PHILIPPINE AIRLINES review :  4 June 2009 : by G Chew  (UK)

Very easy online booking for a domestic flight from Manila to Laoag, and got a brilliant fare (400 pesos!). You need to have a printed version of your itinerary to enter the building, and I was rudely told to go to the booking office to get a print out. After going through a body scanner, I queued up for ten minutes, before I was served by an unsmiling man, who took five minutes to print my confirmation. Back in the terminal, you have to scan your luggage upon entering and have a body scan. Two queues merge into one, and trolleys aren't allowed though, so you have to shove all your bags onto one conveyor belt (including valuables), then join a line for the sex-determined body scan, then run back to find your bags, before dragging them over to be checked in. Very awkward. There was a special lane for my flight to check in, so I went though it, before being called back, and have someone look at my confirmation, then he went to check which flights were allowed to queue here. There was no one waiting for check in, so I was seem immediately. Offered an exit row window, which was nice. Shoes off at the next body scan (yes, there's was another), but not belts, nor laptops out. Officers very rude, and only speaking in Tagalog (no signs saying what you have to do). You also have to buy the departure tax here (200 pesos). Departure lounge has a range of very cheap eateries, serving a poor selection of unhealthy food. There were lots of birds (sparrows?) living in this area. I was one of the first onboard, and settled into my comfortable seat. Brand new plane. Boarding this nearly full A320 took a full half hour. The FA standing mid cabin stood half smiling as passengers tried to shove enormous suitcases into the overheads, and changed seats. She neither assisted them, nor asked them to hurry up. At one stage, the boarding passengers were waiting for 3 minutes while people moved stuff around, yet still no intervention from the crew. Slightly late departure. Tea, coffee or water served, along with some snacks. Landed bang on time. Most passengers seemed to have checked in at least five pieces of luggage each, as the arrivals hall was a zoo, with boxes piled everywhere. It took 45 minutes from landing to leave the airport. Ours was the only flight. In all, a stressful experience in the airports. The aircraft was nice, and onboard service fine. Crew too laid back. Very low fare, and better than taking the bus. Take an aspirin before you leave your hotel for the airport.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES review :  4 June 2009 : by R Tantan  (Philippines)

MNL-YVR Economy Class in an old A340-300. Flight to YVR in bulkhead seat which was very spacious. FA was friendly, meals were quite good. They played the same movie for the first half of the trip. YVR-MNL didn't get the bulkhead this time. The seat was so close to me when reclining. The mainscreen was difficult to see. The tray table was impossible to stow when the seat in front was reclined. When putting the seat into upright position, I had to pull it manually. Meals were okay. FA's looked grumpy all the time and never smiled. Overall, this airline is okay. Claustrophobic people should get aisle seats though.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  1 May 2009 : by S Dee

MNL-HKG-MNL. Flight to Hong Kong was full on old 747. Check-in was a breeze. Terminal 2 was really boring. Nothing to do. The free Wi-fi that day wasn't working. Return flight was on an A330. Flight delayed over 2 hours. Overall, I think the service on PAL is just average. If they would only put a PTV in each seat, then maybe then can start competing with brands such as EK, CX and SQ.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  1 May 2009 : by Pedro Cadelina

TAG-MNL-SFO. TAG-MNL A320, plane was almost full, crew professional and courteous. A complimentary beverage and snack is served on this 1 hour hop. MNL-SFO on a 747-400. Plane recently had upgrade to interior. Meals were served and a good meal. Mid flight snack was the infamous cheese roll which I declined. Breakfast was ham and hash browns with slightly runny powdered eggs. The new interior with new panels, carpeting and seats. The seats are nice and leg room is improved and adjustable headrests. Each seat back has a 9" touch screen. Unfortunately, there was a problem and about 80% of the screens did not work. We had 1 working screen in our row. There are a number of movie selections as well as tv episodes, music, flight tracker and games. One note - some passengers had a tendency to pound the screen which disturbs the passenger in front. The passenger behind my wife tapped the screen hard as she played solitaire a good portion of the flight. Perhaps the attendants could bring this issue up. The seats seem narrower in the seat while the seat back is wider. You feel slightly closer to passengers next to you. The armrests do not flip up anymore. They go up about 60 degrees or so and stop. I always liked having the armrest up and this probably will discourage people from sleeping in empty rows if they had the chance.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  22 April 2009 : by Pedro Cadelina

MNL-SFO and visa versa. SFO bound flight was on A340 which was barely half full. Plane was clean and FAs were courteous. Dinner and drinks were served in a hurry. Meals were simple. Breakfast was the best meal. MNL return trip was on 747-400. Plane was about 2/3rds to 3/4ths full. Plane was dirty. Food residue still on seat back trays. Both of our trays were broken which required us to use knees to support. Seats are well worn and this plane needs overhaul badly on the interior. Meals very simple and once again what kind of chicken or pork? FAs were nice but in a hurry. Ours passed food trays over the heads of passengers infront of us rather than waiting for our aisle.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  19 April 2009 : by S Dee

