destination · Manila

Manila in 2026: NAIA's record 52 million passengers, 57.3 per cent road congestion, and curbside touts working the arrivals hall

Review of Manila

Manila is where almost every Philippines trip begins, and it is the part most people are least prepared for. Ninoy Aquino International Airport handled a record 52.02 million passengers in 2025, up nearly 4 per cent on the previous record of 50.1 million in 2024, and January 2026 set a new monthly record of 4.96 million. That volume moves through a metro area that TomTom's 2025 index ranks the 14th most congested in the world, with congestion measured at 57.3 per cent, and the Philippines ranked the most congested country in Asia. The country as a whole took 6,484,060 visitor arrivals in 2025, up 0.76 per cent, of which 5,940,975 were foreign visitors and 543,085 were returning overseas Filipinos. The first hour is the one that goes wrong. Airport transport overcharging is the most consistently reported scam in Manila, and it is not subtle: touts work the curbside outside arrivals at all four terminals, especially Terminals 1 and 3, and intercept foreign arrivals before they reach the official licensed yellow-cab queues. The metered fare from NAIA to Makati runs roughly 200 to 300 pesos plus a small terminal surcharge, which tells you exactly how far off a quoted flat fare of several times that is. Walk to the official queue, or book a ride-hailing pickup, and the problem disappears. Online booking fraud, meaning fake hotel and tour listings, has also risen sharply in 2026, so book accommodation through established platforms rather than through a social media account offering a better rate. Airport costs went up in September 2025 for the first significant time in 24 years: the passenger terminal fee is now 390 pesos for domestic flights, about 7 US dollars, and 950 pesos for international, about 17 dollars. NAIA has improved on the operational side, with new biometric immigration e-gates that can clear a passenger in as little as 20 seconds and reconfigured departure drop-off areas at Terminals 1 and 2, but the road congestion around the airport is unchanged, and it is the reason to leave for a flight far earlier than the distance suggests. What makes Manila worth a stop rather than a connection is uneven but real. Intramuros is the walled Spanish colonial core and the only place in the country where that history is legible on the ground. The food scene in Makati and Poblacion is genuinely good and cheap. Filipino hospitality is not a marketing line; English is widely spoken and the default posture toward visitors is warm. And the value proposition is strong: this is an inexpensive country to eat, drink and travel in once you are past the airport. The honest framing is that Manila is a gateway with a good day in it, not a week. Traffic will eat any itinerary that assumes distances mean anything, and most trips are better structured as a night or two in the city, then out to the islands, with a generous buffer built in for the drive back.

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