A move by China’s Fujian Provincial Tourism Bureau and the Xiamen Tourism Bureau to bump up travel to and from the coastal China city shows great promise. Launched as “Go to Amoy” in conjunction with Netherlands airline company KLM, the campaign pushes the direct 12 hour flight between cities.
For those who do not know, Xiamen was called “Amoy” by the Portuguese. The 13th century city is an international harbour coastal city is located on the southeast coast of China and the western bank of Taiwan Strait. Chen Guilin, Xiamen Tourism Bureau deputy director general, had this to say to China Daily:
“Started from 2011, tourists from Europe to Xiamen kept 10 percent annual growth rate, and reached 148,800 last year with a 16 percent growth.”
Xiamen is a big hit for domestic travel, but the port is less well known outside China. According to what we find on the KLM site, the new route will be serviced by Boeing 777-200ER aircraft. Fares start at €697 euro round trip economy if booked via the KLM site.