I visited Cebu in mid-January 2009 just before the Festival. I will not comment on the city but the travel/airport experience.
My trip to Cebu covered several other Asian cities. The least positive part of my entire trip was Manila. Avoid Manila coming and going to Cebu and you will be a happier visitor. Period. There is a $750 PHP terminal fee leaving Manila, lots of airport security, and a slightly less than intuitive process when transferring in Manila.
Also, make sure you have a paper ticket or boarding pass prior to arriving to the Cebu airport. The airport security will not let you enter the airline counter area unless you can show you belong in there. I casually thought I would just go in (as an e-ticket traveler) and all would be fine. They would not let me in so I had to wait for the outside airline ticket office to open. Fortunately they opened at 4 a.m., gave me proof, and that got me into the airline counter area where I actually got my boarding pass before my flight. I do not know if Philippine Air allows you to print your boarding pass ahead of schedule. If they do that would work.
The terminal fee leaving Cebu is $200 or $250 PHP. Sorry I do not remember.
I liked Cebu, but thought these little tidbits might help the next person.
Make Sure You Have a Ticket to Get to the Airline Counter
Thankyou for letting us know of your experiences.
Unfortunately, you must have struck an inexperienced guard.
I have been using the Mactan Cebu airport since 1994 and using e-tickets at the Mactan Cebu airport since about 2001.
I have never had a problem with an e-ticket at the Mactan Cebu airtport.
In regard to terminal fees, they are the same in Manila and Cebu
It is P750 for an international flight and P200 for a domestic flight. You would have paid P200 to fly to Manila then P750 to leave the Philippines from Manila. If your international flight departed from Mactan Cebu, you still would have paid P750.
However, I absolutely agree, avoid Manila if you can!!!!
Regards; Jim
No comments:
Post a Comment