MANILA - Airlines in the Philippines are offering promotional seats for as low as P1 in a bid to reinvigorate domestic travel and tourism which suffered due to the coronavirus pandemic.

AIRASIA PHILIPPINES

AirAsia launched a 3:3 Summer sale "to stimulate" tourism ahead of the summer peak travel period.

Travelers can book flights to various destinations from Manila, Clark and Cebu for as low as P233 pesos, AirAsia said. Booking period is from March 1 to 7 for the travel period between March 1 to July 31, 2021, it added.

AirAsia earlier offered UNLI flight pass for unlimited flights to all domestic destinations until Oct. 30, 2021.

Enjoy flights from as low as P93 one way base fare with our 3.3 SUMMER SALE! Fly to your favorite island destinations for less with airasia! BOOK NOW at https://t.co/AIvdmOjnqb pic.twitter.com/h3gr9SmXRl

— airasiafilipino (@AirAsiaFilipino) March 2, 2021

Promotional seat sale has disrupted the travel and tourism industry even before the pandemic and will remain as part of the carrier's "DNA," AirAsia spokesperson Steve Dailisan told ABS-CBN News.

Seat sales rose 107 percent in the last 2 months, AirAsia said.

The increase “is a positive indication that Filipinos are ready to travel again,” Dailisan said.

“We believe that, as we see the end of the pandemic, Filipinos would love to reclaim their halted travel plans...Our goal is to sustain the momentum and keep all our guests excited by offering affordable fares, coupled with world class service,” he said.

The growing trend is likely to continue in the coming months as the government eases restrictions for domestic travel, he added.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES

The country’s flag carrier has an on-going P80 one way base fare for domestic flights and $80 roundtrip seat sale for international flights to celebrate its 80th anniversary.

Booking for the 80-80 fares is from March 1 to March 7, with the travel period beginning March 1 for domestic and March 16 onwards for international flights, PAL said.

Philippine Airlines said it also has unlimited rebooking for flights.

CEBU PACIFIC

For its 25th year, Cebu Pacific offered a P25 seat sale from March 1 to 31 for the travel period between March 1 to Dec. 31 this year, the country’s largest carrier said.

Birthday SALE-bration ng CEB at may all-out 3-DAY PISO SALE blowout! Book from Mar 3 to 5 para ang piso mo, maka-SKRRT to ALL local & international destinations on sale! https://t.co/wkxl1EkMfT

You may also use your Travel Fund. Payment centers available on Mar 4-5. pic.twitter.com/2LT1n0kFKU

— Cebu Pacific Air (@CebuPacificAir) March 2, 2021

On Wednesday it launched another promo, this time offering seats for as low as P1 to all domestic and international destinations.

Piso fares are available from March 3 to 5 for travel between June 1 to Dec. 31, Cebu Pacific said.

More deals will be rolled out in March to "stimulate" air travel, Cebu Pacific vice president for Marketing and Customer Experience Candice Iyog said in a virtual briefing.

"All these efforts are to stimulate air travel. We believe the market is ready," Iyog said.

Cebu Pacific earlier said it has “permanently removed” change fees so passengers can rebook as many times as they need.

"This is geared towards building confidence in air travel and the effort to restore and rebuild our network so people can fly again," Iyog said.

• Cebu Pacific rolls out PISO fare to mark 25th anniversary
• Unlimited rebooking? Cebu Pacific removes change fee 'permanently'

The country's coronavirus task force earlier eased restrictions for domestic travel.

Under the measure, COVID-19 testing and quarantine are no longer mandatory for local travelers.

Mobility is critical to the gradual economic recovery. The Philippine economy suffered the worst contraction since World War 2 in 2020, shrinking by 9.5 percent.

RELATED VIDEO:

Watch more in iWantv or TFC.tv