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Tariq1983
I am sitting here right now at JFK. We start boarding in 30 mins. We fly to Germany then Singapore then finally ill touch down in Manila Saturday at 1pm.


Im wracking my brain trying to figure out how the hell did i get into this lmao
coach53
From USA to Phliippines through Europe???!!!    :)
Enzyte Bob
@coach53 . . . . From USA to Phliippines through Europe?
***************************************************************
It's simple Coach, an astute business man like you should have figured it out. The shortest distance measured in dollars between two point, not miles.
FilAmericanMom
I am sitting here right now at JFK. We start boarding in 30 mins. We fly to Germany then Singapore then finally ill touch down in Manila Saturday at 1pm.


Im wracking my brain trying to figure out how the hell did i get into this lmao
- @Tariq1983

I'm excited for you. I hope you have a safe flight.

My husband and I "got into this" because we were tired of our life in the US, and we wondered what it would be like if we moved to the Philippines. Rather than spending our lives thinking about the "what-if", we decided to move here and tried living here.

I kept a journal, btw, for the first year of our move here.  As I read through it after so many years living here, the fears (safety, financial, health, etc.) and complaints (the heat, traffic, noise, etc.) we had then now feel foreign. We have adapted and adjusted. And we are glad we moved here.

Good luck to you.
Lotus Eater
@coach53 . . . . From USA to Phliippines through Europe?
***************************************************************
It's simple Coach, an astute business man like you should have figured it out. The shortest distance measured in dollars between two point, not miles.
- @Enzyte Bob



Yes indeed. Especially given that Coach is a well travelled, urbane individual who has made countless visits to the Philippines.
coach53
@coach53 . . . . From USA to Phliippines through Europe?
***************************************************************
It's simple Coach, an astute business man like you should have figured it out. The shortest distance measured in dollars between two point, not miles.
- @Enzyte Bob

Businessmen as I count TIME too   :)   related to dollars saved. 
mugteck
JFK to Manila was a 16 hour nonstop flight for $1,440 in April.
Lotus Eater
Well researched. That’s an excellent deal especially as it’s non stop. May I enquire which airline?
Parvaze
I've been looking into flights from LA to Manilla. The most direct flights (obviously) are on Philippines airlines, you can to Clark on Qatar airways but that goes via Doha.
Parvaze
So time and cost wise direct may be better, but if optimizing miles then more circuitous routes are much better 😁
Lotus Eater
Yes a useful observation regarding air miles but look out for the devil in the detail. Not all code share flights qualify.
mugteck
Well researched. That’s an excellent deal especially as it’s non stop. May I enquire which airline?
- @Lotus Eater                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Philippine Airlines  one way ticket
Lotus Eater
I've been looking into flights from LA to Manilla. The most direct flights (obviously) are on Philippines airlines, you can to Clark on Qatar airways but that goes via Doha.
- @Parvaze

It’s a ‘swings and roundabouts’ issue to some extent. Pros and cons. I’ve flown both airlines and Qatar is a far superior carrier in terms of in flight service and quality of aircraft . It has a bigger baggage allowance than Philippine Airlines albeit with the stopover in Qatar. That said the new airport there is a delight with excellent duty free shopping.
Parvaze

@Lotus Eater the only reason I'm considering Qatar is for the additional frequent flyer miles on AA. I can go Japan Air to Manilla via Tokyo to get the miles but everyone raves about Qatar business class and the lounge in Doha (with showers etc) so although a much longer flight might be a much better flying experience

Lotus Eater
Well researched. That’s an excellent deal especially as it’s non stop. May I enquire which airline?
- @Lotus Eater                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Philippine Airlines  one way ticket
- @mugteck

As I recall the OP has no plans to return to the States at least in the near future but surely it would make sense to book a return for say 6 months as a fall back given that usually a return costs the same as a one way. Moreover most tickets allow you to change the return date - the cost dependant on the ticket type .

Of course he will be going in on a 31 day tourist visa so would still need to purchase the ‘throw away’ ticket within that timeframe to get through immigration?
Lotus Eater
@Parvaze

I’d go with Qatar. Japan Airlines is not the airline it was and has been overtaken by the excellent private sector ANA.

I understand Qatar throw in a freebie head and shoulders massage in the business class lounge:)

The benefit of having a reviving refreshing shower on a stopover cannot be overstated
Parvaze

@Lotus Eater Yeah, it's the shower/decent food option in the business lounge in Doha that keeps me coming back to thinking Qatar air is the way to go. Thanks for your input Lotus 👍

Moon Dog
From USA to Phliippines through Europe???!!!    smile.png
- @coach53

My dog traveled a similar route. From the east coast it's not that much difference.
Enzyte Bob
When I came to the Philippines I chose the nonstop PAL midnight flight from LAX to Manila. I had a one way rental car from Las Vegas to LAX for three of us with six 50 lbs of luggage.

