AirAsia launches two new routes into China

AirAsia launches two new routes into China

AirAsia is to launch two new routes into China. Starting from October 28th the airline will commence flights between Penang and Shenzhen.

Flight number AK 1690 will take off from Penang on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 22:45 and arrive in Shenzhen’s Baoan International Airport at 02:35 the next day. The return flight, number AK 1691 will leave Penang at 03:40 on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays arriving back in Shenzhen at 07.30.

It is China’s third most populous city after Shanghai and Beijing with a head count of around 17.5 million. Thanks to economic reforms introduced by Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s and the city’s proximity to Hong Kong it became China’s first special economic zone, attracting foreign direct investment and migrants searching for opportunities. The following years saw the economy boom and its population explode. It has since emerged as a major hub for technology, international trade, and finance.

Borneo to Shantou

The airline will also launch flights between Kota Kinabalu and Shantou on the southeastern coast of China’s Guangdong province. Flight number AK 1524 will operate three times a week leaving Kota Kinabalu at 11:40 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. The return journey, AK 1525 takes off from Shantou at 15:55 touching down in Kota Kinabalu at 18:55.

Shantou is one of the original treaty ports, established in 1860, as a place where foreigners could trade, according to the Treaty of Tientsin. In the 1980s it was designated as a special economic zone alongside Shenzhen but the city never grew at the pace of Shenzhen or Xiamen.

These new routes bring to a total of 33 the number of Chinese cities served by AirAsia

Picture: The Shenzhen skyline seen from across its border with Hong Kong

Hotel suggestions
Shangri-La Shenzhen
Huaqiang Plaza Hotel Shenzhen
Sheraton Shantou Hotel

Read also: All along the watchtowers: The diaolou of Kaiping