How to get to the Philippines

The Philippines is easy to tour. Available transportation in the Philippines makes touring easy and convenient. And because it is strategically located in Southeast Asia, tourists can easily reach it from any part of the world.

Traveling to the Philippines

Located in the middle of the Southeast Asia region, just a bit above the equator, is the Archipelago of the Republic of the Philippines. Being strategically located, reaching the Philippines is possible by air or sea. But sea travel is mostly for cargoes only. With air travel, there are direct and connecting flights to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) or Philippine Airlines (PAL) International Airport (exclusive for PAL flights) in Pasay City. From Pasay, transportation in the Philippines is easy.

Direct Flights

There are direct flights available from some parts of the US to NAIA. For instance, there is a regular flight schedule from San Francisco, California to Manila via Philippine Airlines. Then there are also direct flights from Sidney, Australia to Manila via Qantas or PAL. Direct flights are also available for traveling from anywhere in Asia and the Middle East to the Philippines. In some cases like traveling to Hongkong or Singapore from the Philippines, there is no need for visas. Anyway, the main thing is to get to Manila and it would be easy touring the country from there through available transportation in the Philippines.

Connecting Flights

When coming from Europe and some parts of the US, connecting flights are necessary. Some flights from the US or Europe may have to pass through several other international airports, like those in Thailand, Japan, or Korea, before finally landing in Manila. For instance, from Europe, it may be necessary to start from Italy, then Bangkok, and finally Manila. Or, from Austria, tourists have to pass through Vienna, Bangkok, and then Manila. Or, from Dublin, Ireland they pass through Bahrain and then Manila via Gulf Air. Once in Manila, transportation in the Philippines is no problem.

Other Philippine International Airports

To make travel and touring in the country more convenient, tourists may opt to land on airports in other parts of the Philippines. If they intend to stay in Manila then NAIA is it. If they want to stay somewhere in the north, they may opt for the Clark International Airport. If they plan to tour the Visayas they may opt for the Mactan-Cebu International Airport. If in Mindanao, then the Davao International Airport. Any place in the country is accessible because of the reliable transportation in the Philippines.

Traveling around the Philippines

Whether tourists need to travel on provincial or city highways, in suburbs, city roads, municipalities, barangays, or even subdivision alleys, there is a fitting mode of transportation in the Philippines.

For inter-island travel, especially in the Visayas and Mindanao, transportation in the Philippines are fast hydrofoil vessels, ship liners, and pump boats. For land long distance travel there are plenty of air-con tourists and provincial buses. On land, the preferred vehicle (especially by tourists) are cabs. Main cities in the country like those in Metro Manila, Cebu, and Davao, among others, have air-conditioned cabs. There are also FX taxis which ply a fixed route in several cities.

Then there is the historic and colorful transportation in the Philippine—the jeepneys—that travel almost the same routes that FX taxis take. Jeepneys give us a realistic feel of the air, sights, and sounds of the country. Tricycles are also popular when travelling on roads less frequented by traffic and where paths are too narrow. There are also the “pedicabs” which are sidecars run by manual bikes.

In a sense, almost any type of vehicle is rentable in the Philippines—cars, vans, jeepneys, tricycles, and bikes. With transportation in the Philippines, the sky is the limit.