China Eastern Airlines will start flying daily to Brisbane from Shanghai later this year.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk secured the commitment from China’s second largest airline during a recent trade mission in China.
"Our partnership with China Eastern was a first and the airline has shown great confidence in my government’s ongoing commitment to increase aviation access to Queensland," Ms Palaszczuk said.
"Having met with senior China Eastern officials in China recently and putting the case for more flights to and from Queensland, I’m very pleased in their decision to increase their commitment from three flights per week to seven.
It is a big win for Queensland tourism as the original three flights a week service hasn’t even started yet.
The daily service begins on December 16 using wide-bodied Airbus A330 aircraft.
"This new China Eastern service will provide a potential boost of more than $50 million in overnight visitor expenditure and continue to develop Queensland’s fastest growing international visitor market. Continuing to strengthen partnerships in the Asian market is a key focus for our Government with the aim of generating increased visitation from the region," said tourism minister Kate Jones.
According to state tourism data, about 400,000 Chinese visitors came to Queensland last year contributed nearly $1 billion in spending, which was up more than 50% on the previous year.
