PALs new Seat Sale

PAL launches $98 promo for intn’l routes

abs-cbnNEWS.com | 05/30/2009 4:55 PM

Philippine Airlines is launching its “Way to Go” promo on Monday, June 1, by offering round-trip, economy fares for 20 trans-Pacific and regional routes starting at US$98. The promo fare, which excludes government taxes, will be available for sale from June 1 to 5, 2009. The travel period is September 1 to Dec. 25, 2009 for five trans-Pacific destinations (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Honolulu and Vancouver) and July 1 to Nov. 30, 2009 for 12 regional destinations, including Australia.

“During these difficult times, we are offering our loyal passengers the opportunity to travel at much lower prices, without sacrificing quality of service, safety and comfort,” said PAL President Jaime J. Bautista said in a statement. The promo covers Manila outbound tickets, as well as Narita-bound flights from Cebu. It requires that return flights should be dated no more than 21 days after departure for tickets to the US , Canada and Australia .

For other destinations, trip must be completed within eight days. The regional points covered by the promo include Hong Kong, Macau, Taipei, Bangkok, Singapore, Saigon, Jakarta, Shanghai, Osaka, Beijing, Fukuoka, Nagoya, as well as Sydney and Melbourne in Australia. Customers can avail of the promo through PAL’s web site, philippineairlines.com, at any PAL ticket office or accredited travel agents. Tickets must be purchased within 24 hours after getting a confirmed booking, but not later than June 5, 2009.

The country’s first and only legacy airline plying regional and international routes has previously faced a barrage of customer complaints after its internet-based ticketing system bogged down during a recent launch of a similar fare promo. But company officials, in a statement, explained that the system glitches have been solved. PAL’s seat sales mirrors that of a competitor, Cebu Pacific, which has been aggressively offering fare-only promos for international routes and all-in promos for domestic destinations via a no-frills, low-cost business model.