Cebu Pacific Labor Day Sale: Php 382

Price: 382 pesos

Destinations: All domestic destinations of Cebu Pacific Air

Selling period: now up to May 2, 2010

Travel period: September 1 to 30, 2010

Note: Quoted fares are one-way and are exclusive of government fees and taxes. Visit Cebu Pacific's website for more details about this seat sale.

Cebu Pacific's 999 Domestic Seat Sale

The Philippines’s low-fare airline pioneer, Cebu Pacific (CEB) announces a Php999 "Go Lite" seat sale for all domestic destinations from April 7-8, 2010, for travel from June 1 to August 31, 2010.

The airline’s 33 domestic destinations include Boracay (Caticlan), Coron (Busuanga), Puerto Princesa (Palawan), Iloilo, Bacolod, Laoag, Tacloban, Cebu, Davao, Pagadian and Cagayan de Oro.

Those with check-in luggage will just add P100 to ‘Go Lite’ fares upon booking.

Cebu Pacific Seat Sale: 70% off on ALL Destinations

It is very obvious that Cebu Pacific Air is teasing Philippine Airlines (PAL) with this domestic and international seat sale in line with PAL's celebration of its 70th anniversary in the business as Asia's first airline.

I am not jumping up and down with this promotion as you could notice that the travel period for this supposed 70% off seat sale is not until the first quarter of 2011. For example, a Manila-Cebu-Manila flight will set you back more or less Php900 while a Manila-Hong Kong-Manila flight will only cost less than Php 3,000... Oh come on CebuPac, you can do better than this!

Cebu Pacific: This is Not a Review

my first Cebu Pacific paper ticket

Many of my friends and readers who stumbled upon this blog already asked me different questions about the country's largest budget airline Cebu Pacific. So here are my thoughts about this airline which I first had the chance to ride going to Iloilo with my family when it is barely a household name in the summer of 1996. Cebu Pacific has its good points and bad points so I am not in any way endorsing or discouraging you to become one of its loyal passenger.

look at the date of this ticket... April 3, 1996

• I am very happy that they retired those Jurassic era DC-9 aircraft and replaced them with brand new Airbus and ATR so the safety concerns of most air travelers are not an issue to me. They are claiming to have the youngest fleet here in the Philippines so you can just relax and enjoy the flight when you ride Cebu Pacific.

• Ticket price WITHOUT a seat sale: If the ticket price is the deciding factor for your airline choice in travelling to a local destination then I strongly encourage everyone who are planning to book a Cebu Pacific flight thru its web site to check first the web sites of Philippine Airlines or Zest Air. In my experience, sometimes Cebu Pacific is even pricier than two airlines. Although I used Cebu Pacific countless of times already I would always prefer Philippine Airlines over it specially if the price difference is insignificant.

• Ticket price WITH a seat sale: Cebu Pacific is famous for their ubiquitous PISO fare and other seat sale which comes in catchy name. PISO fare seat sale is always a day to expect as the price of its domestic and international flights are most often cheaper than riding a taxi from Quezon City to my home in Las Pinas. Some seat sale are not worth it. If it would cost me more than 1,000 pesos for a one-way local trip then I would not make a fuss out of it.

• As for the service, some flights I did enjoy and some were very forgettable. I had my share of 1, 2, 3 and even 8 hour-delayed flights not because of force majeur so I once avoided this airline for that reason alone. For the past months Cebu Pacific did improve their on-time performance as published in its web site so I congratulate them for that achievement. As for Philippine Airlines (PAL), they are advertising in their web site that they have a more than 90% on-time record for their domestic and international flights. I 100% believe that as for the past several flights I had with PAL I didn't experienced even a 1 minute delay. And also, don't expect any complimentary refreshments because it is a budget airline although during the late 1990s they are serving canned soda and junk food made by Universal Robina Corp.