Manila-Singapore-Manila Economy. Check-in in Manila easy. Lines at immigration was terrible since it was holy week. Departure on time, flight attendants friendly and respectful. Return flight was okay. Check-in counter opened late and there was already a long line of people waiting. Flight attendants were friendly. In-flight entertainment on both flights were terrible. I just hope PAL would install personal screens in every seat in their planes.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  14 April 2009 : by Paolo Lim

MNL-SIN-MNL Business Class. The outbound trip was an A330 instead of the usual A320. While the agent I talked to told me that I would get the 3rd row, the agent at check-in bumped me up to the first row. The lounge was pretty nice although I couldn't find a spot to plug my notebook in. Business Class was only 1/4 full. Inflight entertainment was pretty ok. The return trip wasn't as pleasant. Check-in at Changi didn't open until past 21.00. Despite the fact that I was the first passenger to check-in at Business Class and with the phone agent telling me I had to check with the airport if the front rows can still be given (since they said it is only given during check-in), I was told they were taken so I had to settle for the back rows. The lounge used by PAL passengers was a bit crowded there. This was a full flight on an A320. We left shortly after midnight. It was on the newer A320s where an AVOD system was in place and the tenderloin dinner was delicious. If you're short on cash but want to experience Business class, I would recommend PAL.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  12 February 2009 : by R Meily

LAX-MNL-LAX Economy class in mid January. Check in agent at LAX gave us a hard time with our carry on luggage, even though it was under weight. Going to LAX we flew on a very tired looking 747. The seat had a broken cabin attendant button, and made the flight attendant come to us every 10 mins. MNL-LAX we flew on PAL's newly remodeled 747 with PTV's and Video on Demand, with Recaro seats in Economy. The video selection was alright, but does not compare to its competitors. Cabin attendants for both flights good, but need to be more focused on their customers, and not their makeup.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  3 February 2009 : by Mark Hurter

HKG-MN return. Check-in at in-town desk easy in HKG. In MNL in terminal good as well. Crew members on both flight ranged from ok to very friendly and helpful. Service efficient. Food good. Terminal better than NAIA but not much to do. Luckily some WIFI station available.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  1 February 2009 : by Alan Robinson

BKK-MNL in C. Check in for this flight is ridiculous as I had to prove that I had an ongoing flight from MNL back to the US. I knew beforehand that this was to be the case and had all the relevant documents and it still took a half hour to complete. Having said that, being able to use the Thai Air lounge was fantastic. Flight was good, FA very attentive though I'm sure it helped that there was only 6 people in C, meal was good. Cebu Pacific might be cheaper than PAL on this route but their habit of canceling many of their international flights will keep me flying with PAL

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  6 January 2009 : by A Mendoza

Manila-Davao return Business Class. Mabuhay lounge in Manila crowded and food choices mediocre. Service on the flight was excellent on fully packed flight. FA's with a genuine attitude for service and courtesy. Food also enjoyable. On the return leg, the story was different. The food was inedible, and flight attendants were nowhere to be found for a cabin that only had 5 passengers. I pushed the call button 6 times in succession and literally had to yell into the galley to get their attention. I give them an 8 for the outbound flight, and a 3 for the return flight.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  6 January 2009 : by D Morgan

Manila-Cebu Return over New Year. Business Class. Near empty in business class and on time flights (1 hour each) meant for enjoyable experience with Philippine Air. Not sure the business class product would stand up to intercontinental long haul but more than adequate for internal domestic flights. Would recommend.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  1 December 2008 : by L Harrison

LAX-MNL on B744 and return flight. We had no complaints with the service. Food was adequate but not impressive. Cabin crew was friendly and polite. We would book them again. The flight was full both ways. They pass out socks and toothbrushes too. The little things count.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  30 November 2008 : by N Sutherland

BKK-MNL-BKK, Economy. A320 both ways. Clean, modern aircraft, no problems there. Outleg was on time, return was 3 hours late on a 3 hour flight in the middle of a Saturday morning... total nonsense. Outleg was less than half full, slightly more on the return. Cabin Service was adequate but with twice the Cabin Crew for a half full plane and nearly twice the price of Cebu Pacific I guess PAL are losing customers to CP, myself included who will endeavour not to use PAL in future unless it can't be avoided. They have a very nice On Board Duty Free Catalogue but amazingly don't accept Credit Cards. I wonder how many millions of Pesos that insightful decision costs the airline in lost business? PAL has increasingly lost its way in recent years and has fallen further behind its competitors.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  18 November 2008 : by J Pascual

I went to Davao with Philippine Airlines on Economy Class. A330-300 departed and arrived on time. I don't really have complaints, since it was just a short 1hr45min flight. The overhead screens weren't in good condition - like an old CRT Television with green and red bands. Snacks were but little 15 gram sachets of peanuts. Overall it was comfortable but it felt like riding an LCC and not a Legacy Carrier.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  7 November 2008 : by M Torres

