SHENZHEN, May 28 (Xinhua) -- A new air route was launched between the city of Shenzhen in south China's Guangdong Province and Van Don in Vietnam Monday.

The route is operated by Donghai Airlines with round-trip flights scheduled every Monday from May 27 to June 10, and every Tuesday and Saturday after June 18.

The outbound flight leaves Shenzhen at 00:05 a.m. Beijing time and arrives in Van Don at 1:30 a.m. local time. The return flight departs Van Don at 3 a.m. local time and arrives in Shenzhen at 6:45 a.m. Beijing time.

Van Don District is one of the major special economic zones in Vietnam. The new air route will make it more convenient for passengers in and around the Pearl River Delta region to travel to Vietnam, and promote exchanges and communication between Shenzhen and Van Don, according to Donghai Airlines.

Last year, Chinese tourists made nearly 5 million visits to Vietnam. Trade volume between China and Vietnam reached about 150 billion U.S. dollars over the same period.