3D ACADEMY: Airport Pick-up Service Guide

At 3D ACADEMY, we offer an airport pick-up service for students arriving at Mactan-Cebu International Airport.

Our airport pick-up service is not simply a matter of driving the student from the airport to the school. A school staff member, a foreign intern or a teacher drives from the school to the airport and waits for the student at a designated spot near the arrivals hall. Then they meet the student and drive back to the school together, where the student is accompanied through the dorm check-in process.

Especially for those visiting the Philippines for the first time, those arriving on Cebu Island for the first time, students who are minors, or families traveling with their children, knowing that school staff will be waiting for you as soon as you arrive at the airport can be a great comfort.

Mactan-Cebu International Airport is a relatively easy airport to understand, but for those who are not used to traveling abroad, having to hail a taxi or a Grab right after arriving and travel to the school with luggage can be stressful. For these people, we recommend using the airport pick-up service.

The fee for the 3D ACADEMY airport pick-up service is a flat USD 30, on weekends and weekdays alike.

Because the school holds classes as usual on weekdays, there may be time slots when it is not possible to offer the airport pick-up service.

At 3D ACADEMY, we do not outsource this service entirely to an outside transfer company: it is normally carried out by school staff, foreign interns or teachers. For that reason, depending on the weekday class schedule and the school's workload, there may be time slots when it is difficult to offer the service. We appreciate your understanding on this point.

On the other hand, going from Mactan-Cebu International Airport to 3D ACADEMY by taxi or Grab normally costs around 400 to 500 pesos. The fare may vary a little depending on traffic and the time of day.

So, if your priority is to get around at the lowest possible cost and you are familiar with traveling abroad and using Grab, it is perfectly fine to come to the school on your own.

On the other hand, the 3D ACADEMY airport pick-up service means that a person in charge drives from the school to the airport, waits near the exit, picks up the student and returns to the school together, and also accompanies the student through the dorm check-in process.

The fee mentioned includes the vehicle cost for the round trip between the school and the airport, the staff cost of the person in charge and the waiting time at the airport.

We especially recommend this service to students who are minors, to those traveling abroad for the first time, to those arriving at night or in the early hours of the morning, and to those who feel some uneasiness about the Philippines or Cebu Island, so that they can travel with peace of mind.

From the Lahug district of Cebu City, where 3D ACADEMY is located, to Mactan-Cebu International Airport, it normally takes around 40 minutes by car.

The distance is about 13 km, but on Cebu Island traffic can get congested depending on the time of day, so the travel time can vary considerably.

At times of light traffic, the trip can take 30 to 40 minutes, but at the busiest times—such as weekday mornings and afternoons—it can take between 1 hour and 1 hour and a half.

Especially when returning to your country, when heading from the school to the airport, we recommend leaving with plenty of time to spare, taking into account not only your flight's departure time but also road traffic.

Mactan-Cebu International Airport has, broadly speaking, two terminals.

• Terminal 1: domestic flights
• Terminal 2: international flights

If you reach Cebu with a stopover in Philippine cities such as Manila, Clark or Davao, you will normally arrive at Terminal 1, for domestic flights.

On the other hand, if you arrive directly in Cebu from abroad—for example from Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan or Singapore—on an international flight, you will normally use Terminal 2.

When requesting the airport pick-up service, always tell us the airline name, the flight number and the expected arrival date and time. With the flight number, the person in charge can confirm the arrival terminal and check for any delays.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 is the terminal where mainly domestic flights of the Philippines operate.

If you reach Cebu with a stopover in, for example, Manila, you will arrive at this terminal. Compared with the international terminal, it is relatively compact and the arrivals exit is easy to find.

For pick-up, the person in charge will wait for you at the meeting point indicated beforehand.

Terminal 2

Terminal 2 is the terminal exclusively for international flights.

If you arrive in Cebu on a direct flight from Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan, etc., most passengers arrive at this terminal.

Depending on the arrival time slot, you may find many pick-up staff from different English schools waiting. Especially on Sundays, which are usually the enrollment day for new students at many language schools, it is common to see several staff members around the arrivals hall holding signs with their school's name.

After arriving at the airport, many people think the first thing they must do is exchange money into Philippine pesos.

However, at 3D ACADEMY we normally recommend, on the first day of orientation, money changers with relatively good exchange rates.

The money changers at the airport are convenient, but compared with those in the city, the exchange rate is usually less favorable. So, if you use the school's pick-up service and do not have an urgent need for Philippine pesos, there is no need to exchange large amounts of money at the airport.

In addition, with the airport pick-up service, we sometimes pick up not just one student but several students whose arrival times are close to each other.

If one person spends a long time exchanging money inside the airport, the other students may have to wait. So, when you arrive at the airport, we ask that you go straight to the exit and give priority to meeting the person in charge of the pick-up.

If you absolutely need cash, we recommend exchanging only the bare minimum and exchanging the rest later in the city.

