Ningbo, Xi’an & Chengdu, China: €660 Shanghai Airlines Premium Economy from Budapest

SkyTeam members China Eastern and its subsidiary Shanghai Airlines bring you a very interesting fare from Budapest to two Chinese destinations. For just €685, you can reach Xi’An (home of the Terracotta Army) or Chengdu (heart of the famously hot Sichuan kitchen) – all while spending the long-haul flights from Europe to China with a little more legroom. Nonstop roundtrips to Ningbo are the cheapest of the bunch for just €660. Two checked bags up to 23kg each are included in the ticket price, too.

Our availability calendar highlights all possible flight dates at the lowest price for trips up to 28 days. It will forward you to flights search with your selected flight dates. There, you can also check what OTAs have to offer or buy them directly from the airline.

The first segment of your flight will be a Shanghai Airlines premium economy class flights to either Shanghai or Ningbo. They will be operated by Boeing 787 aircraft with a 2-3-2 seating in premium economy. Your connection is a domestic flight, operated by China Eastern Airbus A320 or Boeing 737 family aircraft. You will be seated in economy class on these flights.

Search & Book

The fare rules don’t give away a sales period for these fares. A minimum stay of six days or one night from Saturday to Sunday is necessary to get the lowest fare. You can find this fare for departures in December 2023, as well as January through March 2024.

Google Flights helps you find additional flight dates. From there, you can proceed directly to China Eastern or to Skyscanner, which will show you the cheapest tickets OTAs have to offer.

Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?

More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:

Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.

If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.

This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.

Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.

This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.

Mileage

The long-haul fights are issued in booking class P, Chinese domestic flights are booking class B.

If you are keen on collecting as many miles as possible, make sure that the long-haul trip from Budapest to China has a China Eastern (MU) instead of a Shanghai Airlines (FM) flight number.

A trip from Budapest to Ningbo ticketed by Shanghai Airlines (FM) earns the following mileage:

The same flight booked as a China Eastern (MU) code share flights earns a wider variety of miles and points:

Cover Picture: ©victor zastol'skiy - stock.adobe.com