Boosting travel to the fastest-growing destination country, Air China will approximately double its Australasian capacity over the peak summer holiday season.
Sydney Airport confirmed to Karryon that Air China’s Sydney-Beijing (Capital) flights will increase from seven to 10-weekly services from 1 December to 14 January 2027, before growing to a twice-daily operation from 15 January to 21 February 2027.
Air China will utilise its B787-9 aircraft on the extra capacity.
Australia’s busiest 24/7 hub, Melbourne Airport, has confirmed Air China will also increase its Melbourne-Beijing route from four flights per week to five from 5 December to 4 January 2027, before boosting the service to a daily operation from 5 January to 1 March 2027.
The Beijing-headquartered carrier will fly its A330-300 on the Tullamarine route.
Across the Tasman, Air China will also increase Auckland-Beijing flights from five per week to a daily service between 1 December and 14 January 2027, before growing to a twice-daily service between 15 January and 20 February 2027.
In another China summer travel boost, China Eastern Airlines will increase Sydney-Shanghai Pudong flights between 11 December and 15 February 2027 from twice daily to triple daily, with the extra services to be operated by the carrier’s A330-200.
Over the same period, China Eastern will grow its Brisbane-Shanghai Pudong service from seven to 10 flights per week, with the extra flights also operated by its A330-200 aircraft. The Shanghai-based airline’s Melbourne, Perth and Cairns flights are unchanged.
Last month, China Eastern kicked off its inaugural Adelaide service, opening the only direct link between South Australia and mainland China.
More Taiwan
Elsewhere, Taiwan’s China Airlines will also increase flights later this year, with Sydney-Taipei (Taoyuan) flights growing from five to seven flights per week from 25 October, and Melbourne-Taipei flights growing from four to five flights per week from 28 October.
The Taiwanese carrier will also add one extra Brisbane flight per week to its schedule from 26 October (in addition to its current five-times-weekly Brisbane-Taipei-Auckland service). China Airlines will operate all Australasian flights with its A350-900 aircraft.
China has been the fastest-growing destination for Australians in recent months, with official government data showing it leads year-on-year growth among short-term resident returns.
In April (the latest available data), 90,930 short-term trips were recorded, an increase of 34 per cent over the same month in 2025. China was also the fastest-growing destination in March, recording 31 per cent growth.
A rival to Japan?
Newly released Skyscanner data also shows China’s emergence. Its data reveals that searches for China flights grew by 44 per cent y-o-y over the last six months, even outpacing growth in searches for Japan (+41%).
According to Skyscanner, Gen Z Aussies in particular are travelling to China to discover “untapped” culture and attractions that have already been discovered in Japan.
Speaking to Karryon earlier this year, Wendy Wu Tours founder and namesake Wendy Wu predicted China’s rise this year, expressing her excitement about the diverse destination.
“I always tell people… if you’re thinking of going to China, go now, because China has changed so much,” she said of the business’s spiritual home.
“So many different aspects of China will shock you – like you will think they are maybe a developing country, but actually they’re so developed.”
