Filipinos flock to terminals, airports after Christmas, New Year holidays 

People flocked to bus terminals and airports on Sunday to return home at the end of the Christmas and New Year holiday season. 

In Jaime Santos’ report in “24 Oras Weekend”, some passengers in Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange (PITX) did not expect that there would still be a large volume of passengers coming back from the holiday break. 

“Akala ko po kaunti lang po ‘yung pasahero, marami pala,” one said. 

(We thought there would be only a few passengers now.) 

“Kasi ang alam namin kung magpapabukas pa kasi, marami nang darating. Eh ngayon, hindi ko inaasahan na ganito na pala karami,” another passenger said. 

(We thought the influx of passengers would happen tomorrow. But I did not expect there will be so many passengers today.) 

There are some who are catching trips back to the province at bus terminals in Sampaloc, Manila, and in Cubao, Quezon City. 

In Lipa Grand Terminal in Batangas, passengers had to wait for over two hours due to a shortage in buses. 

Meanwhile, trips in some bus terminals in Camarines Norte and Sorsogon are already fully booked. 

In Calapan Port in Batangas, getting ferry tickets is a challenge for several passengers while there is a long queue for vehicles that will get onboard the ships. 

The Philippine Coast Guard said that it has recorded nearly 6 million sea passengers during the holiday season. 

On the other hand, there was an influx of passengers coming from the United States at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1. 

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said that there were almost 800,000 passengers recorded in various airports from December 20, 2025 until January 1, 2026. — Vince Angelo Ferreras/BM, GMA Integrated News