Philippines' Cebu Pacific bets on tourism boom with $24bn Airbus order

Overhaul of aging Manila airport seen helping draw passengers back to famed beaches

20240827N Cebu Air 2

Cebu Pacific operator Cebu Air is buying up to 152 planes from Airbus, more than double the size of its current fleet. (Photo by Konosuke Urata)

YUKI FUJITA, Nikkei staff writer

MANILA -- The operator of Philippine budget airline Cebu Pacific is spending heavily to tap into a post-pandemic rebound in travel demand, likely to be boosted by the prospect of an overhaul to an airport that had been considered one of the world's worst.

Travelers are keen to visit destinations like the white sand beaches of El Nido in Palawan province, consistently ranked among the world's most beautiful. El Nido is an hour and a half away from Manila by plane on flights operated by AirSwift, part of the Ayala conglomerate.

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