TOURIST HOTSPOT:
The air charter services would drastically cut travel time to the world-renowned beach with its service to Caticlan, instead of Kalibo

• By Liu Tzu-hsuan / Staff writer, with CNA

Royal Air Philippines is to launch next month direct flights between Taiwan and the Philippine city of Caticlan, a closer entry point to tourist hotspot Boracay.

The airline will initially offer six charter flights between Dec. 26 and Jan. 15, with the flight frequency increasing to one per day during the Lunar New Year and winter holidays from Jan. 19 to Feb. 8, it announced at a news conference in Taipei yesterday.

The charter flight services will drastically cut travel time to Boracay to about two hours and 45 minutes.

Photo: Bloomberg

Before the new route is launched, travelers from Taiwan who want to reach Boracay have to land at Kalibo International Airport first, before traveling two hours by land to the port in Caticlan and heading to the island by boat, the airline said.

The car ride from Caticlan Airport to Boracay takes about five minutes only, which would save a lot of time for travelers from Taiwan, it said.

Boracay is the most popular tourist destination in the Philippines’ Visayas region, said Far East International Travel Service Co Ltd, which is the airline’s general aviation agency in Taiwan.

Known for its powder-fine white sand, clear, blue water and breathtaking sunsets, Boracay offers activities suitable for all age groups, it said.

Royal Air Philippines, a chartered airline founded in August 2002, has two Airbus A320s and two Airbus A319s, each of which can seat 180 and 150 passengers respectively.