Find cheap Cebu Pacific flights

Cebu Pacific is a large, no-frills low-cost carrier based in the Philippines, offering cheap tickets and inexpensive add-ons for more legroom, luggage and seat selection. Flying modern Airbus planes, space is tight on board and there’s no Wi-Fi or inflight entertainment, but set your expectations right for the price you pay and you’ll typically be quite satisfied.

The Cebu Pacific model

As a low-cost carrier, Cebu Pacific includes very little with its base fares – just one carry-on bag. All the rest is extra, but those extras are reasonably priced compared with many other low-cost carriers.

The main hub is Manila, but Cebu Pacific flies between many cities within the Philippines, as well as to cities across Southeast Asia, China, Korea and Japan, with more destinations further afield. Regional subsidiary Cebgo serves smaller destinations with its fleet of turboprops.

Economy ticket types and fares

Cebu Pacific is an all-economy airline, and when you book you have the choice of 3 types of fare bundles: GO Basic, GO Easy and GO Flexi.

GO Basic is, you guessed it, basic. You get a random seat assigned to you and can bring one carry-on with a maximum weight of 7 kilograms (15.4 pounds) onboard with you. There are no refunds and fairly hefty rebooking fees.

Go Easy, meanwhile, adds a 20-kilogram (44.1-pound) checked bag and standard seat selection. This comes at a slight discount compared with buying these separately.

Go Flexi, at the top of the list, adds ticket flexibility and the ability to convert whatever you’ve paid into a credit, which the airline calls a Travel Fund, for future use if you cancel or rebook.

You can, of course, pay to add a checked bag and seat selection at any time and on any fare. Compared with low-cost carriers in North America and Europe, the upsells are very reasonably priced.

Economy seats on Cebu Pacific

There are three kinds of economy seats on Cebu Pacific: Premium, Standard Plus and Standard. I always pay to book a seat on Cebu Pacific since it’s not very expensive and you don’t want to get stuck in a random middle or at the back of the plane where the seats get even narrower.

For those preferring more space and those traveling in pairs, I often recommend taking advantage of booking an extra seat next to you. It’s inexpensive and makes the experience more comfortable.

You can then use the extra seat’s table for your drinks and can stow your carry-on underneath the seat, too. Make the extra seat booking as if you were adding a person to your party, with the first name as EXTRA and the second name as SEAT, using your own passport details again.

Cebu Pacific seats on the A320 and A321

Cebu Pacific offers 28 to 29 inches of pitch with 17 inches of width on A320 and A321 seats. That’s not a lot of legroom and, like all Cebu Pacific seats, these are barebones in terms of padding. They’re comfortable enough for a short flight but you might want to consider upgrading to a seat with extra legroom for a longer flight, especially if you’re even slightly tall.

Cebu Pacific seats on the A330

Cebu Pacific’s Airbus A330 planes are all-economy. Not only that, but they’re the ultra-high-density layout with seats in a 3 by 3 by 3 configuration. That’s an extra seat in every row compared with the A330 on most other international airlines.

With an astounding 459 passengers on board, I definitely recommend paying extra to choose a seat close to the second pair of doors (around rows 14 through 17) so that you can get on and off relatively quickly.

Beware of picking the center seats in the emergency exit rows of these planes (seats D, E and F). They are also gangways for people to pass between the aisles, so you are likely to be bothered by the activity. Most are also very close to the lavatories, too.

If you really want an emergency exit row seat, the best are seats A, B, C, G, H, and J in row 17 (where there are no lavatories), while seats A, B and C in row 39 don’t have a lavatory immediately in front of them but there is one across the aisle.

Personally, I prefer to sit somewhere around row 8 and purchase the seat next to me, too. If I can manage an aisle seat in the center section (D or F), there’s going to be nobody next to me trying to get out for the whole flight. Plus, from this area, I’m always off the plane relatively quickly.

Cebu Pacific check-in, airport and connecting bags

Cebu Pacific has an app that allows you to check in online, so it’s best to download this and keep it updated on your phone.

You can check in online from 48 hours before your flight, and you should. You’ll get the best choice of seats and the peace of mind of having checked in before you even get to the airport. At the airport, you can use the boarding pass on your phone for domestic flights or have it printed off at a kiosk, which will also print your bag tags.

You’ll need to print your boarding pass from the kiosk or the counter agents, and possibly have your ID checked for international flights. Cebu Pacific is famously very strict about their carry-on limits. Your limit is 7 kilograms (15.4 pounds) total, with one small carry-on bag that is a lot smaller in dimension than usual within the US and Canada, plus one small personal item.

This extra item can be either an extra bag for parents traveling with children, a medical item like a walking stick, a duty-free bag from shopping at the airport (make sure you keep the receipt), an electronic device or food item that can’t be checked in, or a small bag that can fit under the seat.

Cebu is one of those airlines that’s so strict I get out the measuring tape and luggage scales before leaving home. I also know I won’t be able to turn up to the gate with a roller bag, a laptop bag and a duty-free bag. It’s two items total, strict weight and dimension limits, and they’ll absolutely make me pay to check anything else into the baggage hold.

Connecting bags on Cebu Pacific

Unusually for a low-cost carrier, Cebu Pacific will check through your luggage if you have a connecting flight. The exception to this is for international to domestic connections, where you’ll need to reclaim your bags before going through customs.

There are also special arrangements to have connecting luggage for Australia flights re-checked. Ask the airline for details when you check in, and always check the bag tag to make sure you know whether your bag is checked through.

Cebu inflight food, drinks, entertainment and Wi-Fi

If you’re hungry or thirsty onboard, you’ll need to pay. There’s no free anything, not even water, so do consider buying a big bottle of water at the airport or filling up your own reusable bottle after security.

The food and drink selection on Cebu Pacific is inexpensive, but nothing to write home about. As usual, lean towards local flavors rather than international offerings, which tend to be pretty bland. I find the beef adobo to be pretty good. Preorder your meal to be served first and to ensure that what you want is available.

For a snack, the cheese roll is one of my favorites. If you’re in a breakfast mood you might enjoy the chocolate champorado rice porridge. Don’t miss the Philippine mango nectar – it’s divine.

There’s no inflight entertainment or Wi-Fi onboard, so make sure you bring a book and load whatever you want onto your devices. And always come with them fully charged. I also always travel with a portable rechargeable power bank so nothing goes dark on my flight.