Busy airports dampen OFWs’ Eid holiday travel plans

Having failed to beat the holiday rush, OFWs who had earlier planned on travelling for long weekend have opted to go staycation instead.

“I am not planning to travel because I’m trying to avoid the crowd madness at the airport,” said PR practitioner, Richelle Fosberry. “And so we are planning to have a staycation in the other emirates na lang.”

Antolin Prenino, who works in the medical field, for his part said, he was planning to visit relatives in Oman. “Kaso sa dami ng mga nagbabalak umalis ng Dubai at gagamit ng airport, nag-isip akong manatili na lang,” he said.

Indeed, airlines have even issued advisories requesting passengers to be at the airport way ahead of boarding time, in anticipation of an upsurge in outgoing passenger traffic.

Emirates Airlines have advised its customers to be present three hours before their scheduled flights.

The airline says it expects more than 106,000 travelers in the airport’s Terminal 3 this week. It also expects the terminal to have the heaviest passenger traffic, up to 37,000 travelers, on Friday

Emirates advises passengers to check in for their flight online in advance. They can do so 48 hours to 90 minutes before their scheduled flight, according to the company.