We chose this flight because:

(1) Non stop boarding at midnight got us to Manila during the day.
(2) Wanting the travel time as short as possible.
(3) Wanting non stop as not wanting to take the chance of missing a connection, lost luggage or possibility of a flight being rescheduled or cancelled.
(4) As my wife and I are Senior Seniors, we wanted to eliminate any excess walking.
pnwcyclist
I can't take the extra long flights in coach. I get restless leg syndrome and it drives me nuts to sit that long. 10 hours is my absolute max. So I generally fly Delta or Hawaiian from the West Coast to Honolulu,  stay overnight, and then catch the PAL flight from HNL to MNL and onto Cebu. Premium Economy is available on that flight, and very comfortable with large seats and excellent service. This way I break the flights up into 8 hours first day, 11-12 hours the second day, including the hop to Cebu.  I would take the longer flight from LAX directly but they don't have Prem Economy and Bus Class costs almost $5K right now. I'm heading over next week via the Honolulu route.
pnwcyclist
Good luck Tariq. I think it's normal to question ourselves a little bit when doing things that are somewhat out of the mainstream, or our normal routine. At the minimum, it will be a great adventure that will change your life.
prs948
I have had 4 flights already cancelled or the routes changed. Very frustrating as Im hoping to leave in 12 days for manila. Still waiting for4 a flight adjustment through ANA
pnwcyclist
I find Philippine Airlines easier when flying to the Philippines.  Many reasons - flight schedules and reliability, shared terminals in Manila (between Int'l and Domestic) and their premium economy service. I had lots of problems the first few times I went over using multiple carriers. Having said that, they are not usually the cheapest option.
Wellsfry

@pnwcyclist agree... I use them... and they are rarely cheaper than Cebu Pacific...

manwonder
Talking about Cebu Pacific latest insider info :

It may be of some interest to some expats
that the 1st flight out direct fm Cebu to other international destinations begin on 3rd July'2022 starting with direct flights firstly to S.Korea (Incheon) & hopefully that will be followed by other foreign destinations soonafter/..so NO more the need to fly to Manila for all international flights like it has been for the last few years with Cebu Pacific (my airline of choice)

:)



Lotus Eater
Thanks for that update on Cebu Pacific Manwonder. I use this airline regularly when I'm in Asia on business specifically the Manila - Jakarta route. They usually have about 4 flights a week but currently just the one on Monday which does not ideally suit my schedule.

Perhaps your 'insider' contact can elucidate on when the full schedule will be back to normal?
Cherryann01
@prs948 Philippine Airlines changed my flight times from Cebu to HCMC  via Manila twice resulting in a miserable few hours spent in a cockroach infested Pasay hotel. I took one look at terminal 2’s sleeping options and thought no way. I also had to change my accommodation in HCMC from 5 nights to 4.

One more thing the Philippine Airline staff have no idea about covid entry regulations for Vietnam and downloaded an app for me they thought was needed. It was not needed. Anyway I guess they thought they were doing the right thing and are helpful so I can not blame them. The flight however was late departing no doubt because of this.
Lotus Eater
@Cherryann01

That's an unfortunate experience you have had. Philippine Airlines has lost its way over the years and even went bankrupt during covid. The company is in a mess. But all is not lost financially.

First port of call would be your travel insurance but if they fob you off and you booked the flight (hotel in HCMC) with a credit card and either cost over £100 you can claim from the card company under the UK 1974 Consumer Credit Act Section 75. The hotel claim would come under consequential loss and the flight delay necessitating a hotel stay in Manila. Use the term 'not fit for purpose' for the coackroach infested hotel in Pasay notwithstanding that the Airline may have thrown in a massage treatment from a beautiful Filipina to keep you sweet :). If you have pics (of the cockroaches not the masseuse) then even better.

Of course you can always try claiming off Philippine Airlines first and if they don't play ball ask them if they have an ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) process through a third party which they probably won't. The credit card company will ask you to try this anyway and endeavour to weasle out of the claim but keep at them and quote the above legislation and that your provider (Philippine Airlines) is in breach of contract. By the way I'm not a lawyer :) Good luck!
Cherryann01
Thank you for the advise but to be honest this experience did not really mean I incurred extra costs. I had free cancellation cover for the hotel I had booked in HCMC via Agoda or Booking.com, can’t remember which although I still have the email. So I cancelled the five nights booked in HCMC and booked four in a different hotel, the saving compensating me for the price of the cockroach infested hotel in Pasay. It was just the inconvenience of it all plus the first day in HCMC I just felt like sleeping
Morgacj2004
I am flying LAX - MNL via HND JAL F Class. Was lucky to get a 75k OW mileage tic using AS miles. I booked in the late winter. Starting off in ANC prem Econ to LAX as no domestic award availability when I booked Intl portion
FilAmericanMom
@Tariq1983,

Welcome to the Philippines! Hope you enjoy your stay.

I watched your recent videos. Be careful and patient when crossing the street. Even after 14 years of being here in the Philippines, I still am a bit dense and nervous when it comes to crossing the street, which is why I don't cross a street alone. I wait for other people to cross with me. 

Vehicles making a right at an intersection do not stop as there is not stop sign.  Also, some drivers do a counter flow to pass stopped vehicles, which is dangerous if the reason why the vehicles stopped was to let a pedestrian cross the street.  Sometimes motorcycle drivers would drive on the sidewalk especially when there's heavy traffic. So be very mindful when crossing the street or getting off a car or other vehicles.

An advice on videos: If you're planning to use youtube as your platform, I think it would be best to use a 16:9 aspect ratio when shooting videos. It fits just right on youtube's screen. For me, it's more versatile compared to other aspect ratios. BTW, which video editing app / software do you use?
pnwcyclist
Tariq, how are you doing?
Lotus Eater
Yes likewise. Its all gone very quiet 1f641.svg
pnwcyclist
I looked up his YouTube channel, he has posted a couple short videos.

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