Zhu You, senior manager of Air China’s marketing department, said the airline
had wanted to open the route since 2006 when they began flying between
HCMC, Beijing and Nanning. The flight
will take about 3.5 hours from
HCMC to Chengdu, and slightly less on
return.
“We want to collect ideas from the city’s
tour operators about the air
route as well as suitable times for passengers from
HCMC to
travel to Chengdu,” she said.
Sichuan Airlines are also interested in opening the route. “We are here to learn
about the operation of the Chengdu-HCMC routes and routes to other
destinations in
Vietnam,” said Hu Pingshu, the airline’s vice director-general.
Currently, passengers from HCMC need to take a connecting flight from Shenzhen,
Guangzhou, Shanghai or Nanning to reach Chengdu. Flying from
HCMC to Chengdu via Guangzhou takes
4.5 hours – 2.5 hours from
HCMC to Guangzhou, then another 2
hours to Chengdu. A direct flight will reduce flying time considerably and
minimize tedious airport procedures.
The route was first discussed last October when Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung
visited Sichuan.
In on Monday’s meeting, airline representatives and
tour operators from HCMC and
Sichuan also discussed extra activities to promote tourism to both areas,
especially travelers from
Vietnam to China.
Lai Huu Phuong, director of Ben Thanh Tourist
Travel Service Center, said Vietnamese tourists generally traveled
in family groups during the summer and Lunar New Year holidays. He added that
they loved to shop and visit historical sites.
“The new air route is not only to attract more Vietnamese travelers but
Chinese-Vietnamese who were born in Sichuan,” he said.
La Quoc Khanh, deputy director of HCMC’s Department of Culture, Sports and
Tourism, said tourism between HCMC and China is growing by about 25% each year.
The city welcomed 140,000 Chinese travelers last year, compared to just 76,000
in 2006. In addition, about 30,000 Vietnamese people traveled to China via the
Tan Son Nhat International Airport in 2009.
Zhang Gu, head of Sichuan’s Tourism Promotion Bureau, said that they would sign
a memorandum of understanding with the
Vietnam National Administration of Tourism in
Hanoi on Wednesday, March 10.
VietNamNet/SGT
