A “Maritime Silk Road” cruise is being launched next month in South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a tour aiming to recall China’s maritime history while echoing calls by Chinese leaders for closer ties with Asian neighbors.

Merchant ships plying along the maritime Silk Road brought prosperity to China and neighboring countries between the 7th and 14th centuries, inspiring the proposal for a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road raised by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013.

Asian countries rank the most popular destinations for China’s outbound tourists. They were the destination for 90 percent of the 100 million overseas trips made by Chinese in the first 11 months of last year.

There are more than 1,000 flights between China and ASEAN countries every week, with bargain airlines such as AirAsia and Tigerair opening more multinational flights to China’s smaller cities.

Cruise tours have become the new fashion. More than a million Chinese are expected to take such tours this year.

Land transport services remain scarce in the region. China has only two cross-border rail lines to Southeast Asian countries, both to Vietnam, despite high demand.

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