Daxing Airport-Tianjin Rail Link Coming + More Travel News
High-Speed Rail Link Between Daxing Airport and Tianjin Nears Completion
An intercity high-speed rail line linking Beijing’s Daxing International Airport to Tianjin West Railway Station is nearing completion following testing in October, according to Tianjin Evening News and sources familiar with the rail link.
The rail line, which will allow passengers to travel from Daxing Airport to Tianjin West in around 36 minutes time, will also connect to other cities along the way, including Langfang and Gu’an. Slated to be opened in December of this year, the line is part of a broader effort to integrate Beijing and Tianjin with Hebei province.
Air China Resumes Beijing-Washington Direct Flights as China-US Flights Increase
Air China flight CA817 departed Capital International Airport at 12.35am bound for Washington, DC this Tuesday (Nov 21), the first direct flight from China to the US operated by the Chinese airline following a four-year hiatus, according to the Global Times and CGTN.
Other Chinese airlines, including China Eastern, China Southern, Hainan, and Sichuan Airlines have all updated their China-US direct flight schedules in recent days. This marks Hainan Airlines’ first China-US direct flight schedule since the pandemic, with the carrier to open a route from Beijing to Boston, as well as one from Boston to Beijing via Seattle, from Nov 26.
The winter/spring flight season, which begins in November, is expected to bring direct flights between the two countries to 70 per week, up from 48 in the previous season. This season will also see the equivalent of 35 round-trips per week, up from 24.
Beijing-Based Investment Bank Positive on Inbound Tourism for 2024
Despite inbound travel to China for the third quarter of 2023 coming in at just 45 percent of the same period in 2019, the China International Capital Corporation (CICC), said on Nov 20 that retailers should see more inbound tourism revenue in 2024, according to South China Morning Post.
The Beijing-based partially state-owned investment bank pointed to recovering growth in 2023, with international tourism revenue for the July-September quarter regaining roughly 59 percent of revenue for the same period in 2019. This upward trend, coupled with the potential for flight prices to drop with more direct China flights, could mean RMB 380 billion in international tourism revenue next year, or 1.6 percentage points of economic growth, according to the bank. For reference, 2019 saw 904.9 billion in international tourism revenue for China.
The report adds that, according to the CCIC, inbound tourism represented more than five percent of Chinese exports and half a percent of overall retail sales prior to the pandemic, with tourism possibly linked to exports bringing in foreign exchange.
READ MORE
Dongsishitiao Station to Close for Construction of Line 3
Images: Unsplash