• I just wish that airline would revise the schedule of some of its international flights (Bangkok, Jakarta, Saigon etc.) because most people don't enjoy taking a red-eye flight. Arriving in your destination past midnight can be stressful as you are tired with the things you did for the whole day then you will endure a flight when you supposed to be sound asleep in your comfortable bed.

P499 Seat Sale From Cebu Pacific

Many of my frequent readers visit this blog because they want to know if there is a seat sale/promotion from airlines to their favorite destinations here in the Philippines or even abroad. I will not disappoint you so here is another of my freshest catch:

Cebu Pacific, Asia’s third largest low-cost carrier, is offering seats for as low as PHP499 from Manila to established adventure destinations Naga (Cam Sur) and Kalibo (Boracay), as well as from Davao to Cagayan de Oro.

The PHP499 "Go Lite" fare also extends to flights from Manila to Tuguegarao, Catarman and Calbayog, and Cebu to Iloilo.

Passengers can avail of the one-way PHP499 Go Lite fare to all three adventure destinations. The seat sale is from July 17-19, 2009 and is valid for travel from August 16-September 30, 2009. Passengers with check-in baggage up to 15 kilos will just add P200.

P.S. Thank you very much for those who left their greetings in this blog's comment section in line with the 2nd anniversary of this Ar-wee-der-yet blog last June 18. I never thought that I would last this long because somtethings I am lazy updating this blog. Anyway, I will try my best to keep you all updated with travel news and issues.

111-Peso Seat Sale for 111 Years of Independence

Leading domestic airline, Cebu Pacific, is offering a Php111 all-in "Go Lite" fare for all of its domestic services in celebration of 111th anniversary of Philippine independence. The one-day seat sale is available on June 12 only and is valid for travel from November 1 to 30, 2009.

Go Lite fares are for passengers traveling with no check-in baggage. Passengers with check-in bags just have to add P200 to the fare. The seat sale is all-inclusive and non-refundable.
For flight bookings and inquiries, passengers may log on to Cebu Pacific's website, call reservations at 70-20-888 (Manila) / 230-88-88 (Cebu) or visit their nearest travel agent.

Happy Hour Sale From Cebu Pacific

This is a new and innovative way to induce travel. The Philippines' leading low cost carrier Cebu Pacific Air is introducing the Happy Hour seat sale for all its domestic and international destinations except Japan. The one-way Go Lite fare for the domestic sectors is Php299 all-in and Php599 for the international sectors.

The Happy Hour seat sale is only available from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm & 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm on May 13, 14 & 15 and valid for travel from September 1 to 30, 2009.

Cebu Pacific Sale for June, July & August

It looks like it's not summer anymore because it rains almost everyday since last week. But don't let the rains dampen your plans to explore our country or beyond. Cebu Pacific Air offers what it calls an all-out sale for the rainy season months of June, July and August for as low as 249 pesos one-way fare for certain domestic destinations and as low as 599 pesos for some international destinations.

The seat sale is available from all of the airline hubs in Manila, Cebu, Clark and Davao starting today until April 30 only. Tickets on sale with these promotional prices are valid for travel from June 1 to August 31, 2009.

I haven't checked yet the full details of this sale whether all destinations are included in this promotion, just go to http://www.cebupaficair.com/ to find out for yourself.

I'm Off to Surigao & Butuan... I'll be Back in a Jiffy

Mabua Pebble Beach in Surigao City (photo taken from Annemarie)

This Surigao trip would be just short, it is so short that I have no time to go to Siargao, the surfing capital of the Philippines. I learned to surf when I was in Bali, Indonesia last year and I definitely would love to try it again in Siargao but due to time constraints I will not visit that island even it is only a 3-hr. boat ride away from Surigao City. I would really want to brush up my surfing skills if there's any left after 6 months of its hibernation. Nevertheless, it would be my first time in Surigao City so I am still excited. Thank you Cebu Pacific Air for offering an almost FREE seat last December 24, 2008. A one way ticket during the promo just cost Php 28 nett to any Philippine destination being served by the airline.

