Da Nang (VNA) – Budget carrier AirAsia’s first flight connectingThailand’s Chiang Mai province and Vietnam’s central coastal city of Da Nanglanded at Da Nang International Airport on April 12, with 180 passengers onboard.

The daily flight takes a total of one hour and 45 minutes, departing at 8 am fromChiang Mai and 10:15 am from Da Nang city.

AirAsia already has a Bangkok-Da Nang route withthree flights per week, and a Da Nang-Kuala Lumpur route with two flights perweek.

According to Vice Director of the Da Nang Centre for Tourism Promotion HuynhThi Huong Lan, Thailand has become one of the city’s biggest sources oftourists in recent years. During the January-March period, the city welcomednearly 60,000 Thai visitors, up 35.7 percent from the same time last year.

The direct flight will facilitate the travel of people from both countries, shesaid.

Da Nang has won theheart of both domestic and foreign tourists thanks to its marvelous sandybeaches, stunning natural landscapes, as well as intriguing tourist attractionslike Ba Na Hill Mountain Resort, Ngu Hanh Son, Son Tra Peninsula, Linh Ung Pagoda,and Han River, among others.

Recently, the online marketplace and hospitality service Airbnb announced alist of the world’s top 10 destinations for 2018, in which Da Nang ranked fifthwith bookings surging up to 255 percent.

The New York Times, which has an international readership, has included Da Nangin a list of 52 places to go in 2019. As the third-largest city of Vietnam, DaNang has gone from a place “best known for being a gateway to the UNESCOHeritage town of Hoi An” to an attraction “with a strong foodie scene and newhotels and resorts popping up on a 5-mile-long beach strip”, according to theUS magazine.

Meanwhile, Chiang Mai, the largest city in Thailand’s northern region, providesan excellent retreat for both couples and families who want to discover thebeauty of the nature or indulge in intriguing outdoor experiences like hot airballooning, animal sanctuaries, and Hang Dong Canyon.

Chiang Mai has risen to stardom with its standout cuisine which can easily befound from night markets to shopping malls and high-end restaurants. For thosewho want to experience the ancient Lanna culture of northern Thailand, they canvisit Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep and Wat Sri Suphan temples.–VNA