Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 21) — Thousands of passengers chose to travel early ahead of the holidays but they were not spared from delayed flights and crowded bus terminals.
The influx of travelers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) resulted in flight delays.
Several Cebu Pacific flights at Terminal 3 were delayed for around 45 minutes on Thursday morning ahead of the long Christmas weekend.
Passengers of an Air Asia flight bound for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia waited at the airport for more than two hours.
Queues were long at the terminal gates and check-in counters at around 8 a.m., as expected during the peak travel time.
Passengers taking the bus to their provinces also had to endure long lines at the Araneta Bus Terminal in Quezon City, one of the major bus terminals in Metro Manila.
Operators are expecting 6,000 passengers today.
Terminal operators said air-conditioned buses are all fully-booked until December 30. Last-minute passengers, however, may take ordinary buses.
Passengers are advised to come to the terminal early as the number of trips is also limited.
The local government of Quezon City is deploying more than 600 traffic enforcers to help manage the flow of traffic during the holiday season, according to the city’s Department of Public of Order and Safety.
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) monitored 77,000 passengers at all ports and piers in the country as of Wednesday night.
The PCG has canceled all trips in the ports of Surigao del Sur and Northern Davao Oriental due to bad weather brought by Tropical Storm Vinta. Signal no. 2 has been raised in Surigao del Sur, signal no. 1 in Northern Davao Oriental.
Read more: Tropical Storm Vinta maintains strength as it heads for Surigao del Sur
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CNN Philippines’ Claire Jiao and Camille Abadicio contributed to this report.
