Direct Flights to Morocco, Air Raid Sirens, and More

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Talking Travel: Your semi-regular roundup of Beijing's latest transportation-related news.

Sirens to sound outside the Fifth Ring Road

If you happen to be outside of the Fifth Ring Road this Saturday morning (Sep 21), don’t be alarmed if... you hear an alarm. The annual siren tests are part of China's National Defense Education Day and are scheduled to begin at 10am and continue intermittently until 10.23am. The precise schedule is as follows:

• 10-10.03am: 36 seconds of alarm, pause for 24 seconds, repeated three times

• 10.10-10.13am: Six seconds of alarm, pause for six seconds, repeated 15 times

• 10.20-10.23am: A single, long three-minute alarm
  
  

Four new airlines approved for Daxing International Airport

The slow siphoning-off traffic from the world's second busiest airport, Beijing Capital International Airport, has begun. In the lead up to the September opening date of Beijing's new airport, new international routes from four Chinese airlines have been approved for takeoff from Daxing, adding to the previously rather scant list of international flights from the shiny new airport. The latest additions include:

• China East Airlines: Seven flights a week to Paris, Tokyo Haneda, and Seoul; four flights a week to Moscow
  

• China Southern Airlines: Seven flights a week to Moscow, Tokyo Haneda, and Cheongju, as well as three flights a week to Busan, South Korea

• Beijing Capital Airlines: Seven flights a week to Cheongju and Daegu, South Korea

No tolls during the National Holiday

If you haven't already booked your Hong Kong ticket to GTFO over October Holiday, you might be looking at the exorbitant plane ticket prices and think that road-tripping down is a better option.

Well, good news, because from Oct 1-7 highway tolls throughout the country will be waived for passenger vehicles with less than seven seats in order to ease traffic during the holiday period. Happy driving, or all the makings for a record amount of road congestion? There's only one way to find out!

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Direct route to Morocco now flying

You can now book a non-stop flight from Beijing to the Moroccan port city of Casablanca (the city of Chefchaouen is pictured at top), thanks to Royal Air Maroc. The airline announced the route, which will also fly out of Daxing International Airport, as a means to aid economic cooperation between the two countries, but it also presents an excellent chance for travelers to explore North Africa. Flights are about 13 hours long, and tickets are currently available from RMB 4,500.

Additionally, travelers to Morocco will no longer need to fill out exit and entry forms from now on, making the trip through the gates go just a bit smoother.

Visa-free travel to Sierra Leone

Follow the African Coast southward to Sierra Leone and discover that your country may now be on a new list to receive visa-on-arrival as of Sep 5.

Countries on the list include the US, Commonwealth nations, member countries the EU the and GCC, the BRICS countries, as well as Iran, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Turkey, Japan, South Korea, Norway, Israel, Bolivia, East Timur, Macau, Samoa, and Tuvala. On-arrival visas will cost USD 80 (RMB 565).

Images: Traveller's Choice, CRI, Giphy

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