Thursday, December 5, 2019
Adding air connections between Nova Scotia and international destinations is crucial to growing tourism, as well as other sectors of the economy. Early in the fall of 2020 Nova Scotia will welcome visitors from China on two direct charter flights.
China Southern Airlines will fly from the city of Guangzhou to Halifax, bringing hundreds of tourists who will tour Nova Scotia, along with New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Guangzhou, a city of almost 15 million people, is the capital city of Guangdong province in southern China.
“This is a milestone in our relationship with China. Our partnerships with our sister province of Guangdong and Governor MA Xingrui, China Southern Airlines and GZL International Travel Service were critical to this initiative,” said Premier Stephen McNeil. “These flights are the first step in securing regular air access from Guangdong and other regions of China to Nova Scotia and the rest of our region. We look forward to welcoming even more Chinese visitors, students and business leaders as we continue to facilitate exchanges in tourism, education and culture.”
The province has a goal of attracting 50,000 Chinese visitors annually by 2024. In 2018 Nova Scotia welcomed about 5,000 Chinese visitors.
“This new charter will strengthen our efforts to bring more Chinese visitors to Nova Scotia in support of our One Nova Scotia goal. China is a priority tourism market for Canada and Nova Scotia. Last year, more than 737,000 high-spending Chinese travelers visited Canada. A direct flight, offering easy access to Nova Scotia, will make our province an even more appealing Canadian destination,” said Michele Saran, CEO Tourism Nova Scotia.
Tourism Nova Scotia will support the flights by co-investing in a marketing campaign designed to raise awareness of Nova Scotia and sell trip packages, which include airfare for the charter flights. We will be working with GZL International Travel Service Ltd., the tour operator that will be selling the travel packages to Nova Scotia.
Market research shows Nova Scotia has experiences and products that appeal to Chinese travellers – lobster, wine, dark skies/star viewing, marine life watching, coastal sightseeing and visiting World Heritage sites. The average visitor from China spends $2,850 in Canada, making it Canada’s second largest market in terms of visitor spending.
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