A “new chapter”: Airlines, tour ops celebrate Canada-China flight resumptions

Canada and China have kickstarted the process of increasing the number of non-stop flights between the nations after Canada, just recently, scrapped a COVID-era cap on service.

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), in October, rescinded a prior ruling from February 2022 that limited flights by Chinese carriers at just six round trips per week.

Canada lifting its flight restrictions on mainland China has since opened the way for Chinese airlines to add more flights to destinations like Vancouver, BC. 

Air Canada, too, is taking advantage of the loosened rules. From its trans-Pacific hub in Vancouver (YVR), the airline increased its service to Shanghai to daily on Dec. 7.

From the same gateway, Air Canada will then resume daily flights to Beijing on Jan. 15, 2025.

The lifted restrictions allow carriers like China Southern Airlines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines — previously the biggest Chinese operator on flights to Canada — to also increase their number of flights.

A new chapter in tourism development

Details about these flight resumptions, and their impact on tourism, were highlighted on Saturday (Dec. 14) at a special brunch organized by the China National Tourist Office at the Westin Harbour Castle hotel in Toronto.

Under the theme “New Chapter,” the event brought together leading airlines operating China-bound routes – specifically Air Canada, Cathay Pacific, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Sichuan Airlines and Xiamen Airlines – tour operators and travel advisors.

The discussions focused on the resumption of routes, updated flight schedules, tourism market dynamics and improving access to China, such as streamlining its visa application process and implementing a 144-hour visa-free transit policy.

In fact, the Government of China, days later on Dec. 17, announced that it will relax its visa-free transit policy by extending the allowed stay for eligible foreign travellers to 240 hours, or 10 days, from the previous 72-144 hours.

Restoring tourism

“Our goal is simple – to bring together the best minds in tourism to explore the current landscape and potential of the Canada-China travel market,” said Ning Wu, director of the China National Tourist Office in Toronto, addressing the crowd.

READ MORE: China extends visa-free transit stays to 10 days

Before the pandemic, there were around 108 direct flights connecting mainland China with Canada. When the flight cap took hold, that number plummeted, and today, it sits roughly at the 35 mark, Wu told PAX.

“We had a good foundation before the pandemic,” she said. “We reached 700,000 [Canadian visitors] annually. We’re hoping the market will recover.”

Chinese tourists also contribute to Canada’s economy, spending more than $3,000 per trip, Wu said in her presentation.

“Canada has become a favourite destination for Chinese travellers,” she said.  

To build momentum around outbound travel, the China National Tourist Office in Toronto has spent the past few months engaging with Canada’s travel advisor community, appearing at popular trade shows, like Exoticca’s “Fall Fling” roadshow series in October.

“We’ve appeared at many exhibitions and lots of people are asking about China,” Wu said.

“A complete China 360”

Diana Winters, Exoticca’s vice-president of sales for Canada, was spotted at Saturday’s lunch. She was invited to address the delegation and share an update on travel to China, from a tour operator’s perspective.

“There’s quite a bit of interest in China. Even more interest from the travel agent community,” Winters told PAX.

Exoticca currently offers five tours in China, with packages starting at $3,499 (air included), with the shortest itinerary being 17 days. “It’s a complete China 360,” Winters explained.  

The tour operator also sells multiple tours that begin in Hong Kong and encompass other countries in Asia.

“There’s a great deal of interest and it’s really opening up,” Winters said. “China has been one of those untapped markets where people just don’t know whole lot about it. There’s more interest and we’re here for it. We’re going to keep bringing people to the places they want to go.”

The new and resumed routes also make it “that much easier to get there, making it less of a milk run,” Winters added.

Air Canada-Air China joint venture

Also spotted at the event was Tim Liu, managing director, sales planning and effectiveness at Air Canada, who noted the airline’s codeshare agreement with Air China.

“Through our joint venture with Air China, we can connect passengers to destinations all over China,” Liu said, noting how Air Canada, with the help of that codeshare, will offer 18 flights a week between China and Canada.

For now, Air Canada offers direct flights to China from Vancouver, but “hopefully, at some point, we can resume east coast flights,” Liu said.

The airline’s hub in Vancouver is significant because it’s “the best place, geographically, to connect to Asia-Pacific,” he said.  

“It allows us to connect passengers not only in Canada, but also from the United States. It positions us really well,” Liu said.

New & restored connections

Saturday’s gathering welcomed other VIP guests, including the Consul General of Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Toronto, Mr. Luo Wei-Dong.

Each airline took turns sharing updates on their Canada-China connections.

The many updates include Cathay Pacific expanding its access to China to 18 weekly flights out of Vancouver next April, linking up with 20 airports across China.

China Eastern Airlines has increased frequency on its Toronto-Shanghai route one weekly flight to four weekly flights.

Sichuan Airlines offers two flights a week out of Vancouver to Chengdu Tianfu International Airport (TFU).

Hainan Airlines has restored service between Beijing and Toronto Pearson, while Air China recently increased its Vancouver-Beijing service to three times per week.

China Southern Airlines also resumed three flights per week in November, connecting Toronto to Guangzhou. 

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