From October 25, 2026 to March 27, 2027, Shanghai International Airport Co.,Ltd. (Shanghai Airport) will implement its 2026 winter-spring flight schedule.
In the new season, Shanghai Airport will show new features of "enhanced intercontinental connectivity, densified domestic express lines, and balanced coverage of winter escapes and ice-snow tourism." The average daily planned flights will reach 2,511, up 3.8% year on year, including 1,709 at Pudong Airport and 802 at Hongqiao Airport. With a more accessible hub route network and higher-quality transit services, it aims to let Chinese and foreign passengers enjoy a pleasant air travel experience and add momentum to Shanghai's effort to become a world-renowned tourist city.
Intercontinental connectivity will be further improved. In the new season, Pudong Airport, as the main platform of Shanghai's international aviation hub, will further enhance its intercontinental connectivity. It plans to add a new route to Algiers, the capital of Algeria, and increase flight frequencies to Frankfurt, Germany; Auckland, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; Singapore; Bangkok, Thailand; Jeju, South Korea; Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; and other destinations. Among them, the world's longest single-route service, Shanghai Pudong-Auckland, New Zealand-Buenos Aires, Argentina, will be further densified, increasing from two flights per week to four flights per week starting December 5. Operated by China Eastern Airlines, this route will build a more convenient air bridge for economic, trade and cultural exchanges between China and Argentina and even the wider South American region.
Flight frequencies to winter escape and ice-snow tourism destinations will be further increased. Focusing on the popular winter-spring travel themes of winter escapes and ice-snow tourism, Shanghai Airport will further densify frequencies to popular domestic destinations. It plans to increase flights to more than 30 cities including Harbin, Shenyang, Beijing, Urumqi, Chengdu, Kunming, Lijiang, Xiamen, Jieyang, Guangzhou and Zhuhai, covering scenarios such as escaping the cold, chasing snow, visiting relatives and tourism. At the same time, Hongqiao Airport's domestic trunk network will be further woven more densely, with nine high-frequency domestic express lines (12 or more departures per day), connecting Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Xi'an, Chongqing, Chengdu, Kunming and other cities, further densifying high-frequency domestic destinations and better meeting the diverse air travel needs of the public.
Transit and entry services will be warmer and more convenient. Before the season change, the international-to-international transit hall at Pudong Airport Terminal 2 was renovated and upgraded, expanding from 170 square meters to 336 square meters. It is equipped with 14 airline manual counters, three customs temperature screening gates and six border inspection self-service gates, enabling through-checked baggage for international-to-international transit services for 10 airlines including Air China, Juneyao Air, Spring Airlines, Lufthansa and British Airways. The international-to-international transit hall at Pudong Airport Terminal 1 has also been continuously improved in function, with five airlines including China Eastern, Shanghai Airlines, Delta and Air France-KLM providing international transit services. Three one-stop comprehensive service centers for foreign nationals at the two airports provide foreign currency exchange, communication card processing, mobile Wi-Fi rental, transportation card purchases, mobile payment consultation and other services. After arriving at the airport, foreign passengers can use their passports for authentication to quickly access Shanghai Airport's wireless network free of charge. Nearly 200 "Little Aviation Stars" foreign-language volunteers at Shanghai Airport provide comprehensive volunteer assistance to passengers in arrival public areas, airport transportation points and other locations. Services such as Shanghai free half-day tours, multilingual audio guides at Pudong Airport, 24-hour free showers, and 72-hour free baggage storage and wheelchair rental at Hongqiao Airport also make entry and transit at the airports more efficient, convenient and comfortable for Chinese and foreign passengers.
Original title: 2026 Winter-Spring Flight Season Begins Tomorrow: Shanghai Airport Expands Intercontinental Connectivity and Boosts Domestic Hotspot Frequencies
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