Osmeña Peak Travel Guide

Osmeña Peak, the highest mountain in Cebu is a cluster of green jagged hills like a deformed twin of Chocolate Hills of Bohol  hugging the shorelines of Badian.

This part of Dalaguete is reminiscent of Benguet. A serene town with low temperatures dotted with pine trees. A remote village inhabited mostly by vegetable farmers sporting their jackets, boots and jeans. And you will meet children eagerly helping their families in their farm work.  Here you’ll see vines crawling in trees and gardens, rooster cocking and cozy wood houses.

 

Here’s a travel guide to Osmeña Peak and Kawasan Falls  to help you plan your trip:

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HOW TO GET TO OSMEÑA PEAK FROM CEBU

 

 

Take a bus bound for Oslob or Santander/Li-loan at South Bus Terminal in Cebu City.  Bus fare is about PHP 106 and travel time is approximately 3 hours.  Tell the conductor and/or driver that you will get off at Dalaguete junction for Osmeña Peak.  Landmarks are 7Eleven and Julie’s Bakeshop fronting each other (see photo below) at Mantalongan.

 

At Dalaguete junction, hire a habal-habal (motorbike) directly to Osmeña Peak trail head.  Fare is PHP 100 per person one way, the motorbike can accommodate 2 persons, so if you are alone, you have to pay for two (PHP 200 per way).   To simplify, PHP 200 per way per motorbike to Osmena Peak.  Roundtrip motorbike fare is PHP 400, good for two persons.  Travel time is about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

 

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At the jumping-off point to Osmeña Peak, tourists/hikers need to sign at the Osmeña Peak Tourism Center/ Hiker’s Center (see photo below) and pay  the Osmeña Peak entrance fee of PHP 30 per person.  Always ask for official receipt.

 

Local guides will also approach you, there is no regulated guide fee, the guide will most likely tell you it’s up to you, but usually PHP 150 per guide will do.

 

Hike to Osmeña Peak summit from the jumping-off point is about 20-25 minutes only.  The hike is fairly easy, by far my easiest hike.

 

Osmeña Peak is usually foggy in the morning, so best to schedule your hike in the afternoon.  Osmeña Peak is also a good spot for sunset watching.

 

There is a camping ground in Osmeña Peak if you plan to stay there overnight, bring your own tent.  Camping fee is Php 50 per person. Otherwise, Osmeña Peak can be done as a day trip, see itinerary below for Osmeña Peak day trek.

 

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HOW TO GO TO OSMENA PEAK FROM OSLOB

 
oslob

 

At the highway in Oslob, take a Ceres bus bound for Cebu. Tell the driver you are getting off at Dalaguete Junction for Osmeña Peak where you can see 7Eleven and Julia’s Bakeshop fronting each other.  Travel time is about 1 to 1.5 hours.

 

At Dalaguete Junction, hire a habal-habal (motorbike) to take you to Osmeña Peak jumping-off point. The motorbike can accommodate 2 persons, so PHP 200 per way per motorbike to Osmeña Peak.  The roundtrip motorbike fare is PHP 400.  Travel time is about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Sign in the logbook of Osmeña Peak Tourism Center/ Hiker’s Center (see photo below) and pay PHP 30 per person for the Osmeña Peak entrance fee.  If you wish to camp overnight, there is a PHP 50 per person camping fee, bring your own tent.

 

You can hire a guide for your security and to assist in taking your souvenir photos at Osmena Peak.  The trek to Osmeña Peak summit from the jumping-off point is about 20-25 minutes only.  The hike is pretty easy, so Osmeña Peak is usually done as a day trek.

 

HOW TO GO TO KAWASAN FALLS IN BADIAN FROM OSMEÑA PEAK

 

kawasan falls

 

There are two options to go to Kawasan Falls in Badian from Osmeña Peak, by hike or by motorbike.

 

Near Mantalongan Market in Dalaguete, there is a trail to traverse to Kawasan Falls in Badian, but it will take about 6 hours to do this hike.

