Three major airports in Hainan province plan to operate 90 international routes this year as the tropical island steps up efforts to become a free trade port.

Haikou Meilan International Airport, Sanya Phoenix International Airport, and Qionghai Boao International Airport are targeting more than 2.4 million inbound passengers and preparing for increased travel and cargo demand ahead of the island's upcoming special customs operations on Dec 18. As of Aug 12, international passenger traffic across the three airports has exceeded 1.4 million this year, with over 10,000 international flights handled, a 33 percent and 20 percent year-on-year increase, respectively.

Hainan Airport Group has expanded its global route network, adding 16 new flights this year, including connections to London, Frankfurt, Jeddah, Tokyo, Osaka, and Jakarta. The island now links to 37 cities across 20 countries and regions, including Southeast Asia, Japan, South Korea, Australia, the Middle East, Europe, and the US, as well as Hong Kong and Macao. The network covers most Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership nations and countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

Strategic route planning has strengthened Hainan's role as a regional hub. By maintaining flights to Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, Haikou has emerged as a major southern transit corridor, rivaling Guangzhou, Guangdong province, according to Hainan Daily.

Statistics from the airport group showed that the share of medium-to-long-haul wide-body aircraft routes has nearly doubled since 2019, reaching 18.8 percent. In the first half of 2024, international transfer passengers surged 32 percent to over 260,000.

All three airports offer one-stop service centers with payment, telecom, and tourism support, multilingual translation devices, and currency exchange for 19 foreign currencies. Every airport merchant accepts international card payments.