First in Central and Western China: Chengdu-Athens Route Opens Today! What Will It Bring to Sichuan and Greece?
Early this morning, Sichuan Airlines flight 3U3827 departed from Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, officially launching the Chengdu Tianfu–Istanbul–Athens route. Chengdu has become the third city in mainland China to offer direct flights to Athens, after Beijing and Shanghai, and the only city in central and western China to do so. Why did Sichuan open this route? What will it bring to Sichuan and Greece? Let's take a look.
Chengdu-Athens Route Opens Today
Total flight time about 13 hours
The Chengdu Tianfu–Istanbul–Athens route is operated by an Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft, with four round trips per week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. The outbound flight, 3U3827, is scheduled to depart from Chengdu Tianfu International Airport at 1:35 AM, arrive in Istanbul, Turkey at 6:30 AM local time, and then reach Athens, Greece at 10:00 AM local time. The return flight, 3U3828, is scheduled to depart from Athens International Airport at 12:00 PM local time, arrive in Istanbul at 1:40 PM local time, and return to Chengdu at 5:20 AM Beijing time the next day.
The maiden flight had a passenger load factor of nearly 90%, with passengers mainly traveling for sightseeing, business meetings, or visiting friends and relatives. Among the passengers, about half were from the Sichuan-Chongqing region, while the other half were transit passengers from other parts of China and around the world. The farthest traveler came from Australia, transiting through Tianfu Airport to Athens.
This route is a 'Fifth Freedom' route extending from Istanbul to Athens. The Fifth Freedom, also known as the third-country traffic right, allows an airline to operate an international route originating from its home country, with stops in a third country to embark and disembark passengers and load and unload cargo. A single ticket connects three major cities across three countries, offering passengers more travel options.
From the 'Golden Ancient Road' to an Air Corridor
The new route creates a cultural journey from the 'Ancient Shu Kingdom' to 'Ancient Greece'
Over 3,000 years ago, the Ancient Shu Kingdom and Ancient Greece created brilliant civilizations in the East and West respectively, leaving behind precious relics. Today, people are amazed to find that gold masks unearthed from Shu ruins bear a striking resemblance to ancient Greek gold masks. This interesting similarity proves the spread of gold-working techniques across Eurasia, suggesting there was a mysterious 'Golden Ancient Road' between the two regions.
Over 2,000 years ago, the ancient Greek writer Heniktesias recorded a place called 'Seres' in his 'Records of Persia'. Today, scholars believe that the name 'Seres' originates from 'silk' and was the ancient Greek term for China. This is strong evidence of the Silk Road extending westward to the Mediterranean.
The shift from 'gold' to 'silk' epitomizes the changing exchange routes between two great ancient civilizations. For thousands of years, this route has been long-standing and ever-renewing, driving deeper economic, social, and cultural exchanges between the two regions.
"Greece is not just about historical monuments; it is also ideal for wellness and holiday retreats." On June 26, on the eve of the Chengdu-Athens route launch, Pavlos Mourmas, Director of the Greek National Tourism Organization's China office, came to Chengdu and promoted Greek scenery to numerous travel agency representatives at a route promotion event.
This time, he was clearly well-prepared. While introducing Greek scenery, he not only compared it with Sichuan's attractions but also tailored several new travel experiences based on Sichuan people's preferences, including hot spring wellness, outdoor sports, and culinary exploration.
Clearly, Pavlos Mourmas hopes this flight will bring more Sichuan visitors to Greece. A recent tourism report released by Greece shows that in 2025, Greek tourism is on the rise, and the expansion of international routes has further enhanced Greece's appeal to long-haul travelers. In the first four months of this year, the number of air travelers entering Greece increased by 10% year-on-year. Sichuan contributed to this: from January to June, outbound travelers from Chengdu's airport to Greece increased by 6.2% year-on-year.
At the same time, Sichuan, with its unique natural scenery, profound historical and cultural heritage, and modern urban charm, is also very popular among Greek tourists.
Li Jia, a Chinese national, runs a travel agency in Greece. Last year, she and her Greek counterparts attended a China-Greece tourism exchange in Chongqing. 'They absolutely love pandas—their eyes lit up,' Li Jia said. Many of her Greek counterparts were visiting China for the first time and didn't have a deep impression of the country, but everyone wanted to see pandas. They even cleared out hotel brochures with panda patterns, saying they would take them back to Greece as gifts for friends.