 

If you are not keen on doing that tedious traverse to Kawasan Falls from Osmeña Peak, you can rent a habal-habal (motorbike) to take you to Kawasan Falls from Osmeña Peak/ Dalaguete  for PHP 1,000 per motorbike (good for two persons so PHP 500 per person).   In other words, if you are doing Dalaguete junction to Osmeña Peak to Kawasan Falls, you can hire a motorbike for PHP 1,000 (good for two).  That rate is reasonable as the travel time from Osmeña Peak to Kawasan Falls is about 2 hours.

 

Entrance fee to Kawasan Fall is PHP 30 per person and bus fare from Badian to Cebu is PHP 147, travel time is roughly 3 hours.

 

Cebu Kawasan Waterfalls & Osmena Peak Day Tour

BOOK RESERVE

 

 

WHERE TO EAT IN OSMEÑA PEAK

 

 

You can dine at Mantalongon Market for about PHP 40 per meal.  You can also buy water there or at the small store near the trail head (they sell cold soft drinks for PHP 15 per bottle).  Bottled water is also available at the Hiker’s Center for PHP 35.

 

SAMPLE OSMEÑA PEAK ITINERARY

 

osmena peak cover

 

TIMEACTIVITIES
11:00 PMETD  Cebu South Bus Terminal
02:00 PMDalaguete Junction. Hire habal-habal to Osmeña Peak.
03:00 PMETA Osmeña peak trail head. Pay hiker’s registration fee. Hire guide.
03:30 PMETA Osmeña Peak summit. Photo op and appreciate the view.
04:30 PMHike down
05:00 PMETD for Dalaguete Junction
06:00 PMETA Dalaguete Junction
06:15 PMETD for Cebu City
09:15 PMETA Cebu City

 

 

 

 

SAMPLE OSMEÑA PEAK TO KAWASAN FALLS ITINERARY

 
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TIMEACTIVITIES
08:00 AMETD Cebu South Bus Terminal
10:00 AMETA Dalaguete Junction. Hire motorbike to Osmeña Peak.
11:00 AMETA Osmeña Peak trail head. Register and Pay Php 30 per person. Hire a guide.
11:30 AMETA Osmeña Peak summit.  Photo op and soak in the view.
12:30 PMETD Osmeña Peak
01:00 PMETA Osmeña trail head. ETD to Mantalongan market for lunch.
01: 15 PMLate lunch at Mantalongan Market with habal-habal driver
01:45 PMETD to Kawasan Falls in Badian via habal-habal.
4:00 PMETA Kawasan Falls. Pay entrance fee. Swim.
05:30 PMETD for Cebu City.  Ride Ceres Bus to Cebu City
9:00 PMETA at Cebu South Bus Terminal

 

 

SAMPLE OSLOB TO OSMEÑA PEAK TO KAWASAN FALLS ITINERARY

 

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TIMEACTIVITIES
2:00 AMETD Cebu South Bus terminal
7:00 AMETA Oslob. Register for Oslob whale shark watching.
7:30 AMSwim with the whale sharks.
8:30 AMETD For Dalaguete. Ride Ceres Bus to Cebu City.
10:00 AMAlight at Dalaguete Junction. Hire motorbike to Osmeña Peak.
10:45 AMETA Osmeña Peak jumping-off point. Register and pay entrance fee. Hire a guide.
10:55 AMStar hike to Osmeña Peak.
11: 20 AMOsmeña Peak summit. Photo op.
12:20 PMETD Osmeña Peak Tourism Center.
12: 50 PMETA Osmeña Peak trail head. Ride habal-habal.
01:10 PMETA Manatalongan Market. Late lunch.
01:40 PMETD Kawasan Falls in Badin via habal-habal.
04:00 PMETA Kawasan Falls. Pay entrance fee.  Swim.
05:30 PMETD Cebu City. Ride Ceres Bus.
08:30 PMETA Cebu South Bus Terminal.

 

 

 

OSMEÑA PEAK TRIP BUDGET

 

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Here’s a sample budget for Osmeña Peak day hike.

