TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Starlux Airlines launched its service between Taoyuan International Airport and Hong Kong Tuesday (July 16).

The territory is one of the airline’s four new destinations scheduled for 2024. Flights to the Vietnamese resort island of Phu Quoc began July 1, while services to Seattle are set to start on Aug. 16, with the Indonesian capital Jakarta scheduled for Sept. 1.

Flight JX231 left Taoyuan at 8:21 a.m. Tuesday with almost 300 passengers on board and arrived in Hong Kong at 9:38 a.m., per CNA. For the special occasion, passengers received a cloth bag with the words “Hong Kong,” to which they could add illustrations representing local landmarks.

Passengers traveling in the opposite direction received cosmetics products and a NT$500 (US$15.33) voucher, offered in conjunction with the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation.

Including the two daily flights between Taoyuan and Hong Kong, Starlux said it now operated 24 routes out of Taoyuan and three out of Taichung. The airline recently unveiled plans to almost double its fleet of aircraft from 22 to 48 by the end of 2026 as part of its expansion program.