MNL-PEK-MNL Business Class on A320. Check in easy. Lounge very basic, food in the lounge was okay but not great. Seats in Business class looked worn out. It was comfortable for a short flight and legroom was good enough. Return flight on the same type of plane. Seats looked better but IFE stopped working at the middle of the flight. FA's were attentive without being too friendly.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review :  15 October 2008 : by Anthony Gob

MNL-SIN-MNL economy class. Check-in in NAIA Terminal 2 a breeze. Ground staff prompt, polite and accomodating. During the flight, they served hot meals. Choice of 2 meals and you can choose drinks from the trolley. Food is pretty decent. Flight attendant friendly and hospitable. Inflight entertainment average. On return, check-in was a breeze at Singapore Changi.Given the price and service, I will choose PAL, value for money and service is ok.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 9 October 2008 : by T Amandito

Customer Rating : 2/5

SIN-JKT A330. This was the worst experience flying on a business class. When we Checked-in, they lose my wife and my name on the database, staff was telling me that we got a guaranteed seat. 10 minutes later, they told me that we had to wait for 15 mins more before check-in closed, due to full flight. Onboard the flight, service and food were pathetic, they took very long to serve the food and it doesnt resemble a business class service. Crew couldn't even smile or at least pretending to be cheery. I guess you pay peanuts, you gets monkey.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 29 September 2008 : by Brett Watson

Customer Rating : 3/5

MNL - Cebu and return business. Fine for a short domestic flight. Lounge in MNL average but provided basic requirements - Cebu even less so. 737 MNL - Cebu and Cebu - MNL A300. Food very average on both flights. FA's polite and friendly also. Probably average value at best for a one hour+ business flight.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 18 September 2008 : by Mark Hurter

Customer Rating : 4/5

HKG-MNL, MNL-TAG and TAG-HKG via MNL. All flights on time with even early arrivals. Unfortunately had checked luggage so had to wait for took some time on all airports. Requested an emergency exit on all legs and was given it. First time had an FA telling people to carry bags on the front of the body while boarding. Good meal choice on HKG-MNL and MNL-HKG legs. MNL-TAG-MNL usual PAL domestic snacks served, though quantity varied and less items than before but tastier. FAs a mixed bag. From very friendly and helpful to having an attitude and better not being there. Most belonged to the first group. PR 306/307 is often flown by the B747 that has a big Y class section. A bit of a beef up to the cabin would do good as everything was fine but some small things look a bit tired. Connection from Domestic to International Section of Centennial Terminal was easy and a huge advantage for PAL over foreign competitors. (Cannot comment on transfers of 5J as they have concentrated all flights to NAIA 3.) Just do not forget to fill in the departure form which is not nowhere mentioned. Ground staff was nice as well. At least I did not see any signboard. In all good value for money, punctual, friendly and had an enjoyable journey.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 19 August 2008 : by Don Tan

Customer Rating : 3/5

MNL-HKG Boeing 747-400. Check-in at the Centennial Terminal was okay since we came early. Finding a seat was hard, since there was no wall dividing the gates. Flight was okay. For some reason, my seat didn't have an adjustable headrests. Footrest was defective, and pillows smelled weird. Shanghai-MNL Airbus A340. Overall, I think PAL deserves to be a 3-star airline.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 12 August 2008 : by Jay Mantuhac

Customer Rating : 2/5

SFO to MNL in economy class on ageing Boeing 747. IFE was very poor, they only showed 5 movies throughout the 12 hour trip. In between them was the airshow. FAs looked middle aged and gave bad service. The aircraft looked very dirty. The only good part of PAL was the food. I would say it was pretty good especially their hot breakfast served on my return trip 2 hours before landing. Based on everything I said, I wouldn't fly Philippine airlines again.

PHILIPPINE AIRLINES customer review : 12 August 2008 : by A Solapco

Customer Rating : 2/5

MNL-LAX-MNL economy. Plane interior keeps on deteriorating every time I fly. There are personal televisions but they are not working - so there is a common TV in flight but the remote control/earphone plugs are not working. The foldable foot rests are broken too. Some attendants are nice but some are rude (the newer/ ower ranked attendants are usually the kind ones)! Maybe they should start upgrading their planes and amenities!

Philippine Airlines customer review : 22 May 2008 : by A Richards

Customer Rating : 3/5

MNL-DVO Mabuhay class on A340. Seats comfortable and flight departed on time. Inflight service consisted of a hot snack and soft drink. Flight attendants not overly friendly. Nice spacious business class cabin and low price worth the extra over economy from a comfort point of view. Yes I would fly PAL again on domestic routes as sometimes they are as cheap as Cebu Pacific Air. Overall experience was ok, nothing more.