Where It's Located
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is being constructed at:
Tacloban Bypass Road
Brgy. Utap-Caibaan
Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines
The temple property covers approximately 6.99 acres, or 2.8 hectares.
The site is located in the Barangay Utap-Caibaan neighborhood of Tacloban City.
Getting There
International visitors will generally fly into Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, which serves Tacloban City.
Because the temple is still under construction, visitors cannot currently enter the temple. An open house and dedication will be announced closer to completion.
Tacloban itself is an excellent base for exploring the Eastern Visayas region, including historical sites, beaches, islands, and natural attractions.
A Temple for Eastern Visayas
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is especially significant because it will serve members in Eastern Visayas, a region that has experienced substantial Church growth.
Tacloban is the largest city in Leyte and serves as an important economic and transportation center for the region.
For local Latter-day Saints, having a temple in Tacloban will eventually make temple worship substantially more accessible.
Temple Announcement
President Russell M. Nelson announced the Tacloban City Philippines Temple on October 3, 2021, during the October 2021 General Conference.
At the time of the announcement, the Philippines had more than 805,000 Latter-day Saints organized into more than 1,225 congregations.
That makes the Philippines one of the most significant countries in the Church's worldwide membership.
The Eighth Temple in the Philippines
When completed, the Tacloban City Philippines Temple will be the eighth temple in the Philippines.
At the time the temple page was published, two Philippine temples were operating:
- Manila Philippines Temple
- Cebu City Philippines Temple
Five additional temples were announced or under construction:
- Alabang Philippines Temple
- Bacolod Philippines Temple
- Cagayan de Oro Philippines Temple
- Davao Philippines Temple
- Urdaneta Philippines Temple
The Tacloban Temple adds another major temple center to that rapidly expanding network.
A Connection to the First Member in Tacloban
The groundbreaking ceremony included a particularly meaningful historical connection.
Elder Michael B. Strong presided over the groundbreaking on January 18, 2025. During his remarks, he noted that the ceremony occurred exactly 56 years after the baptism of George Pamin, the first member of the Church in Tacloban.
That means the temple groundbreaking took place on an anniversary of the beginning of Latter-day Saint membership in the city.
It is a pretty remarkable full-circle moment.
Groundbreaking
Groundbreaking and site dedication took place on January 18, 2025.
Elder Michael B. Strong, Second Counselor in the Philippines Area Presidency, presided.
During the site dedicatory prayer, Elder Strong asked that people throughout the temple district would have greater capacity to show charity, compassion, patience, and kindness toward their neighbors and to go about doing good.
The Temple Site
The Church officially announced the temple's location on March 25, 2024.
The selected property covers approximately 6.99 acres along Tacloban Bypass Road.
The plans call for the temple to be accompanied by an ancillary building containing:
- An arrival center
- Patron housing
- A distribution center
That combination will make the property more than simply a temple building.
Temple Rendering
The official exterior rendering for the Tacloban City Philippines Temple was released on December 9, 2024.
The design calls for a relatively compact temple with a single attached end spire.
The building is planned as a two-story temple.
Architecture
The planned temple will contain approximately 21,407 square feet of floor space.
Its most prominent architectural feature will be a single attached end spire.
The temple will rise approximately 26 feet, or 8 meters, according to the published temple statistics.
The relatively low profile fits the planned temple's setting and gives it a more horizontal appearance than many temples with prominent central towers.
A Two-Story Temple
The two-story design allows the temple to provide substantial interior space while maintaining a relatively modest footprint.
This is particularly useful on the nearly seven-acre site, where the temple can be surrounded by landscaping and supporting facilities.
Current Construction
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is under construction.
The latest construction information reports crews are:
- Installing the foundation
- Installing underground utilities
- Building the structural walls for the ancillary building
The project is therefore still in the relatively early stages of construction.
Open House and Dedication
An open house and dedication date have not yet been announced.
Once construction is completed, the Church is expected to announce a public open house.
During the open house, members of the public will be able to tour the completed temple before it is dedicated.
After dedication, access will be reserved for Latter-day Saints who meet the requirements for temple worship.
Tacloban and Typhoon Haiyan
The temple's location carries particular significance because Tacloban was devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.
The storm was one of the strongest tropical cyclones ever recorded at landfall and caused catastrophic destruction throughout the Philippines.
The Church's page notes that Latter-day Saints and their friends came together following the disaster to rebuild homes and revitalize the area.
The future temple therefore represents more than Church growth.