 

Bus Fare (Cebu- Dalaguete-Cebu)PHP 106 per way x 2 = PHP 212
Motorbike to Osmeña Peak from Dalaguete JunctionPHP 200 per way x 2 = PHP 400
Osmena Peak Registration FeePHP 30 per person
Osmena Peak Guide FeePHP 150 per guide
TOTALPHP 790

 

 

OSMEÑA PEAK TO KAWASAN TRIP BUDGET

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Here’s a sample budget for Osmeña Peak day hike and Kawasan Falls via motorbike.

 

Bus Fare (Cebu- Dalaguete)PHP 106 per person
Motorbike (Dalaguete-O Osmeña Peak-Kawasan Falls)PHP 1,000 per motorbike
Osmeña Peak RegistrationPHP 30 per person
Kawasan Falls entrance feePHP 30 per person
Bus fare (Kawasan/Badian – Cebu)PHP 147
TOTALPhp 1, 313

 

 

 

OSMEÑA PEAK TRAVEL TIPS

 

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♦ Best time to do the Osmeña Peak hike is in the afternoon as it can get foggy in the morning.  I did Osmeña Peak twice in 2012, it was foggy on my first attempt.  On my recent trip, we went there around 3:00 PM.

♦ Osmeña Peak is also a great spot to catch the sunset.  If you have the luxury of time, you can do the hike late in the afternoon and wait for the sunset.  But be extra careful when going down.

♦ Wear proper hiking shoes, if you don’t have one, running shoes is okay.  Do not wear slippers as the trail is quite rocky.

♦ If you want to avoid the crowd, go to Osmeña Peak on weekdays, avoid the weekends as it can get pretty crowded.

♦ Bring bottled water to keep you hydrated, but you can also buy one at the store in front of the trail head, cheaper than buying at the hiker’s center.

♦ Bring your own tent of if you want to camp in Osmeña Peak, camping fee is PHP 50.

♦ To help the local community, hire a guide.

♦ Do not leave or throw your trash at Osmeña Peak, please.

♦ There are souvenir shirts, ref magnet, key chains and mugs for sale at Osmeña Peak Tourism Center.

♦ You can do Kawasan Falls traverse from Osmeña Peak for about 6 hours or just hire a habal-habal (motorbike) for PHP 1,000 (PHP 500 per person x 2 persons)  to take you there.  If you plan to do this, bring your swim wear!

♦ Do not let the driver wait too long, they might charge you extra for the long wait time.  It’s the source of living, so as much as possible, they want to take more visitors to the peak.  Local residents use the habal-habal as mode of transportation too, please respect their time.  An hour at Osmeña Peak for photo and to soak in the view will do.

♦ Ceres Buses to south Cebu at South Bus Terminal runs daily from 2:00 AM to 12:00 midnight.  To avoid the long lines during weekends and holidays, travel on weekdays and avoid the holidays!

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WHERE TO STAY IN CEBU CITY

BUDGET

The Center Suites


Escario St. Extension, Gonzales Compound, Brgy. Camputhaw, Cebu City

CLICK HERE FOR ROOM RATES 

 

AMAX INN CEBU


Aniceto Seno, Mandaue City, Cebu

CLICK HERE FOR ROOM RATES

 

MID-RANGE

Cebu Grand Hotel


N. Escario Street, Vibo Place, Cebu City

CHECK ROOM RATES HERE 

LUXURY

Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino

Salinas Drive Lahug, Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines, 6000

CLICK HERE FOR ROOM RATES 

Radisson Blu Cebu


Serging Osmeña Boulevard corner Juan Luna Avenue, Mabolo, Cebu City

CLICK HERE FOR ROOM RATES

 

Osmeña Peak Side trip:

 

 

ALSO READ:

 

CASINO PEAK: Dalaguete

OSLOB SWIMMING WITH THE WHALE SHARKS

 

 

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24264_351910964162_336201504162_3580676_6142279_nAbout the Blogger : Gael is an award-winning Filipina travel blogger. Her work has appeared in local and international publications.

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