BEIJING: China’s push for high-standard opening-up and easier cross-border travel is creating fresh opportunities for international airlines seeking a larger share of the world’s second-largest travel market.
For Kazakhstan’s flag carrier Air Astana, those policies are translating into a rapid expansion in China, highlighted by the launch of a direct Almaty-Shanghai route in late March, after nearly two decades of modest growth in the market.
Air Astana group chief executive Ibrahim Canliel said the bilateral visa-free regime between China and Kazakhstan had significantly boosted travel demand and business exchanges.
“The mutual visa-free policy introduced in 2023 has been an absolute booster,” Canliel said.
“The group carried more than 250,000 passengers between Kazakhstan and China in 2025, a 96% increase year-on-year. This momentum has continued into the first quarter of this year.”
The surge follows a reciprocal visa-free agreement effective since November 2023, allowing citizens of both countries to travel for short visits without a visa, with a maximum allowable stay of up to 30 days per trip.
Kazakhstan’s Tourism and Sports Ministry said the Central Asian country received 15.7 million foreign leisure tourists in 2025, maintaining strong growth in recent years. Chinese visitors ranked fourth after Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia.
Chinese tourist arrivals reached about 968,800 in 2025, a nearly 50% year-on-year increase from 655,000 in 2024.
While Air Astana has served China for more than two decades, its network remained relatively small for much of that time.
The airline launched its first Almaty-Beijing service in 2002, followed by a route to Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, mainly serving business travelers and regional traffic.
That pattern has changed sharply in the past two years as travel demand rebounded and bilateral ties deepened.
Since late 2024, Air Astana has reopened and launched routes to Urumqi, Sanya, Hainan province, Guangzhou, Guangdong province and Yining, Xinjiang, followed by Shanghai in 2026. — China Daily/ANN
