The Naga Metropolitan Cathedral, formally the Cathedral of Saint John the Evangelist, has stood at the heart of the city since the Spanish colonial period. The current building is a solid example of Philippine colonial ecclesiastical architecture — a broad facade with twin towers, thick walls built to withstand earthquakes and typhoons, and an interior that has been adapted and restored across centuries of use. The cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of Cáceres, which covers the Bicol region, making it the religious administrative centre for a large part of the Philippines.
The cathedral's role during the Peñafrancia Festival transforms it annually: the miraculous image of Our Lady of Peñafrancia is brought here from her basilica in a solemn procession and remains for a nine-day novena, after which the fluvial return procession on the Naga River draws crowds estimated in the hundreds of thousands. At ordinary times the cathedral is a working parish church, and Mass schedules mean the interior is almost always accessible.