Price cuts for extra cross-strait flights over Lunar New Year
Taipei, Dec. 26 (CNA) Discounts of at least 10 percent will be offered for extra flights being scheduled on cross-Taiwan Strait routes for the coming Lunar New Year holiday, Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) Director-General Lee Lung-wen said Saturday.
According to Lee, the CAA and Taiwan-based carriers have agreed that the price of additional cross-strait flights during the Lunar New Year period from Jan. 3 to Feb. 28 — the first new year holiday since the two sides started regular flight services in July — will be slashed by at least 10 percent.
Price cuts for popular cross-strait routes with restricted flight numbers will be smaller, while the range for other routes, such as Taiwan/Nanjing and Taiwan/Hangzhou could be larger, Lee added.
The CAA announced Dec. 25 that 176 flights will be added to four popular cross-strait routes from Taiwan to Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou during the period, meaning that each side will be able to offer an additional 88 flights — 32 flights from Taiwan to Shanghai, 20 flights from Taiwan to Beijing, 20 flights from Taiwan to Guangzhou and 16 flights from Taiwan to Shenzhen.
With the 176 flights added to their 496 normal flights on the four routes, Lee predicted that 403,200 seats will be available to transport passengers cross the strait during the Lunar New Year period.
Flight schedules and quotas for additional flights allocated to each carrier will be announced next week, while the booking for seat reservations is expected to kick off in late January, he added.
CAA officials, however, warned the public that the schedule for flights temporarily added to meet strong travel demand is usually inconvenient for passengers, either early morning or late at night.
Meanwhile, business sources said ticket prices for popular routes on New Year holidays have continued to surge due to the limited increase in flight numbers between the two sides.
For instance, they noted, a round-trip ticket between Taiwan and Shanghai during the Lunar New Year period stands at a high of around NT$25,000 (US$800), while a two-way Taiwan-Guangzhou ticket will cost around NT$20,000. (By S. F. Wang and Flor Wang)
More Info: http://www.taiwanheadlines.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=175128&CtNode=39
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