Last Updated on 2026 年 4 月 14 日 by Ching
2019 Tigerair Taiwan Cebu IT537, IT538, Tigerair Taiwan Cebu Experience. For this Cebu trip, we took a Tigerair Taiwan flight. Before the October National Day holiday, the round-trip ticket price from Taipei to Cebu was about $2000 (excluding the 850P departure tax, including 10kg carry-on luggage). This article shares the actual experience from 2019.
Tigerair Taiwan IT537, IT538 flight information and ticket prices
This Cebu trip was not in the plans at the beginning of the year. It was really because the PAYDAY sale was too cheap, and we managed to grab round-trip tickets for less than two thousand, so we started planning. We took Tigerair Taiwan to Cebu at 10:40 PM from Taiwan, arriving in Cebu at around 1 AM, with long queues at customs as rumored. The return flight, IT538, was around 2:30 AM, arriving back in Taiwan at 6 AM. Tigerair Taiwan Cebu schedule allows for a full six days of fun.
Tigerair Taiwan Cebu 2019 Flight Experience
IT537 (Taipei → Cebu) Red-eye flight + long queues at customs
The outbound flight was on Thursday evening. After work, I headed straight to the airport with my backpack. Since it was a regular day and not yet the National Day holiday, the airport wasn’t too crowded. After taking the shuttle bus, everything went smoothly on the way to boarding the plane.
I’ve flown with Tigerair Taiwan quite a few times and really enjoy the youthful and lively atmosphere of their flight attendants, which is different from other airlines. Now, the plane seats are covered with different colored covers, making it easy to distinguish seat classes. It’s also a unique marketing strategy XD
There are no entertainment systems in the seats, just a few magazines and duty-free catalogs. During this trip, it coincided with Tigerair Taiwan’s anniversary celebration, offering a 15% discount on in-flight duty-free products, which led to quite a high purchase rate on the flight.
For someone like me, who claims to be 160 cm tall, the seat space is quite comfortable, whether it’s a budget airline or a regular one… I find it quite comfortable to fly QQ.
On the plane, the flight attendants will first distribute the arrival cards. It is highly recommended to fill out the arrival card on the plane, because the area for filling out the arrival card and customs after disembarking is so crowded that it makes you question your life choices.
Cebu Airport Customs Arrival Crowd 2019
The bustling scene at Cebu Airport Customs in the early morning of 2019/10/04.
Early morning Cebu Airport exit time – We landed around 1:30 AM, with a Korean flight ahead and a Chinese flight behind, the entire entry point was packed with people from three flights. Before even going to Moalboal, we experienced a sardine storm, spending two whole hours in line to exit Cebu in the early morning; if you have a pre-arranged car, be sure to communicate with the driver in advance.
Once you exit the airport, you can directly buy a SIM card outside. This time, we chose Smart’s seven-day plan, which was quite stable, allowing us to smoothly upload photos, IG stories, and even post videos to our fan page.
IT538 (Tigerair Taiwan Cebu → Taipei)
The return flight time for Tigerair Taiwan from Cebu is at 2 AM. The area outside the airport is pitch black, but there are still quite a few flights, possibly due to China’s Golden Week, making the airport surroundings still very lively.
At Cebu Airport Terminal 2, the check-in sign for Tigerair Taiwan doesn’t have the Tigerair logo, so you’ll need to find it on the board. On that day, it was at counter D.
Cebu Departure Tax (850P)
In the past, the airport departure tax in the Philippines was not included in the ticket price, and you had to pay it at the counter when departing. However, for tickets purchased after 2019/9/1, the departure tax is included. My ticket was bought during a promotion on 8/1, so I had to pay the tax.
Thankfully, the reminder from the innkeeper saved me from spending all my pesos and forgetting about the departure tax. You can choose to pay 850P in pesos or 17USD in dollars.
2019 Tigerair Taiwan Cebu Experience
It’s been a long time since I’ve taken a red-eye flight, and this trip was truly exhausting. I slept for an entire day upon returning to Taiwan. Approaching thirty, I can feel the difference in stamina. Fortunately, the National Day holiday allowed me to catch up on sleep.
Currently, direct flights from Taiwan to Cebu are offered by AirAsia, Tigerair Taiwan, EVA Air, and Philippine Airlines. With frequent promotions, Tigerair tickets can be cheaper than a high-speed rail trip to Kenting, significantly increasing the number of Taiwanese tourists to Cebu. Tigerair’s arrival time is early morning, and on Facebook groups, it’s humorously referred to as the “Whale Shark Express“. After clearing customs, you can hire a car to head straight to Oslob for a swim with whale sharks (a three-hour drive). Although you can catch up on sleep during the drive to save time, it’s still advisable to consider your stamina when planning!
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