How to get to the Lingyin Temple from Hangzhou city center and West Lake area
I recommend hailing a taxi to Lingyin Temple. It is not too far from the city center and the fares are quite reasonable at 20-30 RMB ($3-4) from the downtown area, and ~15 RMB ($2) from the West Lake area
But if you have time, you can also take public buses that are very very cheap at just 3RMB (50 cents US)
From the city center area, the best buses to take are:
Y2 (游2): leaves from the railway station, then goes around the southern part of the West Lake, before going to the final stop at Lingyin Temple. Look for "游2" on the bus
7 (7路): also leaves from the railway station, then goes around the northern part of the West Lake before going to the final stop at Lingyin Temple
Map of all the stops of buses Y2 and 7. Yellow pins are route 7 stops, red pins are Y2 stops, and green pins are stops that both of them make