Cebu.travel
The white colonnaded Temple of Leah on a ridge in the Cebu City highlands
Private transfer · route guide

How do I get to Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops from Cebu City?

Private vehicle and driver, with fuel, tolls and parking included

Drive time
30-45 minutes by private car
Distance
~8-15 km uphill
Vehicle
Up to 12 per van
Pickup
Door to door

The short answer

Cebu City to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops)

The Busay highlands begin just above Cebu City - Temple of Leah, the Sirao flower garden and the Tops lookout are all roughly 8-15 km and 30-45 minutes up from the centre by private car. It’s the easiest half-day out of the city, and a popular late-afternoon run timed for sunset.

The longer answer

The roads up are steep and winding with no single route linking the three sights, and no direct jeepney or bus goes all the way up. Most visitors charter a private car or habal-habal for the loop rather than piece together public transport stop by stop.

The route

Where the road goes

Cebu City → Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) - Cebu City and Cebu Highlands on the real map, drawn from official boundary data.

Step by step

Step by step: Cebu City to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops)

  1. 1
    Pick a time of day - and check the closing times

    The three sights do not keep the same hours. Tops is the ridge-top viewpoint that stays open around the clock, so it is the one stop that always works for sunset or city lights. The Sirao flower gardens are daytime-only and their gates close in the early evening, so a sunset-first plan means arriving at a locked garden. Mornings are cooler and quieter at Temple of Leah and Sirao.

  2. 2
    Climb the Busay road

    About 8-15 km and 30-45 minutes uphill from the city centre, depending which stop you start with.

  3. 3
    Loop Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops - gardens first, Tops last

    Your driver waits at each stop while you take in the temple, the flower fields and the ridge-top view. Run it in that order if you want sunset: the Sirao flower gardens close in the early evening, and Tops is the one that stays open around the clock.

  4. 4
    Head back down, or stay for sunset

    Return to your hotel, or linger at Tops or a view café until after dark before the drive back down.

Your options

Ways to travel, compared

  • Private highlands loop (what we arrange)
    ~30-45 min up

    Pickup from your Cebu City hotel, then straight up to Temple of Leah, Sirao and Tops at your own pace. Fixed half-day price - request a quote.

  • Taxi / habal-habal (public)
    ~30-45 min +

    No single route links the three sights, so visitors usually charter a taxi or motorbike for the loop - slower and less comfortable than one private car.

When Temple of Leah, Sirao and Tops are open

Tops lookout
Open around the clock - the one stop that always works for sunset and city lights
Sirao flower gardens
Daytime only. The two side-by-side gardens close roughly between 5:00 PM and 6:30 PM, depending on the garden and the day of the week
Temple of Leah
Shortened hours announced in April 2026, with no fixed replacement schedule published - confirm on the day rather than plan an after-dark visit
Order for a sunset day
Gardens and temple first, Tops last. A sunset-first plan arrives at a shut garden
Entrance fees
Each site runs and charges its own, paid on the day. Not part of the transport quote
2 planning notes
  • The three sights are separately run and their hours do not match, which is the thing to plan around - not the 30-45 minute climb from the city.
  • Tell us in the quote request what time you want to be at Tops, and the pickup is worked back from it so the gardens are still open when you reach them. Your driver checks the gates on the day before you commit to an order.
Want more than a transfer?

Add stops on the way to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops)

It is a ~8-15 km drive, and you do not have to do it in one go. The car is yours for the journey and the driver waits wherever you stop, so a waterfall, an old church or a long lunch can sit in the middle of the run rather than costing you a separate day. List the stops you want in the quote request and we price the day, not the hop.

  • The car waits wherever you stop
  • Luggage stays in the vehicle
  • Fuel, tolls and parking included
  • Entrance fees paid locally, as you go

We'll pre-fill Cebu City → Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops). Add each one to the "Stops along the way" field on the form - it takes them in order - and we come back with one all-in price.

What the quote covers

Included
  • A private air-conditioned car or van with an English-speaking local driver for the whole journey
  • Door-to-door pickup and drop-off at the exact addresses you give us, not a meeting point
  • Fuel, tolls and parking
  • Waiting time and any extra stops you tell us about up front, priced into the quote rather than added afterwards
  • One fixed all-in price for the trip, agreed in writing before you travel
Paid locally, not in our quote
  • Entrance, activity, guide and boat fees at places you choose to stop (paid locally)
  • Meals and personal spending
  • Accommodation, including a driver overnight on a multi-day trip unless we have set it out in the quote
  • Inter-island ferry and boat crossings, unless we have set them out in the quote

We never invent activity or entrance prices - you pay those directly on the ground.

Good to know

Cebu City to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops): FAQs

How far is the Cebu highlands loop from Cebu City?

Temple of Leah, Sirao and Tops are all roughly 8-15 km and 30-45 minutes up from the city centre, though the roads are steep and winding.

Is sunset at Tops worth the trip up from the city?

Yes - Tops and several view cafés look straight over the city lights and Mactan. A private car timed for a late-afternoon pickup gets you there for sunset and back down safely after dark.

Can I visit Temple of Leah, Sirao and Tops in one trip from the city?

Yes - they’re close together along the highland roads and make a natural half-day loop from Cebu City. Since there’s no direct public transport between them, a private car is the practical way to link all three at your own pace.

What time do Temple of Leah, Sirao and Tops close?