Have a great weekend to you all!

my itinerary

Pre-Summer Seat Sale

Cebu Pacific Air and Zest Air have their own versions of seat sales. The images below said it all so I don't need to further explain here in this post. They are both applicable for domestic travel.

Seat Sale from Cebu Pacific Air





Seat Sale from Zest Air

A Perfect Gift for Travelers and Would be Travelers

What a perfect gift for avid and would be avid travelers out there as for the 2nd time in Philippine history, Cebu Pacific Air is giving away ABSOLUTELY FREE tickets for all its DOMESTIC destinations for travel from February 1 to March 18. But I don't know what do they mean by the term "absolutely free" seats as I got mine for 56 pesos roundtrip. Regardless of that, I have no qualms whatsoever (a roundtrip ticket for just over $1). I just don't know whether this is the first of its kind in the world... an airline offering absolutely FREE seats not once but twice already.

For those who want to go shopping in Hong Kong or Bangkok, just pay a little over Php500 to Php 1,000 ($11-$21) for a roundtrip ticket in any of the airline's international destination except Osaka, Japan.

So much for the blabber... just go to the official Cebu Pacific Air website to confirm the authenticity of this very good news.

Merry Christmas to all!

Another of those 500-Peso Seat Sale

For those who want to travel between January 1 to March 18 next year. You should book your tickets now as Cebu Pacific revived its 500-peso ALL-IN seat sale to all its domestic destinations and ZERO fare to all its international destinations.

The sale period starts NOW until November 30, 2008 only. More than 400,000 seats are being allotted for this seat sale. For more information just go to the airline's website.

I Love FREE Tickets!

First of all... Thank you Cebu Pacific!

I don't call myself a Cebu Pacific fan or loyalist eventhough I first rode their jurassic DC-9 aircraft to Iloilo when they are just less than a month old airline flying only few routes from Manila. There are only I think less than 10 passengers then including me, my dad and sister. If given a choice I would still love to fly with full-service carriers.

I'm so happy that I took advantage of the absolutely FREE seats which Cebu Pacific Air offered last weekend. I booked several flights to Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. By the way, I want to congratulate the airline which gave me many free tickets for being the recent No. 1 domestic airline in the Philippines. I mostly booked just 2 days/1 night trips so I don't need to file for a vacation leave and it will also lessen my overhead expenses, anyway I will be just revisting the places that I explored before.

I even booked 7 FREE roundtrip tickets for me and my friends and we will be going to Butuan City in December. My friends hesitated a little but "beggars can't be choosers" so I didn't had a difficult time convincing them to go with me, besides all 7 of us haven't been to Butuan. I'm also planning to make our Bicol trip with my family and our househelp in December to be my gift to all of them. I will save a lot as I will only need to spend for our hotel and transportation as my dad always spend for our food whenever we are on a trip. I don't even want to reveal that our airfare is free so they will think that I am so generous, hahaha!

What I like the most about this FREE tickets are my Cebu, Davao and General Santos trips. I don't need to spend for my hotel stays as I will be just spending a day in those destinations. I already been to those cities before so there's no need to stop and smell the roses anymore. I only plan to buy some souvenir t-shirts and maybe some delicacies which I can make as Christmas gifts to my friends and relatives. I know that souvenir t-shirts are always cheaper than those branded ones and most people like to receive a souvenir shirt rather than those which were bought in a department store.

Because of this history first FREE ticket frenzy I now consider my 2 nights Boracay package for only 4,430 pesos as very expensive. Eventhough it is still cheap as I got them from the PAL Express booth at the 19th Philippine Travel Mart I still consider them a waste because I could have just booked the tickets and got them for free. I even thought of selling them at a discounted price (the lowest Boracay package price that you can get in any airline or travel agency is about 8,000 bucks per person which includes airfare, airport transfers, 2 nights accommodation and daily breakfast).

