Highlights
- Plane tickets have been expensive since the borders opened to some last October. This will be true until March.
- Seasonality and previous travel tips are no longer applicable due to the pandemic.
- April is predicted to see fares decreasing once more carriers restart operations.
'May PERAan' is SBS Filipino's podcast series which features financial experts seeking to answer the most common questions about money and finances.
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"A good number of people are booking now because borders are opened. The purpose of this reopening is to reunify family and friends," travel agent Chris Centeno shares.
Chris admits that this reunification may come at a hefty price though.
The reasons for the expense
"There's no denying it - plane tickets at the moment are quite expensive. This has been true since the border opened to some last October and will be true until March," Chris shares.
He says that there are two reasons for the expense: (1) Carriers that fly in and out of Australia follow government guidelines and need to be approved for flight; (2) There are still restrictions within aircrafts when it comes to numbers, resulting in passengers shouldering costs.
Until when will tickets be exorbitant?
While the trend seems more likely to continue until March, Chris says there is reason to hope that costs will go down.
"From the 10th of February, the Philippines opened its international borders to foreigners. When that happened, airlines like Singpore Airlines and Philippine Airlines opened more seats. That being said, the scenario now is totally different to what it was three months ago.
"We are seeing movement; however, what I can tell you is that effective April onwards, things will be different. We hope that more airlines will participate in the reopening program. With more supply and competition, costs will go down."
Deferrals
While it is difficult to be definite on when costs will go down, what Chris suggests is to defer travels if possible.
"Fares are hard to predict. Before the pandemic, the earlier you book your ticket, the better. It’s not like that now.
"If you can defer your trip to April or after April, fares will be more likely economical than they are now."
