1

Yes there is Qatar airways from Mactan International Airport ,Cebu ..but you have to check it two months before in there website.

2

Well done you've found the cheapest... and you won't get much close to that price... The next cheapest is probably Kuwait Airlines which I've not used and after that Brunei which I have (but not again)... but here also you're into the long-stopover on one of the legs.. KLM have often reasonable deals, and fly direct, but are always heavily booked with all the Filipina nurses in the UK.. next up are the Middle Eastern Airlines... Emirates, Etihad, Qatar, Saudi Arabian, and there are probably others... here you'll do well to get anything less than £600 - and you can pay a lot more...

The next option is to fly to the big hubs in the area - HKG and BKK which are usually cheeaper £-per-mile to get to long haul than MNL... you then have to see what's the cheapest budget carrier connection you can get from there (Cebu Pac etc.).

Manila is not a cheap destination to get to 'cos it doesn't have a major tourist industry compared to other major cities in the region where there's more competition between the airlines.

3

Think you will struggle to beat that price but Saudi Arabian Airlines has return flights LON MNL in the £350 range if you book ahead. General range for this trip is £500 to £700 for most airlines depending on how far you book ahead and which months you travel.

4

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

On another note....cheap airlines that fly from Hong Kong/Bangkok to London? Recommendations?

5

17 hours in the KL budget terminal? aaarrrrghhh!

you could check the flight schedule of cebu pacific from cebu to KL. or even tiger from clark to singapore then air asia from singapore to KL. anything to avoid 17 hours in the budget terminal

air asia is probably the cheapest though. i usually fly with them to/from australia but i spend a night in KL to avoid the long airport wait. my brother flew air asia from melbourne via KL to london. they seem to beat every other price

now for the good news - yes they do have in-flight entertainment, however you have to pay extra for it. more good news - they serve carlsberg at a relatively cheap price (helps fill the time & aids sleeping, lol)

6

@norrie19 -klm fly direct from manila to london?

7

I have done air asia. the flight to KL was up to air asia' usual high standands but the onward flight to stansted was grim. no entertainment unless you paid extra for a portable dvd player, grubby plane. Realistically you then have the 1.5 hour bus ride into KL, a night in hostel/hotel then back gain unless your idea of fun is spending 17 hours in McDonalds. ( you cannot stay airside in KL and kip in the departure lounge )
I have booked a one way MNL-LHR last June at 2 weeks notice for 330 GBP.
the cheapest fare coming up on http://www.skyscanner.com.ph is a
round 28000 pesos on Ethiad, they are good with smart planes and good tv screens.
You pay your money and you take your chance.

8

There is no easy or cheap way to fly from Manila to London. The Air Asia X flight is probably the best option but requires a layover in KL and there is no option for baggage check through.Bring your own sandwiches
Oasis airlines was a budget carrier plying the HK to London route and were the only other viable alternative but they went bankrupt after less than a year.
The London to Manila return flight at £650 can cost £1000 when booked as Manila to London return
KLM are the only carrier with direct flights from Europe but will pull out in March
All other European airlines have now given up serving Philippines

9

Well I had a little look around and everything is pretty much over 400pounds around the dates I want to fly...too much for me.

I have to stay over in KL. 16 hours in McDonalds doesn't sound very appealing, so do I need a visa to enter the country and overnight some place around town? If so, how much?

On a good note, I just realised that it only takes 6 hours to London from KL...unless I read it wrong. (dep 0840 arr 1440).

10

VISA - UK citizens ( and most first world) don't nor members of ASEAN countries such as Philippines.

6 HOURS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! you poor boy or girl - the world is round and so it is now 4.30 pm in the Philippines and the sun is about to set but 8.30 am in the UK and the sun has just risen. I am afraid KL is in the same time zone as Manila so the journey time is a numbing 14 hours.

The good news is that KL is a pretty nice City and a nice change from the poverty and chaos of the Philippines and a nice place to stay before heading on to the 3rd world once more.

Buses leave the airport for the centre of KL and drop you off at Sentral where there is a light rail station and a monorail station nearby, most of the cheap places are a few stops along the line but unlike in the Philippines you can take your luggage.

11

You're pretty lucky to get anything in the £400-£500 category... didn't realise KLM were pulling out in March?.. oh well, that'll push the prices up on all the other carriers to MNL since 350 passengers per day will have to go another route. Less competion = Higher Prices.

Oasis Hong Kong actually operated for about 3 years but I think only 1 year to Europe? and were doing LGW-HKG-LGW for £285 economy, and around £850 for business class in 2008 which was astonishing. They got eaten alive by the high oil price, resulting in crippling fuel prices and if they passed those onto the customer they'd be almost the same price as the cheapest Cathay Pacific fare... I never flew them myself but my wife used them a few times - old 747's but super cabin service with very experienced crews. They deserved to survive... Not sure how Air Asia manage to make money on the Stanstead run... maybe they have a nice air cargo contract under the floor.. ;-)

tiion - if you can't afford 400-500 to fly to the Philippines, you'd probably best not go - it's really NOT a cheap destination to get to and certainly more expensive to travel around than many other countries in SE Asia.

12

Yes, KLM are pulling out of the Philippines in March in part as a protest for the much higher taxes foreign companies have to pay here to operate.

Air Asia X aren't making money on the London route, and announced 7 minutes ago on Air Asia's Facebook page is that Mumbai, Delhi, London and Paris routes are cancelled. Here is the press release:

Important Announcement: AirAsia X Re-Aligns Network

Dear fans, please be informed that due to soaring taxes and higher jet fuel prices, AirAsia X is re-aligning its network to focus on core markets and will be withdrawing services to India (Mumbai and New Delhi) and Europe (Paris and London) from our Kuala Lumpur hub as follows:

• Mumbai- Four weekly services will be suspended with the last flight on 31 January, 2012
• New Delhi- Daily services will be suspended with the last flight on 22 March, 2012. Flights in March will be reduced to four weekly services.
• London- Six weekly services will be suspended with the last flight on 31 March, 2012
• Paris- Four weekly services will be suspended with the last flight on 30 March, 2012

All Guests who hold bookings after these dates will be offered an alternative travel option at no additional cost to mitigate the inconvenience caused as a result of these route withdrawals. An e-mail stating options that are available will be send, including a full refund, a reroute to another AirAsia X destination (e.g, in Australia and North Asia), or a move to an alternative carrier where available.

AirAsia X will concentrate capacity in our core markets of Australasia, China, Taiwan, Japan and Korea. Announcements of our future expansions plans will be made soon.

Edited by: loubbylou

13

Is Tony Fernandes the owner of Air Asia and also the owner of Queens Park Rangers football club in London also going to pull out of QPR once they get relegated

14

Hmm, not surprised... I'm a big fan of budget carriers and they've transformed the regional travel markets around the world... but they just can't do it long haul, where such a big percentage of the ticket cost is being taken up on fuel, the cost of which they have little or no control over... so now it's down to the Middle Eastern Airlines who are heavily subsidised by their respective governments driving prices down to attract the tourists to their respective dusty hot rocks... but with very shiney malls in the middle...