The airport received the approval for establishment from the national government in January 2013,[2][3] and was opened in March 2016 after three years of construction.

[5] The Qionghai airport was built to facilitate travel to the Boao Forum for Asia, an annual political event held 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) away in Boao.

[7] A feasibility study on the airport was approved by government officials in December 2012,[8] followed by the master plan in May 2013.

[11] For a short period thereafter, the airport remained open to domestic charter flights carrying Boao Forum attendees.

It is designed to handle 480,000 passengers and 1,440 tons of cargo annually by 2020.