China had one of the strictest Covid-19 travel policies and was among the last countries in the world to lift restrictions. 2023 was the year China started reconnecting with the rest of the world and, from the end of last year and throughout the first half of 2024, the country has implemented an array of new policies, such as visa waivers, to ensure its travel and tourism industry quickly catches up.
And they have worked. Fuelled mostly by domestic travel, but with international visitors also steadily increasing, air travel in China is expected to reach record levels this year, with 700 million air trips, Zhiyong Song, head of the Civil Aviation Administration (CAA), said at the Asia Pacific Summit for Aviation Safety in Beijing on 13 August.
If achieved, the 700 million would be significantly over the 619.6 million passengers that flew across China in 2023, which was double the 2022 figures. There are currently 262 airports in China, already 3 more than there were at the end of last year, with 4,335 passenger aircraft in Chinese airlines’ fleets, with a total transport capacity of 1.6 billion passengers, Song added.
In the first half of the year, just domestic flights already accounted for 350 million passengers, a 24% increase compared to last year and 9% over pre-pandemic year 2019, according to the CAA. Although no precise number has been provided for international passengers, the CAA has confirmed the figure has rebounded to 79% of pre-Covid levels.
Travel demand is the strongest between China and Europe, Japan, South Korea and Singapore, prompting new flight routes to be added to cities around the world. The Paris 2024 Olympics in particular have boosted Chinese international travel back up to 70% of pre-Covid levels.
“This summer, popular international passenger routes continue to concentrate on traditional tourism markets such as Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asian countries”, said Qing Xu, a CAA official. “Driven by major events such as the Paris Olympic Games, there has been a significant increase in the number of flights from China to France. Besides, airlines have added more flights to countries such as Denmark, Hungary and Greece.”
Southeast Asia and nearby Japan have also been among the top destinations for the Chinese this year. The rush to visit Japan has been fuelled by Chinese students taking their summer vacations, as well as the favourable exchange rate with the Japanese yen, making hotels, meals and attractions more affordable.
The revival of Chinese outbound travel was marked by the Lunat New Year holiday period at the beginning of the year, which also saw a domestic travel boom. Although a full recovery of outbound travel from China is expected to remain 22% below 2019 levels this year, next year, it should exceed pre-pandemic numbers by 6%.
