Chinese airlines ramp up international flights to meet ever-growing 'China Travel' fever

Chinese airlines are expanding international routes to accommodate the ever-growing "China Travel" fever. On April 28, China Eastern Airlines will launch a direct flight from Shanghai Pudong International Airport to Abu Dhabi, marking the first time a Chinese airliner flies this route. The airline will also establish a joint venture agreement with Etihad Airways, Abu Dhabi's flag carrier.

From April 30, Sichuan Airlines will open a direct route from Chengdu Tianfu in Southwest China's Sichuan Province to Penang of Malaysia with five flights per week. Additionally, on March 18, the airline inaugurated a commercial charter service from Chengdu to Pokhara, Nepal.

The increase in international flight routes coincides with a rise in foreign passenger visits at Chinese airports, benefiting from the 240-hour visa-free transit policy.

With the continuous increase in flight routes and the relaxation and optimization of transit visa-free policies, the number of foreign tourists visiting China has been steadily climbing up.

According to Wuhan's entry-exit border inspection station, 11,600 foreign travelers passed through Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in the first 17 days of March, an increase of 23.83 percent over the same period last year.

They mainly came from South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, the US and Japan. Among them, 4,200 people entered without a visa, a sharp increase of 158.83 percent year-on-year. Most of the passenger visits are for sightseeing, accounting for more than 60 percent.

By March 9, Beijing Daxing International Airport had recorded over 1 million inbound and outbound travelers to date this year, a 36.1 percent increase from the previous year, reaching the milestone 25 days earlier than in 2024.

Data from the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) showed that from January to February, China's international flight routes completed 12.84 million passenger trips, a growth of 38.6 percent than the same period of last year, and a 6.5 percent increase over the same period in 2019.

Among them, the number of passengers on flights from China to Japan, Thailand and South Korea is relatively large, and the passenger growth rate on routes from China to Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Laos, Italy and United Arab Emirates is relatively high, the CAAC said.

And, the growth pattern bears similarity with the performance of domestic airlines.

As of February 2025, the international operations of China's six major airlines have all surpassed pre-pandemic levels.

Data from industry information provider VariFlight showed that the passenger volume of the six major airlines flying on international routes reached 5.6 million in February, 1.8 percent more than in February 2019, demonstrating a strong recovery.

Notably, Juneyao Airlines' international passenger volume surged by over 50 percent compared to the same period in 2019, significantly outpacing other airlines.

Industry analysts attribute the strong growth in international air travel to the continued implementation of China's visa facilitation policies, and the steadily expanding scope of visa-free agreements. Additionally, the normalization of international flights has increased route density, further boosting passenger traffic.