Home » Air travel
Category Archives: Air travel
A new shop at Bohol-Panglao Airport
There’s a nice store at the Bohol-Panglao Airport. It was not yet there last year when last I was in Bohol so it was new to me. At the time, the additional coffee shops were still being fitted out.
A Nomad store greeted us as we cleared the final security check at the airport
They had all kinds of products including food and souvenir items like shirts, magnets and key chains.
OTOP stands for One Town, One Product, which is a program promoted across the country. This encourages various towns to identify, make and promote unique products including food items. Aside from those from Bohol, there are products from other provinces like otap and dried mangoes from Cebu, Napoleones and pinasugbo from Negros, pastel buns from Camiguin, and biscocho and piaya from Iloilo. I usually get frozen longanisa or chorizo at the store.
There were also stuffed toys, travel items and handicrafts
We first saw Nomad stores in Cebu’s Mactan Airport and at Laguindingan Airport (Cagayan De Oro). It is a welcome addition at Panglao though there are many small stores there already and there’s a local souvenir shop at the check-in lobby. The common denominator for these airport stores is that those airports are operated by Aboitiz, which has taken on airport operations and management as a business.
The other stores are still there including the Island Souvenirs shop and this small store selling wonderful muffins and cookies. The latter one I recommend to those who are making some last minute purchases to eat at home or at the airport while waiting for the boarding call.
Other stores at the ground floor of the airport
–
Quick escapes
We decided to take an unplanned trip to one of our happy places. Our daughter loves Panglao and this was our nth trip with her. The weather though appears to be uncooperative.
We are hopeful that tomorrow will be better. At least the forecast is fair weather for both Saturday and Sunday. I’m not sure if we will have an unplanned boat ride. This is a short, quick escape so perhaps we’ll just stay at the resort. Quick trips like this is really for recharging one’s batteries given all the stress especially at work.
–
Article share – Planning for Love, Part 1: The link between urban form and dating
There’s this interesting series on the relationship between urban form and dating. To quote from Part 1:
“Even though dating is considered a lesser concern than other social issues, it’s one of the many ways humans seek love and connection. Love, in whatever form it takes, remains one of the most fundamental parts of being human.
So, if the design of cities shapes just about every form of social life, it seems worth finding out whether cities shape this one too.”
Here is the article:
A brief exploration of dating through history highlights how the spaces in which we live and move shape our social lives and relationships.
Source: Planning for Love, Part 1: The link between urban form and dating
Impacts of the energy crisis on tourism – the transport perspective
The Holy Week holidays practically begin this weekend with an expected exodus of people from Metro Manila and its environs (NCR Plus or Mega Manila depending on which term you prefer). Many people take a vacation during the Holy Week. Most probably go for a homecoming. Taking advantage of the holidays to visit their hometowns and have reunions. We did so for most of Holy Weeks past and in my father’s hometown, they take advantage of the homecomings including those of balikbayans from overseas to have a general homecoming at the town’s High School.
Many others in the past decade have their vacations during the Holy Week. The past years saw especially after the pandemic saw people travel abroad to catch spring time in temperate countries like Japan and Korea, even in Europe. Others prefer to travel in the region as Southeast Asian countries provide interesting destinations including the usual Bangkok, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Singapore. Of course, you can also do local with people flocking to destinations where the beaches are like Bohol, Cebu and Palawan, just to mention some of the choices.
The view from the Shang in Bangkok – we spent the Holy Week there in 2024
Tourism will always involve travel and transportation. The industry will suffer much with the ongoing crisis as fuel prices will eat up a lot of travel budgets as fuel-related expenses will make travel prohibitive to many. On the supply side alone, airlines and maritime companies might have to cancel trips if they cannot sustain fuel supplies. Thus, planes will have to be grounded and ferries/vessels will have to reduce trips to conserve on fuels. That means people cannot travel to tourist destinations and will have to cancel and get refunds (if they can’t reschedule) from their accommodations (hotels, resorts). Less tourists means other businesses suffer, too, including restaurants, cafes and eateries, souvenir shops, and others depended on tourists for incomes. Damay-damay na, as they say.
