Passengers on the Cebu Pacific Air's first flight from Manila are welcomed at Đà Nẵng International Airport. Photo courtesy of Trần Lê Lâm

ĐÀ NẴNG — Cebu Pacific Air new Manila-Đà Nẵng connection saw 177 passengers on the inaugural flight land at Đà Nẵng International Airport on Thursday, December 7.

The Philippines national flag carrier will begin operating the new route three times a week each Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday with an Airbus A320NEO aircraft.

Đà Nẵng is the third city in Việt Nam that Cebu Pacific Air now flies direct to, after Hà Nội and HCM City.

In celebration of the new route, the city’s tourism department presented all passengers with vouchers for Sky 36 Bar and an áo dài (traditional long dress) show.

Vice Chairman of Đà Nẵng People's Committee Trần Chí Cường said the introduction of the route resulted from endless efforts since the successful Route Asia in 2022 forum, an event dedicated to accelerating the aviation industry's recovery across the Asia-Pacific region, organised by Đà Nẵng.

The Philippines is a new and potential market to Đà Nẵng tourism industry, aiming at diversifying international tourists in the coming years, he said.

Cường said the central city would create the best conditions to boost tourism, trade and investment between the Philippines and Đà Nẵng.

The new Manila-Đà Nẵng route will be a magnet visitors from central Việt Nam and travellers from the Philippines to world heritage sites including Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng, Huế Monuments Complex, Hội An ancient town and Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary in Quảng Nam and beach vacations in Đà Nẵng.

Last month, key tourism hubs in Đà Nẵng, Quảng Nam and Thừa Thiên Huế hosted tourism promotion programmes in Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines.

According to the latest report from Đà Nẵng tourism department, more than 7.4 million tourists, of which 2 million were international visitors, booked rooms in the city in 2023.

Revenue from travel, hotel and restaurant service earned VNĐ28 trillion (US$1.12 billion), 67 per cent increase to last year, the report unveiled.

According to Đà Nẵng International Terminal Company (AHT), Đà Nẵng Airport currently hosts 16 international routes including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Macao, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Korea and Japan with an average of 50 flights per day.

Đà Nẵng International Airport is designed to handle 28 million passengers and 200,000 tonnes of cargo by 2030. — VNS