The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) has recorded a total of 631,558 passenger traffic as of October 30 with more Filipinos flocking to the provinces for the All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day celebration.
Data from the PPA showed that, so far, more passengers travelled by boat last Wednesday, October 29, with 207,040 passengers. A total of 193,395 travelled last October 28 and 204,511 on October 27. As of 6 am today (Oct. 30), there were 26,612 passengers bound for the provinces.
The top five ports with the most number of passenger traffic are Panay/Guimaras, Davao, Batangas, Negros Oriental/Siquijor, and Bohol.
Earlier, the PPA projected that more than 2.2 million passengers are expected to flock to the various ports in the country for the upcoming UNDAS 2025 celebrations, higher than last year’s actual 1.918 million port traffic.
Department of Transportation (DOTr) Acting Secretary Giovanni Lopez and Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) General Manager Jay Santiago, conducted port inspections at Batangas Port, one of the busiest ports during national celebrations to ensure preparedness and smooth operations for the expected influx of passengers for the Nov. 1 and 2, All Saints’ and All Souls’ Day celebration or UNDAS.
From October 27 to morning of October 30, Batangas port already registered a total of 61,335 passengers. On normal days, the Batangas port registered an average of 11,000 to 13,000 passengers and 19,000-22,000 during peak season.
Santiago has advised the public to report to the port earlier than usual and to transact only with the legitimate ticketing offices and outlets.
PPA data showed there were a total of 1.918 million passengers during the UNDAS 2024, lower than the 2023 tally of more than 2.530 million.
A total of 2.507 million passengers were reported during the UNDAS 2019 before it dipped to 332,860 in 2020 due to the COVID travel restrictions. The figure started recovering to 683,224 in 2021, and 1.337 million in 2022.
