Last April, despite it being the craziest, busiest time of my life, I made sure to squeeze in a trip to Cebu because something BIG was launching there.
The country's very first prepaid card, multi-currency wallet, mileage card and membership card all rolled into one.
I present to you... drum roll, please...
The Philippine Airlines Mabuhay Miles Travel Card
Before I tell you more about this brilliant piece of plastic, let me first share with you how Philippine Airlines spoiled us from the moment we stepped into the Mabuhay Lounge at NAIA Terminal 2.
Of course, every PAL experience starts with a comforting bowl of arroz caldo.
I like to top mine with crispy garlic, chopped salted egg, spring onions, and dilis.
Heaps and heaps of them. Confession: I never stop at just one bowl.
After the smooth flight to the Queen of the South, we checked in at the beautiful Shangri-La Mactan.
The balcony in my room opens up to this va-va-view-m!
I would have stayed here all day, looking out to the hot, scorching, sexy summer (in the
comfort of my air-conditioned room haha), except I had a very important appointment.
A very important appointment with my massage therapist at the Chi Spa
where my body enjoyed a much-needed 60-minute session of Philippine Hilot.
Now that was a treat!
Later that evening, at the stunning Ocean Pavilion with the backdrop of the
midnight blue sky, a true industry game-changer was unveiled.
Guests were welcomed in Philippine Airlines fashion - big smiles, warm greetings,
genuine hospitality.
PAL President and COO Jaime Bautista introduced the Travel Card, a new chapter
in the history of Mabuhay Miles. So exciting! It is wonderful to know that our national
carrier continually works to enhance its product and service offerings to frequent flyers.
To celebrate the special occasion, there was Cebu lechon
Traditional music and dancing
And miles and miles to give away. Lucky winners went home with
10,000, 20,000 and 50,000 Mabuhay Miles.
Feeling very generous, Mr. Bautista gave in to the crowd's request for more prizes
and raffled off a few thousand miles more. Everybody at my table won a prize.
Everybody but me. Huhu.
But I felt like a million miler after everyone retired to the hotel and I had this
incredible starry night all to myself. I had never seen so many stars at once.
They glittered like diamonds. It took my breath away.
Plus I received my all-new PAL Mabuhay Miles Travel Card.
In a nutshell:
The Mabuhay Miles Travel Card is your Mabuhay Miles membership card and multi-currency prepaid card in one.
This prepaid card can be used to purchase products and services in stores that accept UnionPay.
Earn 1 mile for every P100 (or foreign currency equivalent) spent.
Redeem your miles for goods or services at participating program partners.
And the best part for me is, the card can hold up to 10 currencies!
US Dollar (USD)
Philippine Peso (PHP)
Euro (EUR)
British Pound (GBP)
Canadian Dollar (CAD)
Australian Dollar (AUD)
Singapore Dollar (SGD)
Hong Kong Dollar (HKD)
Chinese Yuan (CNY)
Japanese Yen (JPY)
This is so perfect for people who love to travel. Just load up your card with the currency needed at your destination, fly, eat, spend, shop, and earn miles while at it! Also, no terrible bill shock because you only put in your allotted budget, haha!
The next day, we put our Travel Cards to good use.
We went to the new SM Seaside Cebu because, well, SM's got it all. :P
But first, lunch to fuel us up, catered by a Cebu favorite, Cafe Laguna.
We dined right by the entrance of the mall, under its high ceiling.
My favorite from the spread was this scrumptious grilled pork belly
And then shopping began. I got a few items from Uniqlo for my UK trip.
It was still chilly in that part of the world so these cardigans were perfect.
3 cardigans, 3 skirts, and a button-down dress all successfully charged to my
Mabuhay Miles Travel Card. Yay! I am happy to announce that the transaction
was as easy and seamless as using a debit card.
You can also use the Travel Card to withdraw money from any BancNet ATM machine
I tested out this service and...
Ta-Da!!! Success!!!
Another great feature of the Mabuhay Miles Travel Card is the redemption of rewards
at partner merchants using miles earned.
I experienced the convenience of this feature first-hand when I used my card to
check in at Marco Polo Plaza Cebu
The hotel front desk debited 13,000 miles from my Travel Card and handed me
the key to my deluxe sea view room.
Isn't it splendid to be able to enjoy such comfort using only the miles you've earned
and absolutely zero pesos? I urge everyone to enroll in Mabuhay Miles frequent flyer
program and apply for the MM Travel Card. For more information, visit
This chunky chocolate chip cookie is just the cherry on top.