Shaanxi province's Xi'an, a 3,000-year old city, which was the country's capital for 13 dynasties, also expects more travelers from Europe since Finnair opened a Helsinki-Xi'an route in June.
The new route is the first nonstop route connecting Europe to Xi'an, which before the route's opening, only had 10 direct routes to Asian cities.
Traffic used to be an issue limiting the city's tourism industry as Xi'an ranked 18th on a list of Chinese cities welcoming inbound tourism in 2011, said Kang Lifeng, deputy director of the Xi'an tourism administration.
Kang said the route to Europe will change the situation and bring more travelers to the city.
Europe has been a main source of inbound tourism for Xi'an for years. European countries, such as Germany, France and the UK, are the city's most important inbound tourism markets, according to the administration.
September and October are usually the peak season for European travelers to visit China, and the new route makes travel to Xi'an this year more convenient.
On the other side, the international routes also provide Chinese travelers with more options abroad.
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