Cebu Pacific Airlines

Then we searched back on their website and found out that there are still direct flights available. When we tried to cancel the flights they rebooked us to, they refused saying that it was a non-refundable ticket and when we tried to rebook our flights to the route that we prefer we now have to pay extra. The least they could have done was rebook our flights to the route we prefer. Also even if the ticket was non-refundable, they should give us at least 24 hours in case we change our mind about it. In the future, NEVER AGAIN WILL I PATRONIZE THIS AIRLINE!

At first they asked for medical certificates for proof of our illness. Even though we were really needing rest and sleep, we had to go out, find a doctor and spend money to get these medical certificates for both my husband and I. June 3 Saturday, I contact them again and sent the required medical documents. They then asked for birth certificates of our kids. Since only 3 of us were sick, they were questioning about the availability of the 4th passenger, who is 17 years old. First of all, he is a minor. Did they expect him to travel to Boracay by himself? Second, they insisted on me submitting birth certificates to prove that they are my kids. I did not travel halfway around the world with my kids’ birth certificates in my purse.

After a lengthy back and forth with them, they finally agreed to take passports. They asked when I want the new flight date. I requested June 12 to 14. We would only be staying in the Philippines until June 18 and did not have a lot of extra dates to work with. It was noted and they said that they will escalate it to the “team” that handles these requests. I asked if this escalation team office is open on the weekend and agent says it is. Asked for when I would hear from Cebu Pac and they said “they cannot give me an exact timeframe since we have to wait for the response from the relevant department.” June 5 Monday– I message them again because I needed to rebook my hotel. I needed confirmation on the exact dates. I also needed the time because I also paid for the airport to hotel transfer. Cebu Pac says “Your previous agent is still waiting for the feedback on the escalation team for the approval of your request.”

June 6 Tuesday – I messaged them AGAIN. According to the agent: “It was already approved and seeking for assistance to rebook my flight. That is why we need to escalate it again to rebook it. Please be advised once the booking was past dated, we can no longer manage it, that is why we need to escalate it for rebooking. No worries, the agents received your preferred date and time for your ticket.” I asked if it was safe to say that I could rebook my hotel dates to those day. The agent said YES. So, I rebooked my hotel date for June 12 to 14.

June 8 Thursday – Still NO update from Cebu Pacific. Live agent says: “As checked, your request was escalated but there is still no feedback from the team. I will make another follow up. I understand but as the booking is already past dated I cannot rebook your flight. I can only assist you with making follow up to the team. Please bear with me. I will send you an email within the day.” I asked where the main office is. The agent assured me that I do NOT need to go to our office. I will make sure that this will be assisted within the day or tomorrow.

June 9 Friday – Still no UPDATE. At this point I am just done with Cebu PAC. Messaged them again and asked for a refund instead. They keep saying it has been escalated to the appropriate team already and still no feedback. This is so aggravating since our life seems to revolve around this timeline. They keep telling me the same thing. I am over it and just want to request for a refund. The previous agent, although he did email me back, emailed me at 3 in the morning saying that the preferred time is not available. However, he did not offer available times. This new live agent for June 9 then offers me available times. I am now very aggravated because this will be escalated again to some escalation team. This agent also promised to email me back in the next hour. She never did.

June 10 Saturday - Live agent now says there are no available flights for the dates I requested. First of all, that is a lie because I tried the website to see if there were flights available and there were. Second, why would you promise me last week that this was approved already and now they are telling me it is now unavailable?!? I asked AGAIN for a refund instead and this is what they said – “Apologies, but I need to forward this first to your previous case handler since this is already escalated.” Unbelievable!

The stress this airline has caused me and my family is unacceptable. While I am on vacation, I wasted my time and energy reaching out to these agents on a daily basis. Not to mention I had to purchase extra internet service with my US Cell company to keep my internet speed high because apparently chatting with the agents was the only way to get a hold of them. (Is that even legal? I have not heard of any business with a policy such as that!) Promising customers that you can rebook flights and then not actually doing it is such a disservice. I wasted money getting those medical certificates, lost money with my airport transfers and will be really surprised if we actually get a refund. I am very frustrated that I spent money on this airline.

All our family and friends that heard about our situation was not surprised at all. They said Cebu Pac has this reputation. Filipinos don’t deserve this kind of customer service. I am very surprised they are still in business. By the way, the “escalation team” had the audacity to email me back on June 14 - the day that we were supposed to go back to Boracay. Incompetence at its finest.

Let's start with their customer service and representatives, or should I say, lack thereof. They were the epitome of unprofessionalism and ineptitude. I arrived early to the airport to find that my flight from Cagayan de oro to Manila was delayed. Despite my flight being scheduled for 10 am, I was informed that the plane would be delayed for a whopping 12 HOURS, which was more than the 8 hours that I usually allow on multi-leg flights to allow for these sorts of things.

I reached out to not one, but two supervisors in the hopes of finding a solution. To my utter dismay, they were utterly useless, telling me they'll get back to me and never doing so. They were unable to aid me in any way to ensure that I didn't miss my flight from Manila to LA. The delay was apparently the result of the plane having mechanical failures, which I could accept had that very same plane, that was supposedly unfit to fly due to mechanical failures, not miraculously departed just two hours later to another destination. I was violently furious.

This flight being delayed made me miss my flight from Manila to LA and from LA to Orlando. This created a cascading effect that cost me upwards of $1000 in order to secure another flight when I finally arrived to Manila, as I had missed my connecting flight. Moreover, I wasted HOURS in the airport, waiting for these flights. I hate this airline so much that it has tarnished my perception of the Philippines as a whole. I can't imagine stepping foot there again and not remembering this experience.

But you know the worst part of it all? When I got to Manila and talked to customer service to book a new flight to America, they already knew, without me even mentioning it, that my previous flight was with Cebu Pacific Airlines. This speaks volumes to the reputation that Cebu Pacific has earned for itself - a reputation of unreliability, mismanagement, and disappointment. I strongly advise anyone considering flying with this airline to think twice and explore other options. God knows I wish I did. Save yourself the frustration, the financial loss, and the wasted time. Trust me, you'll be better off spending a bit more money upfront and just avoiding this airline.

THEN when attempting to take screenshots of my proving to my credit card company that I could now rebook the flight and what the cost was (in order to be fair to be reimbursed for the flight minus cost of the would be flight change), THE AIRLINE REBOOKED MY FLIGHT without my knowing without me EVER CONFIRMING the change. I simply click on the page modify flight, got to the "pay page" and then closed it after taking screenshots. No airline in the world has ever allowed me to change my flight without taking my money and getting a flight confirmation change. These people are absolutely awful in every single way and I am disputing the charge with my credit card company. I will never fly this airline again and I advise anyone who believes they may have any need for flexible airfare or CS issues also avoid them.