Air routes multiply as summer travel season sets in

The 62-day summer vacation travel season, which began on July 1, is in full swing, and Hainan province has emerged as a popular destination for families and students.

"It is scorching hot in Beijing. So I brought my kid to Hainan to experience interesting water sports," said a tourist surnamed Yang, who came to Sanya with other family members this week.

The three major airports on Hainan Island — Haikou Meilan International Airport, Sanya Phoenix International Airport and Qionghai Boao Airport — are expected to complete 50,000 flights and transport 7.53 million passengers. That will exceed the level of the same period in 2019, according to the latest data released by Hainan Airport Group.

Haikou Meilan is expected to operate 30,000 flights and transport 4.18 million passengers, an increase of 8 percent and 7 percent respectively, compared with 2019. Sanya Phoenix is expected to handle 20,000 flights and 3.25 million passengers, up 4 percent and 6 percent respectively from 2019.

In the first half of 2023, Haikou Meilan opened 203 routes, including 188 domestic and 10 international and regional ones. It plans to open routes to Jakarta, Seoul, Moscow, Jeddah and other places.

Sanya Phoenix has also resumed regular direct flights from Hong Kong and the first international regular passenger route between Sanya and Seoul, South Korea. It plans to open an international route between Sanya and Jakarta, Indonesia, in mid-July.

Qionghai Boao Airport will also add routes to Kunming, Lancang, Qionghai, Changchun and Taiyuan to provide more options for summer vacation travel.