They are separately run and their hours do not match, which is the thing worth planning around. Tops is open around the clock, so sunset and city-lights visits always work there. The Sirao flower gardens are daytime-only - the two gardens that sit side by side post closing times roughly between 5pm and 6.30pm depending on which one and the day of the week - so they have to come before dusk. Temple of Leah’s long-posted hours ran from early morning to late evening, but its management announced shortened hours in April 2026 without publishing a fixed replacement schedule, so an after-dark visit there is the one to confirm on the day. Tell us your plan in the quote request and your driver checks the gates before you commit to an order.

Can you do the return trip, Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) back to Cebu City?

Yes - the same private car and driver, Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) back to Cebu City over the same ~8-15 km. Ask for both legs in one quote request and we price the round trip together. If the way back ends somewhere other than where you started, say where in the Anything else? box on the quote form and we quote that leg instead of the reverse of this one.

What does the price for Cebu City to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) include?

The quote is one fixed all-in price for the trip, agreed in writing before you travel, and fuel, tolls and parking are inside it - along with any waiting time or extra stops you tell us about when you ask. What stays separate is what you would choose anyway: entrance, activity and boat fees at the places you stop, your meals, and your accommodation. We do not invent activity prices, so those you pay directly on the ground.

Can I compare options, or have the price split out?

One fixed all-in price for the journey, agreed in writing before you travel, with fuel, tolls, parking and waiting time already inside it. If it would help you decide, ask and we will also quote the alternatives next to it - a larger vehicle against two smaller ones for a group that is on the edge of a van, or the road leg quoted on its own where part of your journey crosses water you are booking yourself. On a trip of several legs we will price them individually as well as together if you want to see where the cost sits. Entrance, activity and boat fees at the places you stop stay outside our figure and are paid locally, and we never mark them up. Say how you want it broken up in the box marked "Anything else?".

Do you book the whale sharks or the canyoneering for us, or do we buy those on the day?

The drive, the driver and the waiting time are ours and they are in the quote. Whatever is sold at the far end is bought there: whale-shark watching is registered in person at the Oslob desk and cannot be booked ahead by us or by anyone, canyoneering is booked on the day with the licensed Alegria operators, and falls entrances and the Moalboal environmental fee are paid at the gate. The exception is Sumilon, where the day-use pass must be reserved with the resort before you travel. So the thing worth getting right in the quote is the arrival time rather than a reservation, and that is the part we plan. Say which activity you are going for in the box marked "Anything else?" and the pickup is timed back from its window.

How much notice do you need - can I book this for tomorrow?

Usually yes. There is no minimum notice on this route and no cut-off hour, so a request for tomorrow, or for later today, is worth sending rather than writing off. What settles it is whether a vetted driver is free for the time you need, and you will have the answer and the price by email the same day, usually within a few hours. A very early start is routine here rather than a complication. The part that gets harder with less notice is choice - holding a particular vehicle size or an exact pickup hour - not whether the journey can happen, so send the date and, if the timing is tight, the hour you need to be moving.

Do I pay anything up front, and when do I pay the rest?

Nothing to ask for a quote. Once you are happy with the price it is two steps, not a choice between two: a booking fee paid online (card, bank transfer or GCash) confirms the trip and is what gets you your written confirmation, then the balance goes directly to your driver at the end of the journey. The fee is part of the all-in figure you agreed rather than an extra on top of it, and your quote states it before you pay. Free cancellation up to 72 hours before pickup refunds the fee in full.

Travelling the other way?

Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) to Cebu City

We run this route in both directions, with the same car and driver. Ask for both legs in one request and we'll price the round trip together.

We'll pre-fill Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops) → Cebu City on the form. Just add your dates and details.

Coming back to somewhere else - a different town, the airport, a pier for an onward boat? Say where in the Anything else? box on the form and we price the return to that instead of back to the start.

Get a quote

Quote Cebu City to Cebu Highlands (Temple of Leah, Sirao & Tops)

We have filled in the route. Change anything, add your date and group, and we reply by email with one fixed, all-in price.

Free to enquire. No payment or obligation.

Your trip

Your trip

Your passengers

Your passengers

Your details

Your details

Include your country code, for coordinating your pickup.

No spam, ever. We reply by email - usually within a few hours, always the same day.

Travellers

What guests tell us

  • ★★★★★

    “Landed at midnight and our driver was right there with a sign. Smooth ride to Moalboal and the price was exactly as quoted. So much less stressful than sorting it at the airport.”

    HHannah & TomCanada · Airport to Moalboal
  • ★★★★★

    “Booked an Oslob day trip for my parents from abroad. Everything was arranged by email before they flew. They felt safe the whole way, exactly what I hoped for.”

    JJoan R.OFW, Dubai · Oslob tour
  • ★★★★★

    “We needed a van and driver for three days of island hopping. Clear pricing, friendly driver, and flexible when our plans changed. Would book again in a heartbeat.”

    MMarco D.Australia · Multi-day tour
  • ★★★★★

    “Quoted a Kawasan Falls trip on a Sunday and had a fixed all-in price within the hour. No haggling, no surprises on the day. Exactly what we needed with two young kids.”

    PPriya S.Singapore · Kawasan Falls
  • ★★★★★

    “Our driver waited patiently while our flight was delayed two hours and still got us to the hotel relaxed and safe. Honest people who clearly take pride in the service.”

    DDaniel K.South Korea · Mactan to Cebu City
  • ★★★★★

    “Organised a whole Bantayan Island weekend for our family group chat from Manila. One contact, one price, zero stress. The kids loved the driver.”

    RRhea M.Manila · Bantayan weekend
  • ★★★★★

    “Booked from the US for our honeymoon and were nervous about transport. They answered every question fast and the car was spotless. Felt looked after the whole trip.”

    AAshley & BenUSA · Honeymoon transfers