Daily Flights to Bantayan – The new Charter-Airline Mix

Daily Flights to Bantayan have recently been introduced by Air Island Tours.

Bantayan is a dream vacation island located at the northern tip of Cebu.  Unfortunately up to now you needed to travel about 4 hours by bus / taxi and an outrigger boat to reach the white beaches of Bantayan. The new offer from Air Island Tours cuts this transfer time down to about 40 minutes. The exact flight duration depends on the aircraft type.

Air Island Tours’ Daily Flights to Bantayan

Direct flights from Cebu to Bantayan aren’t new. 6 years ago one of those one-aircraft companies offered these flights. It’s been the same company that also flew to Camiguin. The service existed only a few months. The big new idea of Air Island Tours is to combine the advantages of both the airlines with their scheduled flights and the air-charter companies with their flexibility. Depending on the daily demand for seats, Air Island Tours can dispatch aircraft from the 3 passenger Cessna 172 up to the 8 passenger Piper PA-31.

But charter is expensive, isn’t it?

Let’s say that it isn’t cheap. With a taxi and an outrigger boat or a ferry you pay at least 1300 Pesos plus the ferry ticket of 170 Pesos. Most honest taxi drivers will ask at least 3000 Pesos, because they also have to head back to Cebu City. Airport taxis will not ride below 6000 Pesos. The ferries from Island Shipping and Super Shuttle Ferries cost 170 Pesos per person plus terminal fees, of course.
Bus travel is even cheaper, but much more complicated. The bus trip is composed by a taxi trip from the airport to the north bus terminal. Then a bus trip to Hagnaya port and finally the ferry. Costs are between 350 and 450 Pesos. This is cheap but will sweat and carry your luggage under the burning sun.
The current Promo fare from Air Island Tours is 4,999 Pesos. If I hadn’t to work, I’d immediately book flights for next weekend. Weather is currently perfect in the southern central Visayas.

Don’t forget your Sunglasses

The beaches of Bantayan are white, really white. You may get snow-blind in the Philippines. That’s not a joke, even if we do not have snow. The blue sky, the white sand and the turquoise sea focus the UV rays in your eyes. Be careful. We also recommend not to go to the beaches around noon time.  And if you are snorkeling, wear a t-shirt. And now enjoy your stay.

More information

We recommend to read  TripAdvisor. The local website www.bantayanisland.org hasn’t been updated for many years – but some old stones surely had not been moved.

Air Island Tours offers much more. In the last years they became the “Island Hopping Company” of the southern Visayas. With the new daily flights between Cebu, Dumaguete and Sipalay (both Negros), Siquijor, Tagbilaran (Bohol), Bantayan and Dipolog they are creating a real local flight network.

Living at the southern end of the Visayas – in Camiguin – I hope they soon will also offer flights to our wonderful little island. It would be much easier for us to meet our friends on the surrounding islands or go shopping in Tagbilaran or Cebu.

[GARD]

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