Cebu Pacific Dilemma

It’s time every Juan flies pays a lot!

I’m not a fan of the sunshine and beaches. So I have set a trip to Hong Kong for the summer with two of my sisters. This is the season to have fun without spending too much for an airline, right? :p

Our tickets were purchased last February this year because it was offered to us at an affordable/promo rate. In the month of March, we have already booked our 3-night stay at Panda Hotel in Hong Kong and another night at Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel, all confirmed and paid.

Unfortunately, the swine flu virus (H1N1) has already reached Hong Kong. As much as I wanted to go there, I do not want to put our health at risk knowing one of my sisters has a weak immune system. A few days ago, I told them we should and must take the trip but after a long thought, I’ve decided to call our Travel Agent (TA) to rebook our flight to another month. I’m not being paranoid but we never know the odds, right? Although I’d like to admit that I was looking forward to endless shopping (sigh!). Our only fear is being detained and quarantined in Manila for days. We do have an important occasion to attend to on May 17, which is the 1^st year death anniversary of my grandmother. I failed to attend her burial last year so I want to make sure I am there on that day. Aside from that, Blithe has her bar review to attend to. I also learned from a friend who had plans to see Kuala Lumpur, that she was advised by her TA not to leave the country for now because of the feared swine flu virus.

So, my conversation with our Travel Agent went like this:

(Copied from yahoo messenger chat archive)

Pebbles: Hi po! What’s the status of our HK tickets?

TA        : irebook natin ung hkg niyo P16,848 ang penalty ng upgrade natin

Pebbles: Yikes :-S  The penalty is so expensive naman po ata?

TA        : pano yan? if kukuha naman new ticket P19,896 3 pax. Mahal maxado itold u..parang bulili ka ng new ticket. Dapat sure ka na sa (month withheld)..kasi sayang na maxado…

Pebbles: How much if I rebook it on xxxxx?

TA        : ung 16,848…for 3 pax na un,,,mnl-hkg-mnl

Pebbles: Payable on?

TA         : before 12 may..

Pebbles: I see.

Pebbles: If I don’t pay it ma forfeit na yung tickets?

TA         : not naman additional 7k per pax…for no show penalty na..

TA         : bili nlng ng bago…hanap tau new promo.

Pebbles: *cursing silently* Damn Airline!

— end of conversation —

If you visit Cebu Pacific’s website, you will see promo tickets as low as P99! Their marketing strategy is very effective but we all know we never  really pay just P99 Their airfares are cheaper from that of PAL but wait til you see the hidden charges. Not cool.

So whether we rebook or cancel it, we still have to pay a huge amount as penalty. Drats, it’s like buying a whole new set of tickets! It’s absurd. I can take it more lightly if they just impose 50% of the whole amount as penalty and not pay as much as the original cost.

I would HAVE TO rebook or buy new tickets because I’ve been looking forward to taking this trip with my sisters. As for the hotels, they agreed to book us to another month as they have been already paid. So which one sucks? Both! Swine flu and Cebu Pacific. X-(

I just have to enjoy the rest of my summer vacation plan I’ll be in Iloilo for a 4-day trip and 3 days in Cebu but I’ll be taking work with me!

Update (May 4, 2009):

This is what I got from the news on TV:

Due to the H1N1 flu, Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines (PAL) are waiving the rebooking and refund penalties for passengers who wish to have their flights rebooked or canceled.

Both airlines will rebook flights or refund tickets without penalties on international sectors only and within the ticket validity period if presented before 31 May 2009.

Passengers may call the following hot lines:
Cebu Pacific  – 702-0888
Philippine Airlines -  855-7888

Latest Update (May 11, 2009):

I kept contacting my TA to confirm our re booking yet to no avail.  So I decided to call Cebu Pacific instead as I was anxious already. I called the hot line posted above to have our tickets re booked to another month. However, the agent told me that they were not informed of the no penalty for cancellation and rebooking. I insisted that the advisory was aired on the news sometime last week. He replied, “No maam, as per checking, there is no such thing as ‘no penality’ for flights for rebooking and cancellation.”

A few people I know saw that news on TV including my mom and Jewels. The newscaster clearly stated that PAL and Cebu Pacific will not impose  any penalties on rebooking and cancellation of tickets to destinations with confirmed and suspected cases of H1N1 virus. Philippine Airlines though, remain true to their word. Advisory is posted on their website.

I had no choice but have our tickets rebooked which will cost us around Php4,500/pax. Sigh!