It has been three weeks since I landed at Incheon International Airport. I remember that very moment I opened the airport door going outside. I was welcomed with the chilly winds that I was not used to feeling in the Philippines, especially in May -- perhaps in December or in Baguio or Tagaytay. I was finally in South Korea -- the land of the morning calm and the land of K-pop! It was a surreal feeling to be in a different country again after the pandemic.
MNL to ICN
Let me tell you the process I had to go through from NAIA to Incheon Airport, this way you can be sure that you are prepared.
My flight was on a Saturday from 1 pm (Manila) to 6 pm (Seoul). It was about a 4-hour flight. I arrived early. At 9 am I was already at the airport. The first thing I did was to check in my bags and have my documents reviewed by the Cebu Pacific staff. She had to see the following: itinerary, passport, VISA, and supporting documents (school admission documents and such), and she also handed me a form I need to fill out -- departure card.
After being verified, she then checked how many bags I have and how much they weighed. I checked in two bags and they were taken immediately. Make sure not to keep any items that you will need on the plane (meds, phone, or power banks) in there.
After it, I had to go through immigration. It was really quick and took me about a minute. The immigration officer asked me about my school docs and told her that I only have photocopies of them. After that, she let me through and I waited at the lounge in front of my gate.
Being early has many perks, there you could choose a good seat, charge your phone at the charging station, and just relax while no one was there. I even managed to buy myself some 'pasalubong' for my host in Korea.
An hour before the flight, Cebu Pacific decided to move the gate of my flight. Due to the number of passengers, they downgraded our plane to a smaller one and caused some delays. These are things that normally happen. Upon checking the flight history of CebuPacific they fluctuate from 30-2 hours every time. So please expect some minor delays when flying with the budget airline.
On the flight, it was of course boring as there was nothing to do. You will be flying with many Koreans and a few Filipinos and foreigners. They served food about an hour after flying. As expected, the food was terrible but better than nothing, I guess.
After watching some Netflix series and falling asleep, the plane finally landed in Terminal 1.
My flight happened amid the pandemic. So, you may expect some extra steps taken to ensure the safety of everyone. Upon embarking, the first step is to go through the QR code (QCODE) stations for verification. There, your temperature will be checked. If good, your passport will be stamped vaccinated and you will be given a flyer on what to do in the next few days.
Upon exiting, I had to board a train going to the main gate of the airport. It was a quick trip but very interesting. After alighting the train, I had to go through the Korean immigration booth. Here I was asked for my passport and VISA and they took my photo and fingerprints. They no longer stamp passports, instead, they printed a small piece of paper with a QR code to serve as my entry proof. After that, I took my bag from carousel 11, did one last security check and was good to go!
Welcome to Korea!