FILIPINO tourists can now travel to Taiwan, visa-free, until July 31 as long as their stay will not exceed 14 days, said budget carrier Cebu Pacific.
The airline is also encouraging Filipinos to fly to Taiwan as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) protocols for inbound travelers are eased.
The new protocol no longer requires travelers to present a negative COVID-19 test result and proof of vaccination prior to arrival to Taiwan.
“However, those who test positive before their visit need to defer their flights for at least five days from their test date,” said Cebu Pacific.
The low-cost carrier currently flies the Manila-Taipei-Manila route daily. Taiwan is just a two-hour flight from the Philippines.
As of Dec. 10, 2022, Cebu Pacific increased the frequency of its flight on the Manila-Taipei-Manila route to seven times from the previous three times weekly.
Cebu Pacific said in its latest media briefing that it will be restoring its pre-COVID network and capacity in March.
At present, the carrier is operating 100% of its 34 domestic destinations while ramping up direct flights from Cebu and Davao.
For international flights, the carrier is seeking to restore 100% of its 25 international destinations in March.
As of December, the airline was able to restore 92% of its pre-pandemic system-wide capacity driven by the increase in its domestic and international routes.
In the same month, Cebu Pacific said it flew an average of 355 flights a day, which covers 34 domestic and 19 international destinations. The figure is equivalent to around 64,000 seats offered a day.
Meanwhile, the carrier is planning to have 10 brand new Airbus NEO (new engine option) aircraft delivered this year “to address growing capacity and travel demand.”
Of the 10 aircraft, three are A320neo, three are A321neo and the remaining four are A330neo. — Justine Irish D. Tabile