Cebu Pacific is set to end the year on an encouraging note, as recent developments have paved the way for greater recovery in the travel and aviation sectors. The steadily rising number of fully vaccinated Filipinos and the encouraging downward trend of new COVID cases have led to the much anticipated easing of quarantine restrictions across many parts of the country. This, in turn, has brought about an uptick in travel demand.
In response to these events, the airline increased the frequency of flights to its most popular destinations in October. It now flies six times a week to Siargao, five times daily to Boracay, and 10 times a week to Bohol.
“We believe reopening domestic travel and the promotion of responsible travel is critical to rebuilding the trust and travel confidence in the industry,” said Candice Iyog, vice president for Marketing and Customer Experience at Cebu Pacific.
Also helping boost travel demand was the decision of several LGUs nationwide to drop the requirement for travelers to undergo swab tests. As of October 25, 2021, Cebu Pacific now flies to 14 cities or provinces that have waived this travel restriction. These include Bacolod, Bohol, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, the province of Cebu, Cebu City, Guimaras, Iloilo, Maguindanao, Mandaue City, Negros Occidental, Pagadian, Roxas City, and Tacloban.
Bohol, Cebu City, and Roxas City are the most recent destinations that no longer require RT-PCR or antigen testing.
Effective October 25, fully vaccinated travelers bound for Bohol may present a vaccination certificate from the website vaxcert.doh.gov.ph instead of a negative RT-PCR test result. However, they must also present a government-issued ID and approved travel coordination permits from S-PaSS (s-pass.ph).
Meanwhile, Cebu City announced that it will accept fully vaccinated persons who present their vaccination card with a QR code along with a valid ID bearing their picture and signature. If their vaccination card does not have a QR Code, they must present an official vaccination certificate issued by the local health officer of the LGU concerned, or a vaccination certification issued by the Department of Health-Bureau of Quarantine.
Roxas City also accepts fully vaccinated individuals with valid or verified vaccination certificates and approved travel coordination permits from S-PaSS.
While Bicol is not yet on the list of provinces that have relaxed their documentation requirements, passengers flying to this destination stand to benefit from CEB's transferring of operations to the new Bicol International Airport. Inaugurated on October 7, the new airport in Albay can handle up to two million passengers per year. Cebu Pacific has had flights to and from Legazpi City since 2006, flying about 4.5 million passengers over the past 15 years. Cebu Pacific currently flies 11 times weekly between Manila and Legazpi.
“We have consistently maintained our presence at the Bicol region and we remain committed to continue supporting its growth. The new airport is a welcome development as this will enable us to increase passenger and cargo flights once demand picks up, and will consequently contribute to the region's economic recovery,” said Xander Lao, chief commercial officer of Cebu Pacific.
Apart from increasing the frequency of flights and number of local destinations, the airline has also ramped up its international operations as the year draws to a close. On September 30, CEB resumed its daily flights to Dubai. For Japan, it restarted the twice weekly flights to Nagoya on October 2, followed by Osaka on October 4. Flights to Kuala Lumpur also resumed on October 4. The airline is set to resume flights to Fukuoka, Japan, on December 1.
Despite the progress made in the travel and aviation industries’ recovery, the airline is aware that a degree of uncertainty remains until the pandemic ceases to exist. As such, CEB continues to offer the most flexible options with unlimited rebooking available for all passengers, following the permanent removal of change fees in March 2021.
“We also know that the situation continues to be fluid, that is why we make it a priority to always make travel convenient for everyJuan, on top of providing the much-needed flexibility during this time,” said Iyog.
The increased need for flexibility is just one aspect of how traveling has changed in the new normal. To stay in tune with evolving passenger needs, CEB has employed new technologies, products, and services to become an industry leader in digital transformation, thereby revolutionizing the customer experience and booking behavior.
Now that digital booking and payment are the norm, CEB enhanced its “Manage Booking” portal to allow passengers to correct and update information as needed, such as misspelled names, birthdates, and addresses. The portal also manages group bookings easily, and allows passengers with updated contact information to receive notifications directly via email or SMS.
The airline has also improved its online check-in experience with self-service bag-tagging kiosks at the NAIA Terminal 3 to further lessen physical interaction between passengers and staff, thus making the journey even safer and more contactless.
Besides the regular seat sales, CEB offers add-on products and related services to make everyJuan’s experience convenient, such as inflight meals, seat selection, additional baggage allowance, insurance, hotel partners, and transfers. These can all be easily added online via the CEB website or mobile app.
The airline also improved its chatbot, Charlie, who is now able to instantly address the more common concerns of guests flying with CEB, such as their flight schedules and status, the check-in process, itinerary and boarding pass retrieval. Charlie can lead them toward the right steps to address their concerns, without having to speak with an actual agent.
To help safeguard the health of its crew and passengers in this new era of travel, CEB has also made significant improvements to its safety and sanitation procedures. All its aircraft undergo stringent sanitation and disinfection, in accordance with global aviation standards, before and after each flight.
To date, about 99% of CEB’s flying pilots and cabin crew are already vaccinated, and it expects to complete employee inoculation by the end of October.
The airline also strives to ensure that its passengers have access to the most affordable RT-PCR tests for the destinations that still require them, offering exclusive rates as low as PHP 2,500 for RT-PCR tests and PHP 675 for the antigen test.
Passengers are encouraged to travel responsibly and ensure their requirements are complete prior to proceeding to the airport. Guests may refer to the list of travel requirements per destination through bit.ly/CEBTravel-Docs.
