Have you ever planned a trip to a place that doesn’t have flights to a particular country? No, that’s silly talk. With that out of the way, SkyTeam’s China Eastern Airlines has just started a new nonstop flight from Tbilisi to Shanghai.
Firstly, as cool as it is to see Georgia aka Sakartvelo get its longest flight to date, why did it have to be China? Yes, yes, there’s the reciprocal visa-free entry between the two, the Belt & Road Initiative, and China Eastern’s deep (state-backed) pockets. But why couldn’t it be to NYC, home to the largest (albeit still quite small) Georgian population in the United States? That’s in addition to the expats from other CIS countries. OK, OK, a full plane ≠ success, but it would be cool to see a US carrier start the first worthwhile destination in years.
Quixotic rant, done.
The new nonstop flight from Tbilisi to Shanghai started on July 19th, after the Shanghai to Tbilisi leg made its inaugural departure on July 15th. The route uses an Airbus A332, and takes about 8-8.5 hours eastbound, and 9.5-10 hours westbound.
Although this is China Eastern Airlines’ first time into Georgia, Air China and China Southern have long been flying there via the city of Urumqi. Urumqi, located in northwest China in the area sometimes called East Turkestan (Xinjiang), is the big urban area of the region, and consequently, its major airport hub.
MU286, Tbilisi (TBS) – Shanghai (PVG), 21:00 – 10:00, Monday, Wednesday, Sunday
MU285, PVG – TBS, 12:50 – 19:00, Monday, Wednesday, Sunday
Except for the China-like presence of cigarette smoke, Georgia is a great place to visit. Some of the classic reasons to plan a trip there include hiking, thousands of years of wine, centuries-old monasteries deliberately perched on mountaintops (i.e. architecture), skiing, and of course, food.
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