It is also being built in a community that has experienced enormous hardship and recovery.
A Story of Rebuilding
The history of Latter-day Saints in Tacloban makes the temple especially meaningful.
The Church's presence began with George Pamin's baptism in 1969.
Decades later, members and their friends helped rebuild the community following Typhoon Haiyan.
Now, the city is receiving its own temple.
It is a remarkable story of growth, resilience, and rebuilding.
Exploring Tacloban
A future temple trip to Tacloban would offer plenty to see beyond the temple.
The city and surrounding Leyte region are known for:
- World War II history
- Beaches
- Tropical scenery
- Island excursions
- Historic monuments
- Local Filipino food
- Nearby natural attractions
MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park
One of the most important historical sites near Tacloban is the MacArthur Landing Memorial National Park.
The site commemorates General Douglas MacArthur's return to the Philippines in 1944 during World War II.
The massive bronze statues depicting MacArthur and his officers walking ashore are among the region's most recognizable landmarks.
San Juanico Bridge
The San Juanico Bridge connects Leyte and Samar across the San Juanico Strait.
At more than two kilometers long, it offers impressive views of the surrounding islands and waterways.
It's an easy addition to a Tacloban itinerary.
Beaches and Islands
Eastern Visayas is surrounded by beautiful tropical scenery.
Visitors can explore beaches, smaller islands, and coastal communities outside Tacloban.
For travelers coming from the United States, this could make a temple trip feel very different from a typical city-based temple vacation.
Filipino Food
Tacloban is also a great place to experience regional Filipino cuisine.
Popular Filipino foods to try include:
- Lechon
- Adobo
- Sinigang
- Pancit
- Lumpia
- Halo-halo
- Kinilaw
The region also has its own local specialties worth seeking out.
Why the Tacloban Temple Matters
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is significant because it represents the continued expansion of temple access in one of the Church's fastest-growing countries.
The Philippines already has a large Latter-day Saint population, and the number of temples throughout the country continues to increase.
For members in Eastern Visayas, the temple will eventually provide a much more convenient place to participate in temple ordinances.
From One Philippine Temple to Eight
The growth of temples in the Philippines is particularly striking.
The Manila Philippines Temple was dedicated in 1984, becoming the country's first temple.
The Cebu City Philippines Temple followed in 2010.
Now, multiple additional temples are under construction or have been announced, including Tacloban.
The Tacloban Temple is therefore part of a much larger story of Church growth across the Philippines.
A Temple Connected to Local History
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the Tacloban Temple is how closely its story connects to the local community.
The temple:
- Is being built in the city where the first local member was baptized.
- Was announced after decades of Church growth.
- Is being constructed in a community that experienced catastrophic destruction from Typhoon Haiyan.
- Broke ground exactly 56 years after George Pamin's baptism.
- Will serve members throughout Eastern Visayas.
That makes this temple more than simply another building on the Church's worldwide temple list.
Current Status
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is currently under construction.
Key milestones include:
- Announcement: October 3, 2021
- Site announced: March 25, 2024
- Rendering released: December 9, 2024
- Groundbreaking: January 18, 2025
- Current status: Under construction
- Open house: Not yet announced
- Dedication: Not yet announced
Final Thoughts
The Tacloban City Philippines Temple is one of the most meaningful temples currently being constructed in the Philippines.
President Russell M. Nelson announced the temple on October 3, 2021, and the Church later selected a beautiful 6.99-acre site along Tacloban Bypass Road.
The temple will contain approximately 21,407 square feet and feature a single attached end spire. An accompanying building will provide an arrival center, patron housing, and a distribution center.
The groundbreaking on January 18, 2025, was especially significant because it occurred exactly 56 years after George Pamin—the first Latter-day Saint in Tacloban—was baptized.
That connection makes the temple's story feel almost circular: one person's baptism marked the beginning of the Church in Tacloban, and decades of growth eventually led to a temple being built in that same community.
The temple also carries the story of Tacloban's resilience. After Typhoon Haiyan devastated the city in 2013, Latter-day Saints and their friends helped rebuild homes and revitalize the area.
Today, construction is underway, with crews installing the foundation and underground utilities and building the structural walls of the ancillary building.
For Latter-day Saint travelers, a future trip to the Tacloban City Philippines Temple could combine temple worship with World War II history, tropical beaches, the San Juanico Bridge, Filipino culture, and the remarkable story of a community that has repeatedly rebuilt itself.
Scott & Riah
Brough Made
broughmade.com
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