After arriving at the airport, many people also want to buy a SIM card.

It is possible to buy a SIM card at Mactan-Cebu International Airport, but in some cases it is cheaper to buy it later at a shopping mall or a shop in the city than at the airport itself.

Around 3D ACADEMY there are shopping malls and shops, so it is also possible to get your SIM card and internet connection ready after you arrive at the school.

Especially if you use the airport pick-up service, so as not to keep other students waiting, we recommend not spending much time buying a SIM card at the airport, but meeting the person in charge first and heading to the school.

On August 16, 2026, a Chinese friend was going to check in to the 3D ACADEMY dorm that same day, so we actually went to pick her up at Mactan-Cebu International Airport.

This time it was also a good opportunity to see for ourselves what the atmosphere of the airport pick-up service that students usually use is really like.

From the Lahug district, where 3D ACADEMY is located, to Mactan-Cebu International Airport, the trip took about 35 to 40 minutes that day.

It was a Sunday, so the roads were clearer than on a weekday. Because of that, there were no major traffic jams and we were able to reach the airport relatively smoothly.

On a weekday afternoon, the same distance can take more than an hour, so it is not wise to think that, since it is only 13 km, you will get there quickly.

Arriving at Terminal 2 of Mactan-Cebu International Airport

Since our friend was arriving on an international flight, we headed to Terminal 2.

Her originally expected arrival time was around 1:30 in the afternoon, but since we also planned to have lunch near the airport, we arrived much earlier, shortly before 12 noon.

Looking around the arrivals hall, it seemed to be the time when many international students were arriving on other flights, so there were many pick-up staff from different English schools waiting.

Since there are many English schools on Cebu Island, during the arrival time slot of international flights on Sundays you can see signs with many different school names.

As we walked among them, we spotted a sign that looked familiar.

Looking closely, we saw that someone was holding a sign with the name “3D ACADEMY.”

We had not expected a 3D ACADEMY pick-up person to be there in that same time slot, but we took the chance to say hello and ask permission to take a photo.

The person in charge of airport pick-up for 3D ACADEMY that day was Teacher Jie.

The 3D ACADEMY airport pick-up service is carried out by foreign interns, school staff and teachers.

That day Teacher Jie was wearing a mask, so if you would like to know his usual look and his introduction as a teacher, you can find them on the teacher introduction page of the official 3D ACADEMY website.

There was still time before our friend arrived, so we took the chance to also go to the pick-up point at Terminal 1, where domestic flights arrive.

This is the arrivals exit of Terminal 1, for domestic flights.

This is the area in front of the escalator that serves as the reference point for meeting.

That day there did not seem to be any new 3D ACADEMY students arriving at Terminal 1, so, compared with Terminal 2 for international flights, there were fewer pick-up staff and the atmosphere was much calmer.

We sometimes receive messages from students who have requested the airport pick-up service saying: “My flight is delayed, is everything OK?”

Of course, it helps us a lot if you let us know as soon as you know about a delay.

However, basically there is no need to worry too much.

The person in charge of airport pick-up uses the flight number you provided beforehand to check the expected arrival time and any delays.

Our friend's flight this time arrived about 45 minutes later than scheduled.

However, since we had been able to check the flight status in advance, we were able to wait near the Terminal 2 arrivals exit according to the actual arrival time.

As a result, the time we actually waited at the airport was about 15 minutes, and we met our friend without any problem.

The time when the plane “arrives” at the airport is not the same as the time when the student actually comes out of the arrivals hall.

For international flights, after getting off the plane you have to go through immigration control, collect your checked baggage and go through customs.

When the airport is busy, more than 30 minutes can pass from the time the plane lands until the passenger comes out through the door.

The person in charge of pick-up understands this situation, so there is no need to worry thinking: “The plane has already arrived, but nobody is coming out.”

If you have requested the airport pick-up service, as a rule the person in charge waits until the passengers of the corresponding flight come out.

Quite a few people, when visiting the Philippines or Cebu Island for the first time, feel some uneasiness about how to get around after arriving at the airport.

The reasons for that uneasiness vary: lack of confidence in English, not knowing how to take a taxi, never having used Grab, arriving at night, traveling with children, among others.

With the 3D ACADEMY airport pick-up service, a school representative waits for you at the airport, accompanies you to the school and supports you through the dorm check-in process.

Getting around on your own by taxi or Grab is cheaper, so this service is not essential for every student.

However, for those who think “it's my first time on Cebu Island, so at least on the first day I want to get around with peace of mind,” this service is very valuable.

If you would like to use the airport pick-up service, tell the school in advance your flight number, arrival date and expected arrival time.

Please note that we sometimes pick up several students at the same time, so after you arrive, we recommend avoiding, as far as possible, exchanging money or buying a SIM card inside the airport, and going first to the indicated meeting point.

We hope to reduce any uneasiness about arriving on Cebu Island as much as possible, so that you can begin your study abroad experience with peace of mind.