Bangkok--1 Oct--AirAsia
AirAsia aggressively taps into the China market after Chinese passenger numbers increased 34% year-on-year. The launch of direct flights from Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport to Xi’an, is the airline’s third new China route of the year after a successful launch of direct flights to Chongqing and Wuhan. Xi’an’s main attraction includes the Terracotta warrior soldiers, also known as the 8th Wonder of the World. AirAsia’s special deal to explore the historical city starts from 2,790THB per way, all-inclusive of tax and fees. For more information please visit www.airasia.com.
Tassapon Bijleveld, CEO of Thai AirAsia said “China is growing rapidly and AirAsia is very focused on this market. We are the first and only low-cost airline to offer daily direct flights to Xi’an, one of China’s most popular tourist destinations, located in the central area of northwest China. Once again, we are very proud to be opening up more opportunities for investment and tourism revenue in cities with great potential and Xi’an is no exception”.
Xi’an also one of China’s four historical capital cities, famous for The Terracotta Warriors of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, a collection of over 7,000 life-sized depictions of cavalry, war horses and chariots buried in an over 25,000 square meter section of the monarch’s mausoleum.
The CEO added that “From January-September this year, the amount of Chinese passengers have continued to continually increase. Currently, Chinese travelers make up the largest group of international passengers who travel on Thai AirAsia, accounting for 11% of Thai AirAsia’s total passengers from January-September 2012 at 600,000 people. This is a significant increase of 34% compared to the same period last year which is a positive indicator of our success in tapping into the Chinese market.
“Our direction for the remainder of 2012 and 2013 is to focus on further expansion in China and to add additional frequency to our popular domestic and international destinations. We are confident that as a result of this, we will hit our target of 8 million passengers this year and eventually 10 million passengers by 2013”, said the CEO.
*To celebrate another legendary destination, AirAsia is offering fares starting from 2,790 THB one-way (all-inclusive of tax and fees). Bookings must be made online during today-30 September 2012 for travel from 16 November 2012-30 September 2013. For more information and to book, please visit www.airasia.com
In addition to The Terracotta Warriors of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, other attractions in Xi’an include the ancient City Wall, which was built during the Ming Dynasty, and the Big Goose Pagoda, 59 meters tall and the home of Buddhist sutras said to have been brought to Xi’an from India. While in Xi’an, also visit the Famen Temple—a 2,000 year old Mahayana Buddhist temple that houses relics of the Sakyamuni Buddha and the Muslim Walking Street where travelers can enjoy a wonderful collection of folk crafts and Chinese-Muslim cuisine, offering a shopping and dining experience like nowhere else.
Nearby cities to explore include Luoyang, another ancient capital of China with a world heritage site, located only 2 hours away via a high-speed or bullet train. Visit the world-famous stone mountain, and sculptures of the Longmen Grottoes which contain 100,000 carved Buddha statues, or set foot in Xiaolin temple, where Kung Fu martial arts originated.
Meanwhile, AirAsia’s other new China destination, Wuhan, is home to many interesting travel destinations such as the Yellow Crane Tower, a 5 story structure offering impressive views of the Yangtze River and the experience of a watchman during the times of the Three Kingdoms; Guiyuan Temple, the site of a Guan Yin statue flanked by statues of her 500 disciples all made of clay covered in pure gold and Wuhan Museum, Hubei province’s most major museum displaying artifacts such as ancient Chinese bell instruments crafted 2,400 years ago. On top of it all, Wuhan also provides exciting shopping and a variety of food.
Starting from October 1st, 2012, AirAsia will start flying from Bangkok Don Mueang International Airport. Destinations from Bangkok to China include Hong Kong (2 daily flights), Macau (4 daily flights), Guangzhou (1 daily flight), Shenzhen (1 daily flight), Chongqing (1 daily flight), Wuhan (1 daily flight) and Xi’an (1 daily flight). Apart from this, AirAsia also offers direct flights from Thailand’s northern city of Chiang Mai to Macau (1 daily flight) and direct flights from Phuket to Hong Kong (1 daily flight). In total Thai AirAsia offers 9 routes and 13 daily flights between Thailand and China.
Flight Details
Bangkok (DMK) - Xi’an (XIY) Starting from 16 November 2012
Flight Number Route Flight Time Duration
FD 3842 DMK — XIY 09.30-14.35 Daily
FD 3843 XIY — DMK 15.25-18.40 Daily
Bangkok (DMK) — Wuhan (WUH) Starting from 19 October 2012
Flight Number Route Flight Time Duration
FD 2570 DMK — WUH 07.15-11.35 Daily
FD 2571 WUH — DMK 12.20-15.10 Daily