What to do if you have a day spare in your Cebu tour?
Head to the mountainous side of Cebu city with a habal-habal ride and explore Sirao flower farm, visit Temple of Leah and chill at Tops Skyline Garden.
Where to start?
The easiest and most common start point is from JY Square Mall (Supermart).
There are men with motorcycles around the area that are offering habal-habal ride. If this isn’t your cup of tea, you can also rent a taxi/private car that you can use for this DIY tour.
NOTE
If haggling is your thing, you can bargain to lower their asking price for as low as Php 300 per head. But during our tour, they asked for Php 500 per head which already seems reasonable for us. For that price, we can already visit these three destinations without having to pay extra for the rider’s wait time. And since Dee is big and the route is mostly uphill, it’s advisable to get separate motorcycles instead of just one for two heads.
Aside from that, I don’t know if it’s just us but as our way of supporting the livelihood of locals, we seldom haggle. This is their only means of living. The extra Php 200 will go along way with their families.
Siaro Farm
The Sirao flower farm is our first destination since it is the farthest among the three. With 16 km distance away from the mall, it will take around 30-40 minutes to get there. But don’t let the travel time hinder you from visiting this ‘Little Amsterdam’.
Recently, this farm became a trending destination in social media because it somewhat resembles the Amsterdam’s flower fields. Since its opening, the locals keep adding cute decorations like windmills, signage and figurines to entice more visitors. But what make the place more picturesque are the Celosia Flowers (or locally known as ‘Burlas’) in flame colors: yellow, red and orange.
FEES
Entrance fee
Sirao PCGS – Php 25.00
Sirao Flower Farm ‘Little Amsterdam’ – Php 5
Prenup fee
Sirao PGCS – Php 50.00
NOTE
- Because it’s now a popular destination, expect that this place can get a little crowded. It’s best to arrive here before 8 in the morning, which also means that you have to be in JY Square Mall around 6 AM!
Dee and I arrived here around 7 AM, and the place is all ours. Right before we leave, people are starting to come.
- There are two flower farms in Sirao:
- Sirao PGCS (Pictorial Garden & Camping Site) this is the nearest if you will be coming from JY Square mall.
- Sirao Flower Farm – It’s a little up north. This is the farm with windmills & “Little Amsterdam” signage.
- Freshly picked flowers and plant in pots are for sale.
- Farmers start to plant flowers around July. Their harvest period is the last week of October in preparation for All Saints & All Soul’s Day.
Temple of Leah
The next destination is Temple of Leah, which is around 20 minutes away from the farm. This ain’t a temple built for worship but put up to commemorate the undying love of Teodorico Adarna to his wife – Leah Villa Albino-Adarna. Similar to India’s Taj Mahal’s story, the place is made out of love.
The place features Roman architecture. As you can see on the photos, there are still a lot of constructions everywhere. Its estimated completion time is 2020.
FEES
Entrance fee
Php 50/head
Free for Senior Citizen & children below 10 years old
Prenup fee
1 to 2 hours – Php 2,500
3 to 6 hours – Php 5,000
6 to 9 hours – Php 7,500
NOTE
- There’s a free shuttle service from Jollibee IT Park to Temple of Leah & vice versa
Tops Skyline Garden
Last destination for this tour is Tops Skyline Garden or Tops lookout. It’s a longtime popular destination in Cebu city as it offers a breathtaking view of Cebu city while chilling in the small bars.
It’s a perfect place for short break from the usual hustle and bustle of a big city. There are benches, snack bars and chill spots in the area.
FEE
Entrance fee Php 100/head
From Amsterdam alike, to Taj Mahal alike then back to Cebu, it’s quite refreshing to explore the different side of Cebu city. The tour is very laidback and relaxing.
How about you?
What do you think of this tour?
Do you like it? If not, why not? If yes, why?
Have you visited these places before? How was your experience?
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