The Department of Tourism (DOT) welcomes Air China’s inaugural service from Chongqing to Manila (CKG-MNL) on Saturday (May 2), marking a crucial step towards recovering the Philippines’ previously robust Chinese tourist arrivals.
This comes on the heels of the recently restored visa-free policy for Chinese tourists entering the country via Manila and Cebu. The new Air-China route makes travel more convenient for prospective tourists from one of China’s major metropolitan and outbound travel markets.
The plane from Chongqing landed in Manila at 12:16 midnight, carrying at least 155 passengers, who were greeted by DOT through its National Capital Region (NCR) Office and Routes Development Unit.
Meanwhile, the outbound MNL-CKG flight departed from the Philippines at 1:50 a.m. local time with 145 passengers on board.
Flag carrier Air China also has existing direct routes connecting the major cities of Chengdu and Beijing to Manila. As of the first quarter of 2026, the airline already mounted at least 131 direct flights to the Philippines, offering close to 34,000 seats.
China is among the Philippines’ top tourist market, logging a total of 150,708 visitors based on data captured by the e-travel system as of April 30, 2026.
Discover more from Great Travel Philippines
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.