Rizal Park Tickets and Opening Hours

The National Parks Development Committee (NPDC), which has run the park since the 1960s, lists Rizal Park as open Monday to Sunday, including public holidays, from 5:00 AM to 10:00 PM. Other listings give different hours, from 8:00 PM or 9:00 PM closings to "open 24 hours", and some still repeat the exercise-only schedule from the COVID period. Those are outdated or unofficial, so go by the NPDC hours.

You do not need a ticket for the park grounds. NPDC does not publish a visitor entrance fee: its 2026 Citizen's Charter lists charges only for park permits and venue rentals, such as booking the Chinese Garden, Japanese Garden, Open-Air Auditorium or Quirino Grandstand for an event. Entry to the grounds is free on that basis, and news and travel coverage describe it the same way.

NPDC publishes no visitor fees or opening times for the Chinese and Japanese gardens, the Orchidarium or the musical dancing fountain, and the figures on third-party sites conflict. If one of these matters to your plans, ask at the Visitor's Center when you arrive.

Getting to Rizal Park

Rizal Park is in Ermita, next to Intramuros on Manila Bay. By rail, the nearest stop is United Nations station on LRT Line 1.

If you come by car, the Rizal Park Visitor's Center has a dedicated parking area on Kalaw Street corner Roxas Boulevard. The center opened in February 2014 and is the starting point for park tours, which also makes it a practical place to begin a walk through the grounds.

The Rizal Monument and the Real Execution Site

The Rizal Monument is the park's centerpiece, unveiled on December 30, 1913. Swiss sculptor Richard Kissling designed it as Motto Stella, meaning guiding star, after placing second in an international competition. It stands 12.7 m tall in bronze and granite, and Rizal's remains are interred in its stone base.

Ceremonial guards of the Philippine Marine Corps watch over the monument continuously. Behind it, the Torre de Manila condominium rises into the skyline, a sight that sparked a well-known photobomb controversy.

Here is the detail most visitors miss. Rizal was shot by firing squad on December 30, 1896, at 7:03 AM, but not at the monument itself. The spot is marked by the Light and Sound Complex, a group of life-size sculptures about 100 m north-northwest of the monument.

A Short History of Luneta

Before the park existed, the land was Bagumbayan, a settlement outside Manila's walls that was cleared after the British occupation of 1762–1764. The Paseo de Luneta promenade was completed in 1820 and took its name from a lunette, a crescent-shaped outwork of the walled city.

The grounds were used for executions under Spanish rule. The three GOMBURZA priests were executed by garrote here on February 17, 1872, and the Gomburza Marker commemorates them. Rizal followed on December 30, 1896.

Philippine independence was proclaimed at the park on July 4, 1946. It was declared Luneta National Park in 1955 and renamed Rizal Park by Proclamation No. 299 in 1967. In December 2021 the NPDC adopted the branding "Rizal Park, Luneta", so Rizal Park, Luneta Park and Luneta all refer to the same place.

What to See Inside Rizal Park

The NPDC divides the park's landmarks between its central and western sections. These are the main ones on its official pages.

• Independence Flagpole and Kilometer Zero Marker
  • The Philippine flag was first raised on this 150-foot flagpole on July 4, 1946.
  • The flagpole was rebuilt in September 2013, and the marble Kilometer Zero (KM 0) marker stands across from it.
  • Road distances from Manila to provinces and cities across the Philippines are measured from that marker.
• Light and Sound Complex
  • Life-size sculptures here mark the spot where Rizal was executed in 1896.
  • NPDC offers daily guided day tours of the complex.
  • Evening presentations run after dark, and the schedule appears in the next section.
• Chinese Garden and Japanese Garden
  • Both gardens are inside the park and can be booked for events through NPDC.
  • Japan donated the Japanese Garden, which was turned over on June 11, 1969.
  • NPDC publishes no visitor fee or visiting hours for either garden.
• Noli Me Tangere Garden, Gallery of Heroes and Flower Clock
  • NPDC lists all three among the park's landmarks.
  • The Gomburza Marker and San Lorenzo Ruiz Plaza are also on its list.
• Open-Air Auditorium
  • Architect Leandro Locsin designed this venue in 1968, and it hosts free cultural programs.
  • NPDC lists Weeknights@6 on Fridays and Labs Kita Sabado on Saturdays.
  • Concert at the Park takes place on Sundays, so check NPDC channels for the current lineup.
• Quirino Grandstand and Burnham Green
  • Presidents are inaugurated at the Quirino Grandstand.
  • Burnham Green is one of the landmarks NPDC lists in the park.
  • The grandstand can be rented for events under NPDC's published permit and rental schedule.
• Musical Dancing Fountain, Orchidarium and Butterfly Pavilion
  • The park also has a musical dancing fountain and an Orchidarium and Butterfly Pavilion.
  • Show times for the fountain and the current status and hours of the Orchidarium are not confirmed by NPDC, so check before you plan around them.
  • The relief map of the Philippines that once stood in the park was demolished by the National Museum in 2023.
• National Museum buildings
  • The National Museum buildings stand around Agrifina Circle, within the park grounds.

Light and Sound Show and Other Programs

NPDC lists two evening Light and Sound presentations of The Martyrdom of Dr. Jose Rizal at the Light and Sound Complex. The first runs from 7:00 PM to 7:30 PM in Filipino, and the second from 8:00 PM to 8:30 PM in English. NPDC does not state a fee for the show, so ask at the Visitor's Center if you need to know before going.

English-speaking visitors should aim for the later slot, since the earlier one is performed in Filipino. Because the park stays open until 10:00 PM, an evening show leaves time for a late walk afterward.

NPDC has also offered free monthly guided history walks through December 2026. Registration is posted on the NPDC Facebook page about a week before each walk. For the musical dancing fountain, we could not confirm show times, since third-party sources conflict, so check with NPDC first.

A special Changing of the Guard and Silent Drill event at the Rizal Monument has also run with free admission. Treat it as an occasional program rather than a daily one, and look for announcements before you plan around it.

Pairing Luneta With Nearby Manila Sights

Rizal Park sits beside Intramuros, so the old walled city is the obvious next stop after a walk through the park.

For more of old Manila, see our guides to Fort Santiago, San Agustin Church and Casa Manila.

Art lovers can head to the National Museum buildings around Agrifina Circle. Our guide to the National Museum of Fine Arts explains what to expect inside.

Check each site's own hours before you go, because they may not match the park's 5:00 AM to 10:00 PM schedule.