CEBU Pacific has been given the go-ahead to serve its first longhaul destination, Rome, and the travel trade hopes its transition from a budget to hybrid carrier will lure the much-coveted European tourists into the Philippines.
Said Gigi Barcia, general manager, TravelSerivces: “Initially, a majority of the passengers will be overseas Filipino workers, but eventually if its performance is good, it will pick up for foreign tourists as well.”
Carmelo Arcilla, executive director of Philippine Civil Aeronautics Board, told TTG Asia e-Daily today: “Yes, Cebu Pacific is given the authority to fly to Rome, subject to compliance with all requirements.”
The board had originally intended to decide at its February 23 board meeting whether to grant the airline’s application to take seven of the 14 weekly flights to Italy that were given to, but not being used, by Philippine Airlines (PAL).
PAL’s new management had earlier said it will hold plans to fly to Rome and Milan. PAL’s Manila-London service, which started in November 2013, is currently the only direct flight to Europe from Manila.
Kristine Mariano, sales and marketing supervisor, Amkor Travel and Tours, said the advantage of having a longhaul LCC is the reasonable airfares, especially as “not all European foreigners can afford to travel longhaul to the Philippines”.
Eugene Tamesis, director of sales and marketing, Fairmont Makati and Raffles Makati, agreed: “Even if this is a budget airline connection, it still is a direct flight which can only benefit the Philippines as a destination, and pave the way for other airlines to follow, depending on the success of Cebu Pacific.
“With very limited direct flights to and from Europe, this will open up new potential source markets for the Philippines.”
He added that the service will be a good springboard from Europe to Manila, as observed through Cebu Pacific’s connectivity in Asia that made it easier for European travellers to visit the Philippine islands.
However, industry sources also hope that Cebu Pacific will not be overbooked, as it did during the high Christmas season last year, causing flight delays and cancellations that forced the government to slap the carrier with a 52 million pesos (US$1.2 million) penalty.
Also on their wishlist is that transit passengers to Rome will be allowed to embark even for a few hours without a transit visa. Cebu Pacific had encountered problems with its new Australian flight because the Philippines has no internal agreement with Australia that allows transit passengers at Sydney’s airport.
This story was updated on February 10, 2015 upon our receipt of the confirmation that Cebu Pacific has indeed been granted permission to fly to Rome.
