Harbin-Yekaterinburg-Kazan flights will be launched from Koltsovo international airport (part of the Airports of Regions holding) starting on October 27. The new route means another opportunity for Chinese tourists to visit Russian cities and connect to flights heading for European capitals, whereas people of the Urals will be able to fly to Harbin or Kazan.
The flights will be operated every Sunday by Urals Airlines using Airbus A320 seating 156 travelers. The departure from Yekaterinburg to Kazan is scheduled for 07:15; to Harbin – for 20:30, local time. The traveling time to Kazan will be 1h 30min; to Harbin – 6h 15min.
China is a strategic destination for Koltsovo airport and one of important contributors to connection flights performed from the Urals air hub. Tourists from Beijing and Harbin use Yekaterinburg as an interchange hub, when they travel to European capitals (Prague, Paris or Rome) as well as to Moscow and Saint-Petersburg. From January to August of this year Koltsovo airport has provided its services for ca. 70,000 transit passengers from China.
A benign environment for Chinese tourists has been created at Koltsovo. The air hub of Yekaterinburg is equipped with Chinese navigation; the timetable in the passenger terminal is duplicated in English and Chinese, while the announcements of flights to China can be heard in Chinese as well. The airport’s cafes and restaurants offer Chinese guests some meals from their national cuisine, and menus are available in Chinese.