The hunt for Easter eggs: Where did it begin?

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

MANILA, Philippines — Every Easter Sunday, which is the culmination of the Holy Week and even the whole Lenten season, the mood shifts from cautious and reflective to happy and celebratory.

This is because on Easter Sunday, the Lord Jesus Christ is risen. After dying on the Cross to save mankind from eternal damnation on Good Friday, He resurrects on the third day — just as He said — to prove that He is the Son of God and the whole world celebrates this joyous occasion.

During this time, the kids are out hunting for Easter eggs and collecting prizes and sweet surprises for successfully finding the hidden eggs in the garden.

Then, you wonder what the connection is between the Lenten season and Easter eggs. There seems to be none or is there?

There is actually a connection. Easter eggs trace back to early Christian traditions in Mesopotamia, where eggs were dyed to achieve the color red to symbolize the blood of Christ that was shed on the Cross. Early Christians saw Easter eggs as a symbol of the Resurrection, with the shell representing the sealed tomb in which Jesus’ dead body was laid after He breathed His last on the Cross on Good Friday.

Cracking the egg to eat it on Easter Sunday, meanwhile, symbolized the Messiah rising from the dead and fulfilling the prophecy that He would come back to life on the third day.

By the 13th century, decorating eggs was such a common Medieval practice that King Edward I of England was said to have bought 450 eggs to be dyed into different colors and some decorated with gold leaf for his royal household.

Then the Easter egg hunts began during the 16th to 17th century. German Protestant reformer Martin Luther is generally believed to have started the tradition of hiding Easter eggs for women and children to find, as the act itself represented the women (Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Joanna, and some other women) discovering the empty tomb.  

Easter eggs are also known as Paschal eggs. They went from being colored and decorated chicken eggs to wooden eggs then chocolate eggs, from being simply color-dyed eggs to elaborately decorated ones, from being purely decoratively painted eggs to ones affixed with religious symbols and embossed designs.

So much has happened since the Easter egg tradition began and, in these modern times, they have become closely associated with children attending Easter egg hunts organized by hotels and restaurants to mark the end of the Lenten season.  

Easter traditions, family celebrations

Every year, Richmonde Hotels urge families to skip long drives and crowded destinations and, instead, opt for a staycation within the city and bond while relaxing and having some summer holiday fun together over the Easter weekend.

This year, Eastwood Richmonde Hotel offers Easter room packages available until April 5, 2026. Families planning a full Easter weekend can enjoy special room packages from P6,500 nett (room only) and P8,100 nett (with breakfast), inclusive of two tickets to the Enchanted Garden Easter Party, which is happening at the Ballroom on April 5, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Here, in the whimsical garden, kids embark on a thrilling Easter egg hunt besides unleashing their creativity in bracelet making, and enjoying the colorful face painting and sticker tattoos available for the occasion.

The event also features a deliciously satisfying snack buffet for kids and adults to partake of, as well as special giveaways. Tickets to the Enchanted Garden Easter Party are priced at P1,888 nett per person.

Dining is just as inviting, with Eastwood Café+Bar’s Easter Sunday Lunch Buffet on April 5 at P1,200 nett per adult and P600 nett for children, with kids aged 5 and below dining for free.

Over at Richmonde Hotel Ortigas, the Easter Break Escape room package is ongoing and is available until April 6, 2026. Guests staying on April 5, Easter Sunday, particularly, get a special treat with an extended Easter Sunday Breakfast Buffet served from 6 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. at Richmonde Café. The buffet is also open to walk-in guests at P1,180 nett for adults and P590 nett for children 6 to 12 years old. Children 5 and below eat for free.

As for Easter activities, families can spend time at the hotel’s “Kitchen Lab,” a series of hands-on activities where kids and kids-at-heart can create their own pizzas, decorate donuts, and design cookies for P350 nett per person per activity, complete with themed snacks and drinks.

'Eggs-traordinary' celebration

City of Dreams Manila celebrates the season of hope and renewal with curated Easter-themed offers and experiences this weekend. On Easter Sunday, DreamPlay lays out an eggs-traordinary all-day excitement, while family feasting is at its best at the sought-after Nobu Manila’s Sunday brunch. Over at Café Society, its counters are filled up with enchanting Easter goodies for families to enjoy, while Nobu Hotel Manila, Nuwa Manila and Hyatt Regency Manila welcome families and loved ones for a staycation.

