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No more VIPs: NAIA Terminal 1 main arrival curbside now open to all passengers

VIP pickups will be limited to just two bays (A11 and A12)

You don’t need to be a VIP to use the arrival curbside. PHOTO FROM NEW NAIA INFRA CORPORATION

One of the things that make travel experience at our airports flat-out dreadful is the accessibility—or the lack of it—of the arrival area. If you find picking up an arriving relative (or being picked up) so inconvenient, it’s because…it really is. Imagine having to drive around multiple times until the person you’re picking up appears. Meanwhile, “very important people” are able to stay at the curbside for as long as they wish. So unfair, right?

Good news: New NAIA Infra Corporation is leveling the parity among NAIA Terminal 1 passengers. Yes, regardless of social status. This means the busy terminal’s main arrival curbside is now being opened to “all private vehicles.” Meaning, no more “VIP-only restriction.”

“This change provides a more inclusive and convenient experience for arriving travelers and their loved ones, as part of a broader effort to improve traffic flow and passenger comfort at one of the airport’s busiest terminals,” NNIC told media. “Opening the main arrival curbside to all passengers is a key feature of the newly reconfigured pickup system at Terminal 1, simplifying pickups for private vehicles, ride-hailing services, and metered taxis while easing congestion and improving the passenger experience.”

The main arrival curbside features 14 loading bays:

  • A1 to A7, A10 – general passengers
  • A8 and A9 – persons with disabilities (PWDs)
  • A11 and A12 – VIPs
  • A13 and A14 – hotel pickups

Beyond A14 can be located terminal transfer shuttle bus services.

Users of ride-hailing services have the outer curbside for themselves. PHOTO FROM NEW NAIA INFRA CORPORATION

Meanwhile, the outer curbside—B1 to B6—will serve as an additional pickup area for ride-hailing cars. Those who will avail of the services of car rentals, coupon taxis, and metered taxis need to go to the arrival extension area (ground level).

So, the next time you have to fetch passengers from NAIA Terminal 1, you don’t have to worry about meeting them in the area on the dot. Of course, it helps to be on time. This new change should not encourage anyone to be idle at the curbside. Let’s all do our part to make our airports world-class.



Vernon B. Sarne

Vernon is the founder and editor-in-chief of VISOR. He has been an automotive journalist since July 1995. He became one by serendipity, walking into the office of a small publishing company and applying for a position he had no idea was for a local car magazine. God has watched over him throughout his humble journey. He writes the ‘Spoiler’ column.



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