A ferry route connecting Ningbo's Xiangshan county with Putuo Mountain, a renowned scenic spot in the outlying island of Zhoushan is launched on March 8. [Photo/Ningbo Daily]

A ferry route connecting Ningbo's Xiangshan county with Putuo Mountain, a renowned scenic spot in the outlying island of Zhoushan, was launched on March 8.

Despite being only 36 nautical miles from each other, residents of the two places used to be only able to travel by land. A one-way trip would take about 4 hours.

The opening of the ferry route, which provides one round trip per day, will slash the travel time to 1 hour and 40 minutes.

A ship will depart from Xize Passenger Wharf in Xiangsan at 7:30 am every day and return at 3:30 pm.

Passengers can book tickets onsite or online via the official WeChat account of Xiangshan Ferry, with fares for a round trip ranging from 408 yuan ($58.62) to 448 yuan, depending on the seats.

Putuo Xiangyun, a high-speed catamaran passenger ship which can carry up to 280 passengers, has been commissioned to ply the route.

Each seat on the ship is equipped with a USB charging port, and the portholes allow passengers to enjoy the beautiful scenery along the route, which passes by a number of beautiful islets like Liuheng, Taohua and Mayi.