Welcome to the City of MANILA: The capital of the Philippines, a grouping of twelve cities and five municipalities, it is technically known as Metro Manila but usually referred to simply as MANILA. Also known as the National Capital Region (NCR), which lies on an isthmus between Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay in southern Luzon. The city is one of 17 cities and municipalities which form the metropolitan area. Manila is the second most populous city proper in the Philippines, with more than 1.6 million inhabitants. Only nearby Quezon City, the country’s former Capital, is more populous. The metropolitan area is the most populous in Southeast Asia. Manila is currently included in the roster of global cities of the world. Most tourists are in the capital because they have a day or two to kill either at the beginning or the end of a trip to the rest of the country. In its favors, Manila has friendly people, some excellent nightlife, a few historical sights that are worth the effort, plus some of the most cavernous shopping malls in Asia.

How to get there:

Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) (Terminals 1, 2 and 3), outside the city proper, serves Manila, the Metro Manila area and the nearby provinces. Over 40 airlines provide daily services. Approximately 17 million travelers arrive at NAIA for a year. A second terminal, Terminal 2 (or the Centennial Terminal) opened in October 1999. The International flag-carrier Philippine Airlines now uses this terminal exclusively for both its domestic and international service while all other international flights use the original NAIA terminal. Air Philippines is in the transition to the newer Terminal 2 alongside PAL. The construction of a third terminal (NAIA Terminal 3) has been completed but has yet to open

The main carrier serving NAIA is Philippine Airlines, which has the most extensive network in the Philippines. Newly repackaged Cebu Pacific Air, which uses all A320 aircraft and promotes online booking, positions itself as the first true discount airline in the country. Air Philippines, a subsidiary of Philippine Airlines, competes with Cebu Pacific in the budget market and the inter-provinces routes. Asian Spirit and South East Asian Airlines, which use smaller 48-seat planes, are some of the smaller airlines serving the city of Manila.

Another alternative point of embarkation and disembarkation is Diosdado Macapagal International Airport in the Clark Special Economic Zone. As of October 2006, scheduled flights from Singapore, Hong Kong, Macau, Seoul, Kota Kinabalu, and Kuala Lumpur, and chartered flights from Shanghai and Taipei use this small airport because of its cheaper landing and parking fees.