Let’s hope the crisis will soon be over and this Holy Week, perhaps we can have some reflections and prayers while we take our health and re-energizing breaks.
–
Aerial photos – reclamation projects in Manila Bay
Last week’s travel allowed me to take aerial photos of the reclamation projects in Manila Bay. Here are the photos:
The view as we lifted off from NAIA shows SM’s reclamation project across from the MOA complex.
Our plane then climbed and afforded this close-up of sorts of the reclamation across from the now closed Sofitel Hotel.
Past the largest of the three reclaimed lands is another man-made island.
As our plane turned left, we were able to see all three reclamation projects
A close-up of the reclamation across the MOA complex. Also in the photo is NAIA.
All three reclamations in one photo as we continued to turn towards the south and southeast (towards Bicol).
More aerial photos soon!
–
Back in Bicol – arrival at Naga Airport
I posted about the airports in Daraga/Legazpi City and Davao City as I knew I would be traveling to Naga City and likely by air. That likelihood became certainty as horror stories of 14-16 hour travel by bus became unacceptable for short trips where the travel times by road exceeded our actual stay in the city.
More on Naga City in the next posts!
–
Bicol International Airport Departure
Before I go on another trip, here are photos I took of the Bicol International Airport prior to our departure from Daraga. We were just in time to check in for our flight back to Manila so I wasn’t really able to take as many photos as I usually did in other airports. I did take enough for a clear description of what to expect at this terminal.
Arriving at the airport terminal’s departure area
Check-in counters for Cebu Pacific
The terminal features a spacious check-in area.
The area is more spacious than other, more busy airports like Iloilo and Bacolod
I can imagine that even if there were more flights, queues will not result in the area being too crowded.
Another angle seen from the check-in area
The corridors are also spacious.
The terminal is well lit.
Entrance to the pre-departure lounge of the airport
I already wrote about and shared photos of the pre-departure lounge including the shops and eating options there. I look forward to visiting Legazpi City and its neighboring areas soon and perhaps get a clear photo of Mayon Volcano.
–
Bicol International Airport – first impressions
The Bicol International AirPort project started during the time of then Pres. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The old airport could no longer be expanded or upgraded and was too close and oriented to Mayon Volcano, causing frequent disruptions to flights. The development was similar to Iloilo’s, Bacolod’s and Tagbilaran’s airports that had to be relocated to accommodate airport expansion including future phases of development. The airport was started construction during the time of Pres. PNoy and was completed in the term of Pres. Duterte.
The airport is spacious and orderly. I’m not sure how the situation is when flights are more frequent and when there are international flights but perhaps the terminal can handle these at least over the foreseeable future.
More on the airport soon!
–
Back in Bicol
I have not been to Bicol since before the pandemic in 2020. But that was in Naga City in Camarines Sur to which I have been a few times. I have not been beyond Naga City since my early high school days. That was my last travel to my mother’s hometown in Gubat, Sorsogon. I think that was when we traveled on the occasion of my maternal grandfather’s passing.
We arrived at Legazpi City yesterday via the Bicol International Airport in nearby Daraga. I was looking forward to this trip as I also wanted to see the new airport and, of course, Mayon Volcano. Unfortunately, the weather is bad and so I currently have not seen the volcano even during the plane’s approach to the airport.
More on Bicol and Legazpi in future posts.
What’s new in Panglao Airport? -Part 1
We were in Panglao, Bohol last April and I was disappointed to see there were no shops after entering the pre departure area. Also, there were only 2 kiosks inside. One selling the usual siomai, hotdog and noodles kind of food and the other operated by a popular hotel/resort.
I am glad that this time, there are more shops and eating options after the final security check.
More on these new shops and stalls in the next post.
–
Caught (up) in traffic 