Philippines Domestic Air Transportation

Air fares in the Philippines are cheap. In November 2007 CEBU PACIFIC started an action, giving away 10,000 tickets for 1 (yes one!) peso. They say, that every pinoy should fly at least once in his life. The fares for hops between the islands are from 350 to 3000 peso depending on the

season, on the airline and the route. South East Asian Airlines (SEAIR) are rather expensive, but they deserve small and very small islands. In 2007 SEAIR was the only company to deserve the small island of Camiguin.
But be warned: the fares displayed are only a part of the price you pay.

There are multiple taxes and fees. We recommend to multiply the displayed price by two. And there are always the terminal fees for departing travelers. They are usually modest for domestic terminals, from PHP 20.00 in the province up to PHP 200.00 in Manila and Cebu.

The list shows the situation by August 2009. There are airlines appearing and disappearing. Airports open and close because of weather conditions and repair works. At this moment Caticlan airport is only open for flights of SEAIR. See also Domestic Airports.

There are more flights to certain destinations during high season. There are also destinations which are only deserved during high season. Before you plan your trip, inquire about timetables by clicking on the airline names in the table below.

Make sure you have enough spare time. Weather conditions may change very fast and your flight may be delayed or even canceled. Avoid stress and do not create a too tight schedule.

You are looking for a 2^nd class domestic airport in the Philippines or you even do not know, if you will land on a dirt strip or a concrete runway. You may wonder about the distance between the airport and your resort. We help you. The list below contains all Philippines airports with their codes and their current status. When you click on the airport name, you get a Google map of the region with

the exact airport position marked. When you click on the bubble you get a photo of the airport. Using Google Earth you can measure the distance between the airport and your destination.

Only few domestic airports are equipped with an Instrument Landing System (ILS). Some are equipped with a VOR, a sort of radio beacon.

So, the domestic flights are based on Visual Flight Rules (VFR). This is usually no problem because the Philippine's pilots are among the best in the world. But when there is heavy weather with either very low cloud levels or strong lateral winds, the pilots take no risks and either land on a saver airport or do even return.