After returning to Greece, she began researching Chinese travel itineraries and products. Riding the wave of the new air route, she plans to develop a Sichuan-Chongqing themed tour that links Sichuan's pandas, Jiuzhaigou, and other highlights, packaging them for Greek travelers. 'We've done preliminary research, and the market response has been positive,' she said.
Li Jia is not alone; travel agencies in Sichuan are also taking action. 'Generally, after a new route opens, some travel itineraries will follow,' said Wang Zhaoxue, President of the Sichuan Travel Agency Association. In terms of product design, besides attracting Sichuan travelers, they also plan to draw tourists from other places, creating a cultural journey from the 'Ancient Shu Kingdom' to 'Ancient Greece'. The maiden flight's passenger data showed that one-third of the passengers came from outside Sichuan to take the flight, with the farthest traveler from Australia.
Eight Pairs of Friendly Cooperative Relations Lay the Foundation
Actively Promoting Sichuan Goods Going Out and Greek Products Coming In
As both ancient civilizations, China and Greece have a long history of friendly exchanges. In 2017, Chengdu and the Greek city of Patras signed a friendly exchange cooperation agreement, kicking off cooperation between the two cities. Two years later, in 2019, Chengdu and the Greek capital Athens formally established friendly cooperative relations. In November of the same year, Greece was officially approved to set up a consulate in Sichuan, the first consular office of Greece in Southwest China.
The partnership between Greece, the cradle of Western civilization, and the birthplace of the ancient Shu civilization, has become another important node in the dialogue between Chinese and European civilizations.
Athens Deputy Mayor Maria Iliopoulou once stated in an interview: 'Athens and Chengdu have broad space for cooperation in culture, education, tourism, and other fields.' In addition, Sichuan Province has established friendly cooperative relations with the Peloponnese Region and Attica Region in Greece. As of now, the province has established 8 pairs of friendly cooperative relations with Greece.
In recent years, sister city exchanges have played an important role in deepening cooperation between Sichuan and Greece, especially in people-to-people exchanges. Various promotional events have been held in Sichuan and Greece, and artist sketching activities, performances, and exhibitions have taken place frequently.
In May this year, a mutual learning and exchange event between the ancient Shu and ancient Greek civilizations was held at the Nea Smyrni Municipal Museum in Athens. During the event, the cultural communication project 'Sanxingdui-Jinsha Drift Bottle' launched by the Sichuan International Communication Center together with the Sanxingdui Museum was officially initiated in Greece, helping to find more audiences for the ancient Shu and ancient Greek civilizations.
Alongside cultural exchanges, economic and trade cooperation has also deepened. In 2024, Sichuan's exports to Greece exceeded 900 million yuan, while imports were 28.6301 million yuan. Although the base is small, the growth momentum is strong, with a year-on-year increase of 206.1%. In recent years, Greece's agricultural products, pharmaceutical industry, and building materials have been key export areas. Jiang Zhen'an, President of the China-Greece Friendship Association of Overseas Chinese, believes that as Chinese consumers' demand for healthy food continues to rise, healthy Mediterranean diets will become more attractive to the Chinese market.
Sichuan Airlines has already seen this opportunity. The newly launched Athens route will conduct international logistics through 'belly cargo' operations. 'We will actively organize cargo sources to promote Sichuan goods going out and Greek products coming in,' said Gao Pengsong, Deputy General Manager of the International (Regional) Route Management Department of Sichuan Airlines' Commercial Committee. He mentioned that they have already communicated with local cross-border e-commerce companies, and in the future, they will bring 'Made in Sichuan' electronic products to Greece while bringing 'Made in Greece' specialty foods into Sichuan.
"Previously, attending events in Greece required layovers, but now not only the cost is reduced, but the time is also shortened!" Yang Li, founder of Nongyuan International Art Village, told reporters. This August, Nongyuan will hold a large-scale international graffiti art festival, with an expected 500 artists coming to Chengdu. Among them, a large portion of the hundreds of international artists come from Europe. The direct flight will undoubtedly bring more convenience to the artists.
Reported by Kou Minfang and Tian Shan from Chuanguan News
