New flights to bring Thai, Chinese tourists to Vietnam

China Southern Airlines is slated to offer flights from the Chinese city of Guangzhou to Cam Ranh, a city in the Vietnamese province of Khanh Hoa, starting March 28.

Khanh Hoa is home to the famed Nha Trang beach along the south-central coast.

In the meantime, the inaugural charter flight connecting Bangkok with Hue, the capital of the central province of Thua Thien-Hue, was launched on Wednesday, as Thailand’s NewGen Airways began its bid to explore what it sees as a potential market.

Truong Dang Tuyen, director of the Khanh Hoa tourism department, confirmed the launch date for the China Southern Airlines service, adding there will be three nonstop Guangzhou-Cam Ranh flights per week.

There will be infrequent flights from the cities of Chengdu and Kunming to Cam Ranh if enough bookings are received, Tuyen told Tuoi Tre(Youth) newspaper.

Around 20 Chinese tourism firms also met with their counterparts in Khanh Hoa for future cooperation on Wednesday.

Cam Ranh is around 52km from the resort city of Nha Trang.

Meanwhile in Hue, known for the UNESCO-recognized Complex of Hue Monuments, 161 passengers landed at the Phu Bai Airport from Bangkok on the charter flight operated by NewGen Airways yesterday.

This number of passengers include representatives from 100 Thai businesses and is led by Governor of Bangkok Paribatra Sukhumbhand, who arrived to attend a forum on Thua Thien-Hue and Thailand investment cooperation.

On the same day, another 110 passengers also left Phu Bai for Bangkok on the same NewGen Airways service.

According to Phan Tien Dung, director of the provincial tourism department, the Bangkok-Hue service will be offered under the charter flight model, as it is favored by tourists thanks to the reasonable price and punctuality.

NewGen Airways said it will pilot the service for a year and is willing to make up for losses.

The service, if successful, will help boost the tourism industry of the central Vietnamese province.