Hainan Airlines Restarting Seattle-Beijing Route in April

Updated: July 18, 2024, 6:45am CDT

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First Seattle to Beijing Route Since 2020
How to Book
Final Thoughts

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Hainan Airlines announced that it would resume flights from its Beijing (PEK) hub to Seattle (SEA) starting next week.

Here’s what you need to know about the returning route.

First Seattle to Beijing Route Since 2020

Hainan will resume nonstop service between Seattle and Beijing on Tuesday, April 2. Flights will take place on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, and the airline will use its Boeing 787 aircraft on the route.

Hainan Airlines 787-9 business class. Image Credit: Hainan Airlines

Here’s a look at the timetable:

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Flight Number	Route	Schedule	Departure Time	Arrival Time
HU496	Seattle-Beijing	Tue/Thu/Sat	11:00	15:10+1
HU495	Beijing-Seattle	Tue/Thu/Sat	13:10	09:00

Hainan has not flown the route in nearly 4 years. The Chinese airline flew this route before the COVID-19 pandemic and, like many carriers, cut back on routes during the pandemic.

While Hainan didn’t rule out adding more “frequencies in the future,” the carrier noted that it’s subject to a bilateral agreement between the U.S. and China.

How to Book

Flights are now available for booking on Hainan Airlines or through an online travel agency (OTA) like Expedia. Round-trip tickets between SEA-PEK start around $1,450 in economy for dates this spring.

Screenshot 2024 03 25 at 10.39.45 AM — Image Credit: Google Flights

If you want to fly business class, prepare to fork over a substantial sum of cash, as flights can cost nearly $7,000 round-trip!

Whether you book economy or business class, make sure to book with 1 of the best credit cards for airline purchases.

Unfortunately, Hainan isn’t part of any airline alliance, so booking flights on the airline using points and miles isn’t the easiest.

Hainan is a transfer partner of Marriott Bonvoy at a 3:1 ratio, meaning you’ll receive 1 Hainan Airlines Fortune Wings Club mile for every Marriott point transferred. (You’ll also receive 5,000 bonus miles for every 60,000 points transferred.) However, this isn’t a good way to redeem Marriott Bonvoy points, so we’d avoid transferring points to the airline if possible.

Additionally, Marriott Bonvoy takes around 8 business days for points to transfer, which is something to keep in mind if you have an urgent need to use your points.

Hot Tip:

You can also transfer points from several hotel programs, such as ALL – Accor Live Limitless and IHG One Rewards. However, these offer low redemption value and should only be an option if you need to top up your balance.

Final Thoughts

Hainan is bringing back its Seattle to Beijing route, giving travelers the only nonstop option between the 2 cities. While booking flights on the airline isn’t the easiest, Hainan’s reputation as a 5-star Skytrax airline should make you want to check it out if you have China travel plans.