Singapore Airlines Launches First Direct Flight to Hangzhou, China

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Singapore Airlines has launched a direct flight route to Hangzhou, a city in eastern China’s Zhejiang province, reflecting its dedication to expanding its presence in the Chinese market. The inaugural flight departed from Singapore at 5:40 p.m. on June 1, arriving in Hangzhou on time at 10:50 p.m., with the return flight leaving at 12:10 a.m. the following day and arriving at 5:10 a.m.

Prior to this new service, four airlines already operated flights connecting Singapore and Hangzhou. According to Zhou Jie, general manager of Hangzhou Airport, passenger numbers between the two cities have grown by 12 percent in the first half of the year, reaching approximately 85,000 travelers.

With the addition of the Hangzhou route, the airline now offers a total of 112 weekly flights between Singapore and mainland China, including five daily flights to Shanghai. This exceeds pre-pandemic levels, which stood at 91 weekly flights.

Demand for international travel from China remains strong, with the market experiencing steady growth in both business and leisure segments. During the fiscal year ending March 31, the airline group transported over four million passengers between mainland China and Singapore, an increase of 8.1 percent from the previous year.

Flights between China and Singapore have recovered to 115 percent of their pre-pandemic levels, a significantly higher recovery rate compared to the 59 percent seen between China and Thailand. A key factor contributing to this resurgence is the recent mutual visa exemption agreement signed between China and Singapore in February 2024, which has fueled continuous growth in passenger numbers.

Travelers from mainland China to Singapore surged by 126 percent in 2024 compared to the previous year, reaching 3.08 million. This accounted for 19 percent of Singapore’s total inbound tourism, solidifying China’s position as its largest source of visitors, overtaking Indonesia, as reported by the Singapore Tourism Board.

Approximately 20 to 30 percent of passengers on Singapore Airlines’ flights to China are transit travelers from Australia and Southeast Asian countries, utilizing Singapore as a hub. The airline’s network allows these transit passengers to reach 42 destinations across Southeast Asia and the Southwest Pacific.

During the inaugural flight to Hangzhou, two tour groups from Indonesia and Malaysia were onboard. Conversely, the first flight from Hangzhou to Singapore carried an Indonesian tour group that had previously flown via Singapore from Beijing, traveling across China before returning home from Hangzhou.