As the capital of the Philippines, Manila is the default option for most tourist heading to the country. There’s just one problem – it’s an awful airport.

Ninoy Aquino International Airport, often just referred to as NAIA (na-e-ah), is a mess with old design, bad air conditioning and awful inter-terminal connections both airside and landside. It is a pain to travel through NAIA, which begs the question – what are the alternatives?

Mactan – Cebu Airport is the clear option and here’s why.

Design

It’s a small thing but the design of Mactan – Cebu Airport Terminal 2 is beautiful. With a high pitched roof and design to reflect indigenous houses, it looks good and creates a sense of openess. Not only that, but the design feels visibly recognisable compared to the glass and steel structures of modern terminals globally.

The terminal also features two excellent and modern lounges in the form of the Plaza Premium and Mabuhay Lounge from Philippine Airlines – the latter which is very similar to the new one at NAIA.

Terminal 1 is not as nice as Terminal 2, however this is almost exclusively used for domestic departures.