Trying To Purchase My First Throw Away Ticket While In U S A

[Bundy]

As Mike B eluded to, the problem is not with your card, it is the Cebu Pacific website. It really is a "hit and miss" affair these days and can be so downright frustrating that i now give them a miss altogether.

Your throwaway can be had easily and cheaply from Tiger. As a matter of fact i am now using this airline to fly between Cebu and Manila. It is actually a Sea Air plane but good value and seems NEVER full, nothing wrong with the planes either, the one we had was almost brand new.Best of all, your payment goes straight through NO PROBLEM!

[cgas2]

Just purchase a cheap one way out from Tiger Air, or Air Asia.....Throw away, problem solved.

[Markham]

I will be going to the Philippines in Dec for my first extended stay of 2-4 months. I have already purchased my one way ticket and now need to purchase the throw away ticket I need to present to the airline and if needed to immigration.

I tried to purchase a one way promo ticket from Cebu Pacific from Clark to Macau for total price of 1005 PHP. When I tried to pay for the purchase with my US credit card I was declined 3 times by Cebu Pacific. I checked with my credit card company and they said there had been no attempts to charge my credit card. Doing some internet searches found that it is very common for Cebu Pacific to deny charging your credit card if it is from a bank outside of the Philippines.

I don't have any bank accounts in the Philippines yet so my only choice is to purchase the throw away ticket online using my US bank issued credit card.

Any suggestions on what airlines or other sources of onward ticketing I can purchase using a US issued credit card online? Of course since this is a throw away ticket I am interested in spending the minimum possible to satisfy this bureaucratic requirement.

You say that you're visiting the Philippines for two to four months, are you not returning to the US at the end of that time? I ask because the cost of a round trip ticket is usually significantly less than buying two one-ways AND you would avoid the need to buy a throw-away.

Also, when you go to BoI to apply for an extension, they can now ask to see your outbound ticket. The rules have changed in recent weeks and all visitors, except those on Balikbayan Privileges, are required to have valid tickets out of the country at all times. Whilst I was having my permanent 13a stamped into my Passport last Tuesday, an American who was extending his stay was made to go and buy an exit ticket - and to ensure he did so, BoI retained his Passport.

[Dave Hounddriver]

Whilst I was having my permanent 13a stamped into my Passport last Tuesday, an American who was extending his stay was made to go and buy an exit ticket - and to ensure he did so, BoI retained his Passport.

Ahh the good ole Philippines where every BI office makes their own rules and every person is treated differently. Would you mind telling the rest of the story such as the office involved, how long the guy had stayed already, how he acted to the BI official, did the BI official give an official sounding explanation with documents or web site information, was there more than one individual there on a tourist visa and were all of them getting the same treatment.

The reason I ask is that you sound like you are telling horror stories to scare the new guys so it really needs to be explained if it is more than a random event. It has been mentioned before that people staying longer than 16 months are required to have the exit ticket but for renewals less than that it has not yet been asked of me.

[Markham]

Whilst I was having my permanent 13a stamped into my Passport last Tuesday, an American who was extending his stay was made to go and buy an exit ticket - and to ensure he did so, BoI retained his Passport.

Ahh the good ole Philippines where every BI office makes their own rules and every person is treated differently. Would you mind telling the rest of the story such as the office involved, how long the guy had stayed already, how he acted to the BI official, did the BI official give an official sounding explanation with documents or web site information, was there more than one individual there on a tourist visa and were all of them getting the same treatment.

The reason I ask is that you sound like you are telling horror stories to scare the new guys so it really needs to be explained if it is more than a random event. It has been mentioned before that people staying longer than 16 months are required to have the exit ticket but for renewals less than that it has not yet been asked of me.

Don't shoot the messenger, Dave! I merely related what I observed whilst at BoI earlier in the week. But to answer your question, the office concerned was Davao and that American appeared to be the only one applying for an extension whilst I was there. The office was full of other nationals who, like me, were getting permanent visa stamps as the latest batch of approvals had just arrived from Manila. I have no idea how long he'd been in country or how many extensions he'd already received. However his attitude and demeanor were, shall we say, not the best.

I had read about this new requirement published I believe a couple of months ago in the Manila Bulletin.

[Dave Hounddriver]

Don't shoot the messenger, Dave!

My apologies if it came across that way. I just thought you were having a go at scaring the noobs.

I had read about this new requirement published I believe a couple of months ago in the Manila Bulletin.

Thats what I would like to read. I have searched the BI web site a few times and even emailed them but they are vague about such requirements as an exit ticket beyond the fact that it is mandatory to get into the country.

[earthdome]

You say that you're visiting the Philippines for two to four months, are you not returning to the US at the end of that time? I ask because the cost of a round trip ticket is usually significantly less than buying two one-ways AND you would avoid the need to buy a throw-away.

I don't know when I will return so it is hard to pick a date for my return. If I don't know when I will return I would have to buy a much more expensive ticket that is refundable or transfer to different date.

From my research it looked like purchasing one way tickets with throw away would be lower cost than buying roundtrip ticket which allows refund/changes.

[MikeB]

I don't know when I will return so it is hard to pick a date for my return. If I don't know when I will return I would have to buy a much more expensive ticket that is refundable or transfer to different date. From my research it looked like purchasing one way tickets with throw away would be lower cost than buying roundtrip ticket which allows refund/changes.

In general, lower priced tickets are non-transferable and non-refundable but you should be able to change dates (within 12 months) by paying the change fee plus fare difference, if any. For an international flight, it was $150 last time I did it, no fare difference.

[samatm]

my last throw-away tix was purchased on Airasia for a total of 688 pesos NET. (clark to Macau. I used it for 5 months. Air Asia website is easy to use. Look for specials.

[i am bob]

I have been keeping an eye out concerning the pricing of a ticket from Toronto to Cebu. Maybe it's because PAL recently announced that they will be opening a direct flight from Toronto soon but the prices are really static on airfares for that run right now. Every so often I will come across a Toronto to Cebu return fare with the options to modify/cancel the return for less than I can buy the economy run one way (that would be CP) and a throwaway ticket.

:dance: