Residents take tests for coronavirus at Pudong International Airport on Sunday. Photo: Courtesy of Shanghai Airport

 Big discounts are available on air fares for flights from Shanghai to other domestic destinations, media reports said on Thursday, citing data from Chinese online travel agency platform Qunar.

Plane tickets for flights departing from Shanghai have plunged by as much as 80 percent, with some air fares excluding fuel surcharges and airport construction fees coming in at less than 100 yuan ($15.7), according to Qunar figures.

The cost of flying from Shanghai to Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province is as low as 80 yuan, a 96 percent discount from the original price. This compares with the lowest price of 380 yuan in mid-March.

By contrast, second-class seats on high-speed trains from Shanghai to Chengdu are starting at a price of 690 yuan, roughly 88 percent higher than the cheapest plane ticket.

Flights from Shanghai to Xiamen, East China's Fujian Province are going for as low as 92 yuan, or 6 percent of the original cost, way lower than the minimum of 411 yuan on March 21. 

From March 25 to March 29, plane tickets from Shanghai to Sanya, South China's Hainan Province or Xi'an in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province among other destinations are all available for around 100 yuan, per Qunar numbers. 

The hefty discounts are mostly attributed to the COVID-19 flare-up in Shanghai, a spokesperson for Qunar told the Global Times on Thursday.

Meanwhile, air fares from Beijing to some of the hottest domestic destinations have also fallen, dropping by more than 50 percent on average to prices of between 180 yuan and 300 yuan.