WUHAN, Feb. 5 -- An airport near Mount Wudang, a destination known for its Taoist temples in central China's Hubei Province, started operation on Friday.

The first flight arriving at Wudangshan Airport was from Wuhan, capital of Hubei, according to Hubei Airport Group, which will begin managing the airport in one or two months.

The airport will also open flights to four Chinese cities of Tianjin, Kunming, Hangzhou and Xi'an, the company said.

It is expected to boost tourism on the Taoist mountain during the coming Lunar New Year holiday, which starts on Feb. 7 this year.

The airport is 20 km from Mount Wudang and about 15 km from Shiyan city. It is designed to handle 900,000 passengers and 2,250 tonnes of cargo and mails by 2020.

Mount Wudang, with a long history associated with Taoism, is home to numerous palaces and temples that exemplify the architectural and artistic feats of China's imperial Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.

The cluster of palaces and temples dedicated to Taoism were built in the scenic valleys and on the slopes of Mount Wudang, which UNESCO included on the World Cultural Heritage List in 1994.