So now, with all those horror stories which you can read in a number of blogs about the services of Cebu Pacific maybe this time I'll be a little bit tolerant as I am a non-revenue passenger although it is not an excuse to inconvenience me with whatever instances that may arise in my future flights. I know my rights, privileges and responsibilities as a passenger very well. By the mere possession of a ticket, any airlines would be bound to transport me from point A to point B in a safe manner and without delay as the ticket serves as an implied contract between the passenger and the airline. Believe me, I have my share of horror stories after multitude of flights with them since April 1996 but I consider them just part of the joys & pains of travelling so it is not enough for me to boycott them as what other bloggers advocate (I love that I live in a country that advocates free speech!).

Cebu Pacific Will Commence Int'l Flights from Clark

Cebu Pacific (CEB) will start operating international flights out of the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in Clark, Pampanga starting November 8, 2008.

“Airline service will play a pivotal role in economic growth in Clark and CEB is committed to being a catalyst for this growth. Trade and tourism, among other things, generally prosper with increased accessibility,” according to CEO Lance Gokongwei.

CEB will base an Airbus A319 aircraft in Clark and will operate daily flights from Clark to Hong Kong and Singapore; four times weekly to Macau; and three times weekly to Bangkok. CEB will also operate its Cebu-Clark flights daily starting October 1, 2008 using its ATR 72-500 aircraft.

The new international services are introduced with a zero fare. The seat sale will run from September 4 to 10, 2008 and is valid for travel from November 8 to December 17, 2008. Passengers will only pay for the applicable taxes and surcharges, which are nonrefundable. More than 10,000 seats have been allocated for the Clark hub seat sale.

CEB is the only Filipino carrier operating international flights out of Clark and is the only airline offering a direct Clark-Hong Kong and Clark-Bangkok service.

1 Million Free Seats vs. 35,000 Free Seats

It's good to know that Kuala Lumpur-based Air Asia is now again offering 1Million FREE Seats to all its destinations starting this day up to August 31. As what the name of the promotion suggests, you just need to pay for the administrative taxes and fuel surcharge. I am just not ecstatic with the travel dates being offered as you need to wait at least another 8 months before you can travel starting April 1, 2009. But for those who want to plan their vacation this early it would be acceptable. Kuala Lumpur can be a great stopover city when you plan to go to Phuket, Bali, Cambodia or Hanoi (all connecting through Air Asia of course) as there are no direct flights going there from Manila. I availed of this same kind of sale with Air Asia for my Clark-KL-Clark trip a little over two years ago when a roundtrip ticket then just set me back 2,239 pesos all-in (that's the cheapest airfare I got and to think that it is a 3.5-hour flight... during that time my roundtrip fare to Iloilo or Cebu would be more than 3,000 pesos). The roundtrip fare this time if you would like to travel from April 1 to July 31, 2009 is just 3,665 pesos which consists of just taxes and fuel surcharges.

So now, to give justice to my blog post title above... I just want to compare how our very own low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific measly but proudly advertise their ZERO fare sale even if they are just allocating 35,000 seats as compared with 1Million seats with Air Asia. I would be happier if they offer 100,000 seats instead of 35,000 like what they are doing before. I have friends going to Bangkok and Shanghai this November and they are having difficulty in finding ZERO fare seats. How can you expect to find a flight with that scracely 35,000 seats for travel from Sept. 16 to Dec. 17, 2008.

According to wikipedia, Air Asia operates a total of 50 aircraft as compared with Cebu Pacific with only 20 (As of today). So my point is, ideally Cebu Pacific can never really have a 1Million Free Seat Sale with their 20 aircraft just to keep up with its Malaysian counterpart. A ZERO Fare international seat sale of 200,000 or even just 100,000 would be very acceptable but not just 35,000. Cebu Pacific... I know you can do better.

Philippine Airlines vs. Cebu Pacific vs. Air Philippines

The beauty of competition is that the consumers have a choice and normally prices will go down due to the concept of demand & supply. The three leading local airlines Cebu Pacific, Air Philippines and Philippine Airlines are now head-to-head to capture filler seats for the lean season from July up to mid-October as they currently have a seat sale for their domestic destinations.

