SEVERAL infrastructure projects that can lift the tourism and travel sector are slowly being completed.
Speaking at the EJAP Infrastructure Forum 2026, Acting Transportation Secretary Giovanni Z. Lopez said the San Miguel Group, for one, has ‘committed to finish the Caticlan [International] Airport by the second quarter of 2027.’
With the completion of a new passenger terminal, he said the airport will be able to handle 7 million passengers a year, from the current 3.8 million. The new passenger terminal being constructed by Megawide Construction Corp., will have a total floor area of close to 37,000 square meters, occupying two stories.
Awarded in November 2024, the project was delayed due to right-of-way (ROW) issues that faced TransAire Development Holdings Corp., a unit of the San Miguel Group handling the airport project.
A new passenger terminal at the Sayak Airport on Siargao Island will also be completed this month, raising passenger capacity to 750 seats from the current 200.
Challenging topography
However, Lopez noted that the ‘topography’ of said airport has made it a challenge for government to extend its runway. ‘There are mangroves, there are mountains, there are wetlands,’ he noted, underscoring environmental considerations that are in play in the project.
Local carriers have said domestic air fares to Siargao from Manila are expensive as they can only use turbo-prop planes to fly passengers, limiting their economies of scale. Also, increased land travel costs are now incurred by passengers as turboprops have been moved to the Clark International Airport in Pampanga from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Parañaque City.
Government has planned to extend the Siargao airport runway by 1,200 meters from its current 1,347 meters and widen to 100 meters from the current 30 meters to support larger jets like the Airbus A320 that can carry more passengers.
As an alternative, Lopez pointed to the opening of the new cruise terminal at Jubang, also on Siargao Island, that can already accommodate international cruise ships to the popular surfing destination. (See, ‘PHL welcomes 75K cruise passengers in 1H as new ports rise,’ in the BusinessMirror, Aug. 24, 2026.)
‘You can ride 2Go and travel to Siargao for just P3,000,’ he said-a steal, compared to the current one-way airfare that starts at P6,000 per person, with a layover in Cebu. The sea voyage takes about 29 hours. 2Go Travel, a unit of SM Investments Corp., is the only local shipping company that travels directly from Manila to Siargao, and vice versa.
Expanding Bicol, Bohol capacities
The DOTr chief said there are ongoing ROW lot acquisitions at the Bicol International Airport (BIA) ‘for operational needs and future expansion.’ Planned since 1996, the airport finally opened for commercial operations in October 2021. Its current passenger capacity is 2.2 million passengers.
It is slated to undergo major capacity upgrades to finally transition it to an international facility via the P21.64-billion regional airport public-private partnership (PPP) proposal won by the Philippine Regional Airports Consortium (PRAC). The proposal, which also includes the Siargao Airport, is slated for a Swiss challenge next year.
The PRAC, composed of JG Summit Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Filinvest Infra-Solutions Ventures Inc., and the Asian Infrastructure and Management Corp. secured original proponent status for the bundled PPP project.
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Lastly, the Bohol-Panglao International Airport is currently being upgraded to improve its operations and enhance passenger experience.
Operated by Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., the company will invest some P4.5 billion to expand the passenger terminal capacity to 3.9 million by 2030 from the current 2 million, install modern aviation systems, and improve airside and landside facilities.
The Department of Tourism has targeted visitor arrivals to reach 6.7 million this year, but Acting Tourism Secretary Ma. Bernadita Angara-Mathay has said she will be satisfied if this can match the 6.4 million arrivals in 2025.