Southeast Asia Information Port (www.dnyxxg.com) – Chen Wei, head of the Shanghai liaison office of Lao Airlines, stated that with the official implementation of Laos' visa-free policy for Chinese group tourists, the resumption of direct flights between Shanghai and Vientiane by Lao National Airlines is now on the agenda. Both sides plan to launch a weekly direct flight between Shanghai and Vientiane in early October this year, with further adjustments to increase flight frequency depending on tourist recovery.
The Lao government has designated 2024 as the "Year of Tourism in Laos." On May 19th of this year, Lao Airlines launched a weekly round-trip international passenger route between Pakse and Guangzhou. The newly implemented visa-free policy for Chinese group tourists significantly accelerates the timeline for the resumption of flights between Shanghai and Vientiane.
Currently, most mainland Chinese tourists visiting Laos are independent travelers or business travelers. Data released by Ctrip shows that since the beginning of this year, bookings for travel to Laos by mainland Chinese tourists have increased by approximately 100% year-on-year, with bookings for summer travel to Laos increasing by over 140% year-on-year, ranking among the top 10 fastest-growing outbound destinations during the summer.
