THE recently-launched flights from Sipalay City to Puerto Princesa in Palawan and vice versa created more tourism traffic for the southern Negros Occidental city, its tourism official said.
Rhia Carbajosa, city tourism officer, said the Sipalay Airport has started catering to passengers from Sipalay to Puerto Princesa via the small aircraft of the Air Juan Aviation Inc. since August 7.
This is on top of Cebu and Iloilo flights, which started on August 2, during the unveiling of the airport in a 10-hectare area at Barangay San Jose.
Carbajosa said the airport can accommodate four flights a week to and from Palawan, every Monday and Thursday only.
“Puerto Princesa is a model coastal city and is considered one of the top tourist destinations in the country thus, connecting Sipalay there would surely create more tourism traffic between Negros Occidental and Palawan,” she said.
The additional flight resulted from more inquiries from the tourists in Puerto Princesa on what Sipalay can offer, Carbajosa added.
The new flight, which has the Sipalay-Iloilo-Cuyo-Puerto Princesa route, costs P14,000 to P15,000 per passenger depending on the flight date.
The cost is P1,800 per passenger from Sipalay to Cebu every Wednesday and Sunday, and about P1,500 between Sipalay and Iloilo every Monday and Thursday.
All in all, the three destinations can bring in a maximum of 54 warm bodies or tourists to Sipalay City every week.
Carbajosa said that like Cebu and Iloilo, the number of passengers from and to Puerto Princesa is currently sustaining. Meaning, the bulk of the passengers is just enough to sustain the flights.
Since it is still “low season,” there are days that the nine-seater Cessna Grand Caravan plane cannot be fully occupied, she said.
“We expect the number of passengers to significantly increase starting next month approaching the peak season from December towards summer,” Carbajosa added.
In September, resorts owners in Sipalay are planning to travel to Puerto Princesa via Air Juan.
Carbajosa said this will also serve as benchmarking activity for them to see the good tourism practices in Puerto Princesa and replicate it in Sipalay.
“We continue to urge Negrenses to patronize the services offered by Sipalay airport to help boost the local tourism industry,” she added.