Cebu Pacific
- as low as Php699 one-way for its Luzon destinations. Available for online purchase.

Air Philippines

- Same banana but they are more "wise" as you will buy a ticket as low as Php1,398 one-way but your return trip is as they say it "Free." Not available for online purchase.

Philippine Airlines

- Same concept as with Air Philippines, just add a few hundreds of pesos. Not available for online purchase.

All the 3 airlines now include all the surcharges and taxes in their advertised promo fare. So now the choice is yours. It will now come to which airline you prefer if you have a brand loyalty to any of them. If you ask me, I will only choose either Cebu Pacific or Philippine Airlines depending on the schedule of their flights to my chosen destination. An advantage of choosing Cebu Pacific is that it lets you to book its promo fare online unlike the other two airlines.

For reservations and if you have questions please call:

Cebu Pacific Air - (02) 702-0888

Air Philippines - (02) 855-9000

Philippine Airlines - (02) 855-8888

This is the First Time! All-In Ticket Price!

I think this is the first time I heard of an airline sale at least here in the Philippines with airfares which include fuel surcharge, insurance, other government fees and the mandatory 12% VAT in its advertised price. I'm glad that this will be a permanent feature of budget carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) as it shifts to an "all-in" pricing format so passengers will immediately know the total amount they need to pay.

The 'all-in' pricing format is introduced with a seat sale across CEB’s domestic network. The promotional offer will run from June 12 to 22, 2008 and is valid for travel on July 1 to October 15, 2008. There are more than half a million seats allocated for this promotion.

'All-in' fares for short sectors such as Manila-Legaspi are at Php699 one-way while a one-way Manila-Cebu flight would cost Php999 and a Manila-Davao sector would cost only Php1,499 during the seat sale. At seat sale levels, these reduction represent savings of up to 56% over today’s rate.

As we all know that the price of petroleum products which includes jet fuel is in its all-time high so these ticket prices are almost a steal! This is the cheapest I think you can get a ticket comparable with the prices in the late 1990's. Based from my experience and if my memory serves me right, the last time a ticket to the Visayas region cost less than 1,000 bucks is way back 20 years ago.

Free 4R Prints from Cebu Pacific & Picatoo

Travel with Cebu Pacific Air and get your prints developed for free!

Travel from Mar 1, 2008 to June 30, 2008 with Cebu Pacific and you can get 20 x 4R prints from Picatoo for free! Just email (info@picatoo.com) a copy of your boarding pass by either scanning it or taking a digital photo of it. Picatoo will email you back a voucher code that you can use to claim your free 20 prints online.

For more info about this promotion just visit http://ceb.picatoo.com/Specials.aspx

500,000 Free Seats to All Destinations!

I'm just back from my Vietnam trip and what a perfect news this is... Cebu Pacific Air is offering 500,000 FREE Seats to all its domestic and international destinations for travel from June 9 to December 31, 2008. We all have until May 18 to buy our tickets. So much for the blabber, just go to http://www.cebupacificair.com now to see what I mean.

It's Raining Sale!!!

For some reasons I think brought about by the deregulation of air travel with the help of competition and demand-and-supply the 3 major Philippines-based air carriers Cebu Pacific (domestic and international), Air Philippines (domestic) and Philippine Airlines (domestic) simultaneously have their own seat promotions. Whew! I'm now very torn when and where to go to take advantage of these seasonal offerings, additionally I'm confused what airline to choose.

I now truly believe that our country is being dominated by Chinese businessmen that the Chinese traits and beliefs in business are being adapted in this country because you will see the lucky number "8" everywhere. There's nothing wrong with that... In fact, I'm thankful because a domestic seat goes as low as 8 pesos and 888 pesos for Asian destinations.

I will no longer mention the different terms and mechanics on how to avail of the low fares being offered by the 3 airlines as I already mentioned them in my previous posts. Just visit their websites and book online to find out more.