My husband and I stopped her on a guided tour of Cebu and Mactan Islands. They were very informative about the guitar making process and they have a lovely shop to sell the items they make. My husband ended up getting a mandolin for himself as a memento. They were not pushy about trying to get him to purchase something more expensive, which we appreciated.
I really want to buy an acoustic guitar from Cebu and Alegre Guitar is one of the most popular so we visit their factory. Here, you can watch how they make guitar, see different kinds of it and their gallery of some popular people who visit them. The place is quite OK, the sales representative is very accommodating. The guitar quality and sounds is world class. Well, that will depend on your budget. The price is more expensive than the other store. You might want to consider visiting other guitar factories since they are located just beside it.
It was nice to see a wide array of guitars.
From small to big ones. From the simple to the more intricately designed ones
But, this is not for those hunting for a cheap, quality guitar to buy.
Interesting though..
My father and I got a taxi to the Alegre factory, with hopes to buy 1 or 2 high quality guitars (as heirlooms and learning instruments for me and my children, as dad is originally from cebu).
We really just wanted to know what the important differences were between the higher end models, so that we could make an informed decision (plus it's interesting). The sales man was nice (I think he worked there?) but he just did not get what we needed from him- we just want to make an informed decision, and it would have been a bonus to also have been inspired as to why what we were buying was special. Instead we were given 'here's the cost, it's made in Canada/India/locally' basic facts, so we left, uninspired (isn't guitar shopping supposed to be fun?)
Then we went to Susing's down the road, but just decided to call it a day as our disappointment got the best of us-we stood in their empty shop,feeling awkward as nobody came out, it remained completely empty.
So we're leaving Cebu without our guitars, maybe we're not really missing much if their quality is like their service!
The shop is bigger than some of the other guitar factories in the area. There is no entrance fee in this site. Once you enter, you will be greeted by a friendly face. He will give you a short tour of the facility - very knowledgeable and accommodating. He explained how the processed worked - and if you are lucky, you will see some of the workers work on a guitar or a ukelele. The assembly area is open for visitors however the area where they paint the guitars is closed due to health reasons. Its a short tour but it ends in a room full of finished products. They also sell these guitars and ukeleles for decent prices ranging from P300-P73,000. (There is a separate room for the more expensive products). in addition, there is also an area for buying souvenirs. what caught my eye was a tiny guitar souvenir made of capiz shells in the front...
I recommend this place for any interested individuals. especially the musicians.... its a must see in Mactan.
