Many Chinese tourists can now fly directly to Kota Kinabalu following the successful launch of a direct flight between Sabah and China’s Hainan province.
“We estimate around 500 to 600 Chinese tourists will travel to Sabah during the three-month period from December to March, in conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2026,” said Hainan Nanyang International Travel Service general manager Guan Xuehei.
“We plan to operate a total of 15 charter flights, with about five to six flights per month. Each aircraft has a seating capacity of 186 seats, using Firefly’s Boeing 737-800. Overall passenger capacity is under 3,000 seats,” he said when hosting a dinner reception for Sabah travel agents here.
Guan said many Chinese passengers travelled to Sabah on the inaugural flight on Dec 24.
“We actively support two-way development to drive both tourism and trade as Hainan is an open island,” he said.
Hainan is known as China’s “migratory bird island”, where people from across the country travel during winter to escape the cold, he added.
He said winter is the best season in Hainan as the climate is pleasant and comfortable, adding that launching the flight during this period also helps attract Malaysian tourists to China.
Guan noted that Sabah has a large population of overseas Hainanese, while Hainan itself is well known as a province of overseas Chinese.
“This route provides a faster and more convenient channel for home visits and family reunions, significantly reducing travel time compared to transit flights,” he said.
Hainan’s attractions include its coastal and mountain cultures, ethnic minority communities such as the Li and Miao, major landmarks like the Nanshan Sea Goddess of Mercy statue, and modern developments under the International Tourism Island initiative launched 15 years ago.
Iconic projects include Atlantis Sanya, the third Atlantis resort in the world after Dubai and the Bahamas, as well as Ocean Flower Island, a large-scale integrated tourism development with investment exceeding RMB160 billion.
Apart from tourism, Guan said the route also supports business exchanges. Since the Free Trade Port has just been sealed, there is growing interest among Malaysian companies in understanding Hainan’s policies, exploring opportunities and conducting site visits.
“Many Malaysian enterprises are already engaging with Chinese chambers of commerce and business associations here.
“This route plays a role in policy promotion, business matching and two-way commercial interaction, which will help stimulate economic exchanges following the Free Trade Port’s implementation,” he said.
Funholiday Tours and Travel managing director Connie Chong said the flight time between Sabah and Hainan is only about three hours, making travel highly convenient.
She said Hainan is a large and modern city region with diverse characteristics, which many people mistakenly perceive as rural or similar to Sabah simply because it is an island destination.
Also present were Guan’s assistant Wang Jinglei and Sabah travel agents from Exotic Asian Explorer, First Choice, Fine Vacation, Golden Borneo and Guang Ming, who were presented with appreciation certificates as Hainan tourism promotion ambassadors to foster mutual development and enduring friendly ties.
