Airlines prepare for summer revenge travel

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

The country’s largest airlines are seeing a clear runway to recovery in 2022; the post-holiday Omicron surge is dissipating as fast as it appeared and movement curbs are once again being relaxed.

Domestic flights are now loaded with passengers with signs of the pandemic betrayed only by the masked crowds and cabin crew donning medical-grade tunics. Moreover, international options, largely restricted for nearly two years, are gradually reappearing, raising hopes that the worst of the health crisis has passed.

AirAsia Philippines, Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines (PAL) are preparing for this resurgence, adding more flights as the busy summer season approaches.

“Travel is set to rebound this year and we are in full throttle to maintain the momentum,” said Steve Dailisan, spokesperson for AirAsia Philippines.

“We are opening local and international routes to cater to the rising demand for travel as more countries relax border protocols,” he added.

For AirAsia Philippines, Boracay continued to top the list of domestic destinations, followed by Cebu, Tagbilaran (Panglao), Kalibo and Tacloban, rounding out the five most booked trips.

More destinations

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

It plans to open even more destinations, starting with Dumaguete and Roxas in April. The budget carrier will also restart flights to Bali, Indonesia, and Bangkok, Thailand, in March and Incheon, South Korea, in April.

More importantly, passengers are booking flights earlier—a sign of confidence that government efforts to control the pandemic and higher levels of vaccination would enable safer travel in the postpandemic era.

According to AirAsia Philippines, three-month advance bookings have jumped 38 percent versus an 18-percent jump for 15 to 30 day forward bookings.

Cielo Villaluna, spokesperson for PAL, said they were now serving 32 international and 27 domestic destinations. Flight frequencies are being added to match rising demand, she said.

“PAL has yet to restore its prepandemic number of flights, but remains confident about the future,” Villaluna told the Inquirer.

New season

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

Starting Feb. 22, PAL will resume flights from Manila to Siargao via a thrice weekly service. It will also mount two flights per week between Cebu and Siargo on March 2.

The carrier is preparing to add more flights as the summer travel season kicks off in March 1, Villaluna said.

Manila-Zamboanga trips will go up from nine weekly flights to 11 flights while Cebu-Cagayan de Oro will be increased from five weekly flights to seven flights.

PAL is also adding international routes: Manila-Guam from two weekly flights to three flights, Manila-Kuala Lumpur from three weekly flights to seven flights, and Manila-Singapore from five weekly flights to seven flights.

Villaluna said they would also increase Manila-Jakarta trips from three flights per week to four flights while Manila-Bangkok will be upgraded to a daily flight from thrice per week.

Another important development for the sector were the more relaxed quarantine protocols for international arrivals.

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

Based on the guidelines from the COVID-19 Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, fully vaccinated passengers from visa-free countries can enter for business or leisure purposes.

Moreover, they will no longer be required to observe mandatory facility-based quarantine upon arrival if they present a negative RT-PCR result taken 48 hours prior arrival.

“This development will benefit the tourism industry across the Philippines as we welcome vaccinated travelers from around the world to explore our beautiful shores,” Xander Lao, chief commercial officer at Cebu Pacific, said in a statement.

“We laud the Department of Tourism for actively pushing for our country to start accepting foreign tourists again, and we will support this initiative however we can,” he added.

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

Cebu Pacific, which has the largest domestic network spanning 31 destinations, is also restarting more international trips.

It announced the resumption of thrice weekly flights to Bangkok apart from weekly trips to Fukuoka and Jakarta.

Moreover, Cebu Pacific will restart flights from Manila to Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) on March 1 and and Taipei on March 2.

It will also resume daily flights from Manila to Dubai on March 1 after United Arab Emirates authorities lifted capacity restrictions on the route.

READY FOR TAKEOFF The country’s largest airlines are constantly adding more flights to meet rising demand. However, safety protocols will remain in place and will likely stay for the long term. —FILE PHOTOS

“We continue to bank on the rebound of domestic tourism this year while remaining agile in addressing demand for international travel as well. We are encouraged that with these positive indicators, more overseas Foreign workers (OFWS) can also fly back home easily and safely to their families,” Lao said.

Meanwhile, the carriers committed to passenger safety by imposing stringent hygiene protocols for their aircraft and the full vaccination of flight crew.

This also involves social distancing during boarding and deplaning, contactless check ins and daily deep cleaning of planes and facilities.

“Safety measures will stay in place in the long-term. These measures make all the difference in keeping our passengers assured and confident about their safety all throughout their journey,” Villaluna said.