DreamPlay presents the annual Easter Egg-venture on April 5, Easter Sunday, with activities starting at 1 p.m.

The Easter package, priced at P3,499 nett, is composed of one participant and one non-participant pass, enabling a child to relish the exclusive Easter fun activities and treats and DreamPlay’s 12 attractions while a parent or guardian stays nearby to share the excitement with the child. Each child-participant will receive a curated Easter kit, featuring a collectible button pin, cupcake, treat-filled basket, and an exclusive DreamPlay Easter mug to take home along with a special photo with stickers taken at the event photo booth.

An array of fun Easter activities has been lined up, highlighted by a colorful Egg Hunt, a vibrant parade with beloved DreamWorks characters Shrek, Princess Fiona, Puss in Boots, Master Ping Xiao Po, Trolls Poppy and Branch, to name a few, at The Shops at the Boulevard, and an exclusive magic show at DreamPlay’s Mezzanine area.

Over at Café Society, Easter-inspired pastries and handcrafted chocolates are available. Also available are limited-edition artisanal baked goodies like Mocha Loaf, traditional chocolate and fruity Hot Cross Bun, Chocolate Blueberry Dome and Leche Flan Bun; and sweet treats such as Garden Bunny Cake, Egg Nest Cake, Ube Brazo de Mercedes, sets of Egg Cup Cakes, Mini Mango Chicks Cake and boxes of Egg Cookies.

There is also the crafted selection of playful Easter chocolate creations comprised of Fluffy and Quacky Friends, Color-Kissed White and Milk Chocolate, Ruby Chocolate Hop Treasure Box, Crunchy Mango Pop, and Egg Buddies.

One of the premier hotels in the City of Dreams Manila complex, Nobu Manila, lays out a festive brunch on Easter Sunday, spotlighting Nobu-style dishes globally popularized by Chef Nobu Matsuhisa. The Nobu brunch concept combines an all-you-can-eat treat on the la carte menu with a lavish buffet spread where chefs in action prepare Nobu sushi, sashimi and maki rolls at the sushi bar; sear freshly cut slices of the featured meat at the carving station; and grill skewered meats, seafood and vegetables at the kushiyaki station.

A tempting assortment of Nobu-style dishes are cooked à la minute, including Beef Tobanyaki, Shrimp and Shojin Tempura, Umami Marinated Chicken Wings, Yuzu Truffle Crusted Baked Jumbo Prawns, and Duck Breast Orange Miso.

Top this at the sushi bar, where chefs artfully prepare Nobu’s signature Salmon Karashi Su Miso (tart miso-mustard sauce), among others, while two live cooking teppanyaki stations make available carvings of Roasted Lamb Leg, Slow-cooked Beef Brisket, and Crispy Pork Belly, with choice of custom Nobu sauces and paired with Seaweed and Mushroom Chahan (fried rice); and kushiyaki for freshly-grilled skewered chicken thigh, salmon belly, squid, octopus, leeks, Shiitake mushrooms, and eggplant.

Diners are sure to enjoy the favorite at the Nobu brunch — the Chilled Seafood Bar teeming with fresh oysters, blue crabs, shrimps, and mussels, leading to a myriad of salads and hot dishes. The dessert corner with a chocolate fountain, cakes, and an ice cream section, also highlights Easter-themed cakes Garden Bunny, Egg Nest and Ube Brazo De Mercedes, creating variety and adding a sweet note to the buffet.

The Nobu Easter Brunch is available from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., and price starts at P4,388 nett per adult for the regular package, inclusive of non-alcoholic beverages and mocktails. Other packages that include alcoholic and premium beverages are also available. Children aged 6 to 12 get to enjoy half price and 5 years and below dine for free when accompanied by an adult availing of the Nobu brunch.

Finally, guests who want some peace and quiet over the Easter weekend may avail of City of Dreams Manila’s special “Serenity in the City” room packages available at the three luxury hotels on the property, namely Nuwa Manila, Nobu Hotel, and Hyatt Regency Manila. All three hotels offer a restorative and luxurious experience. 

Feast then paint

Quite a number of restaurants are also having Easter egg activities on Easter Sunday, one of which is Vikings The Alley UP Town Center, which is giving kiddie diners a treat with its “Feast. Paint. Eggstra Fun!” activity. As the name implies, it has laid out “the goods” for kids to exercise their creativity and paint eggs in between or after partaking of the grand Easter Sunday lunch buffet.       

RELATED: What does Easter mean (according to BTS)?