Hangzhou is served by Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport (HGH), a major airport in the Yangtze River Delta and one of the busiest in China for arrivals into Hangzhou. It serves as an important alternative to Shanghai's airports for reaching Hangzhou, offering extensive domestic connectivity from across China to HGH and a growing international network, particularly from Europe, North America, and Asia to Hangzhou.
The most frequent and affordable flights to Hangzhou are domestic routes from major Chinese cities to HGH. Key origins include Beijing (PEK/PKX), Guangzhou (CAN), Shenzhen (SZX), Chengdu (TFU), and Xi'an (XIY) to Hangzhou. Internationally, Hangzhou has developed into a significant long-haul arrival hub, with direct flights from Amsterdam (AMS), Madrid (MAD), Los Angeles (LAX), Sydney (SYD), and numerous cities across Southeast and East Asia, including Singapore (SIN), Bangkok (BKK), and Seoul (ICN) to HGH.
The market for flights to Hangzhou is competitive and features a strong base for several airlines flying into HGH. China Southern Airlines and Air China have significant operations to Hangzhou. Xiamen Airlines uses Hangzhou as a focus city for arrivals at HGH. Low-cost carrier Spring Airlines is a major player into Hangzhou, offering very competitive fares on many domestic and regional routes to HGH. International airlines like KLM, Air France, and Singapore Airlines serve their hubs from HGH to Hangzhou.
To find cheap flights to Hangzhou, book domestic flights 3-6 weeks in advance for arrival at HGH. For international travel to Hangzhou, especially long-haul routes from Europe or North America, start searching 2-5 months ahead for flights to HGH. Utilize Hangzhou's role as a Shanghai alternative for reaching Hangzhou—checking fares into HGH can reveal significant savings compared to PVG/SHA, especially when including ground transportation costs to Hangzhou from those airports. Flying mid-week to HGH typically offers lower fares into Hangzhou. For domestic travel to Hangzhou, Spring Airlines often provides the lowest base fares to HGH, but always compare total costs with full-service carriers for flights to Hangzhou.