Emirates explores more China destinations

Emirates intends to fly to more cities in China this year.

The airline plans to start daily flights to Shenzhen using Boeing’s widebody 777 jets by mid-year, Bloomberg said, citing informed sources.

The launch date has been postponed multiple times due to delivery delays from Boeing and Airbus and a retrofit programme, the sources said.

In addition, the carrier plans to launch a daily service to Hangzhou in East China.

Emirates constantly reviews its network, and any new route or service undergoes detailed evaluation and approvals from authorities, the airline told Bloomberg.

This month the number of Chinese tourists visiting Dubai surged by nearly a third year on year to 824,000 in 2024.

A study by travel insight specialist ForwardKeys in January found that arrivals from China to the UAE have grown by 9 percent year on year.

Other potential new routes include Chengdu, China; Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Brazzaville, Republic of Congo; Da Nang, Vietnam; Helsinki, Finland; and Siem Reap, Cambodia, the news report said. However, the plans have not been finalised and may face potential delays.

Currently, Emirates operates twice daily to Shanghai and Beijing, and daily to Guangzhou.

In June 2024 Etihad Airways and China Eastern Airlines agreed to expand connectivity between the UAE and China.

The move will broaden the network for passengers travelling between major Chinese cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Xi’an and Kunming, and key cities in the UAE, the Middle East and Africa.