A sightseeing ferry sails off Dachan Bay Container Terminals on Saturday during its maiden voyage, carrying passengers to view the Greater Qianhai area. ?Courtesy of Shenzhen Airport Group

Tourists on the ferry enjoy the view of the Qianhai Bay area.

A sightseeing ferry departing the Shenzhen Airport Ferry Terminal made a maiden voyage along the route of the coast of Bao’an on Saturday, carrying passengers to enjoy the views of the Greater Qianhai area, sources from Shenzhen Airport Group said.

The route, operated by Shenzhen Airport Group in partnership with Shenzhen Oceanus Group, provides a round trip around Qianhai Bay and both starts and ends at the Shenzhen Airport Ferry Terminal. The whole journey takes two hours.

Along the route, passengers can enjoy the views of Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link, Bao’an’s Xiwan Mangrove Park, Dachan Bay Container Terminals, part of the Shenzhen Western Port that includes the Ferris Wheel at OH Bay and office high-rises in the Qianhai Bay area — an urban center that is also dubbed as the Manhattan of the Pearl River Delta. The high-rises in Qianhai have been witnessing the fast growth of Qianhai, which focuses on modern service industries and headquarters economy.

The operation of the route is a component of a plan by the Shenzhen Airport Group to tap sea resources by using its geographic and transport hub advantages after the airport area has been incorporated into Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone. The route covers the major landmarks of the west bank of Shenzhen and enables passengers to feel the changes of the city.

“The part from Bao’an coastal belt to the Qianhai area is very modern. It is a rising town in the [Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao] Greater Bay Area,” a passenger surnamed Xiong, who lives in Bao’an and works in Nanshan, said in an interview.

“Seeing the landscape from the sea, you can feel the great changes of Qianhai,” Xiong added. According to the operator, the ferry will operate at 5 p.m. daily during weekdays and twice at 9:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., respectively, on weekends. Another passenger surnamed Yang who came with her family said it was nice to have a family tour around the Qianhai Bay area.

“Though I live in Bao’an, it is a unique way to experience Bao’an and Qianhai through a sightseeing trip from the sea,” said Yang.

During the promotion period that runs through the end of this month, the operator offers family tickets for two adults and two children at 138 yuan (US$20.42) per set, according to a notice released by the Shenzhen Airport Ferry Terminal on Tuesday. Passengers can book tickets through the WeChat account

“深圳機場碼頭客運中心.”

According to Xiong Min, head of the Shenzhen Airport Ferry Terminal, the promotional package tickets are sold out. The operator will consider adding more ferry services depending on the demand.

According to the report of the 13th Congress of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Guangdong will pilot the integrated development of the mouth of the Pearl River Delta area by focusing on building a 100-km golden bay around the mouth of the Pearl River. The west bank along the coast of Bao’an is located in the core area of the golden bay and enjoys geographic advantages as well as incoming industries and resources.

Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport, as a major comprehensive transport hub in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), enjoys advantages of linking the west bank of Shenzhen and the GBA cities. The Shenzhen Airport Ferry Terminal now has opened ferry services with the Hong Kong airport, Macao, Zhongshan, Zhuhai, and Nansha ferry terminals.