the 275^th Anniversary of Cauayan City, where hundreds of guests were treated to fine Spanish-Filipino cuisine and an evening of traditional songs and dances.

Hacienda San Luis, which was founded in 1887 by the Spanish tobacco company Tabacalera Incorporada, was the heart of the region’s flourishing tobacco industry in the 19th century. Spanish colonizers and missionaries brought tobacco seeds from Cuba and began cultivating tobacco plants in Isabela, a fertile region in Northern Luzon, named after Queen Isabela of Spain. The Philippines’ only world-class cigar—La Flor de la Isabela (The Flower of Isabela)—pays tribute to this heritage.

For many years, Hacienda San Luis, which was eventually acquired by San Miguel Corporation (SMC), was not being utilized as a tourism attraction. Upon the assumption of Hon. Bernard Faustino Dy as Mayor of Cauayan, he immediately sought to develop the property as a museum and cultural heritage site, in partnership with SMC and other private and public sector stakeholders like Tabacalera Incorporada, the National Historical Commission, and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.

Today, visitors to Cauayan can catch savor the rich history and artistic tradition of the province in Hacienda San Luis. It is also an avenue for events, recreation, and leisure.