First China-Portugal flight to take off

The first direct flight between China and Portugal is slated to take flight in the summer to bolster tourism from China to Portugal.

The new flight between Beijing and Lisbon is scheduled to start from June 2017, but no further details have been revealed.

The announcement was made during Portugal Prime Minister Antonio Costa's state visit to China.

On October 8, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang held a welcoming ceremony for his Portuguese counterpart in Beijing. The two leaders witnessed the signing of eight collaborative projects after holding talks.

Costa said the launch of a direct flight from Beijing to Lisbon would pave the way for better connectivity between the two countries.

Luis Araújo, president of Turismo de Portugal, the Portuguese National Tourism Authourity, said both the Chinese and Portuguese tourism industries had been longing to see the direct flight launched and he was honored to cooperate with Beijing Capital Airlines CO to make the flight possible.

According to Turismo de Portugal, Portugal is the eighth most visited European country among Chinese tourists. In the first half of 2016, the country welcomed 153,000 Chinese visitors, a 35 percent increase compared to the same period last year, while overnight hotel stays also increased 29 per cent to 271,200.

Portugal has set up eight visa centers in China. Besides the three first-tier cities, there are others in Fuzhou, Shenyang, Wuhan, Chengdu and Nanjing.