MILAN, Nov. 28 -- The managing company of Italian airport Milan Malpensa was conferred a special honor at Milan's China Awards charity dinner for improving the travel experience of Chinese tourists, also in view of the upcoming world exposition in Milan.

Over the last few years, Milan Malpensa has become a preferred destination for Chinese nationals, and income flows are predicted to further grow during the Expo Milano 2015. The six-month event, which will kick off on May 1, is expected to attract more than two million visitors from the Asia-Pacific area.

According to the airport's official estimates, the main destinations from and to Milan Malpensa in 2013 were Hong Kong with 228,000 passengers, Shanghai with 223,000 passengers and Beijing with 118,000 passengers, with flights operated by Cathay Pacific and Air China.

"We felt that we had a duty to provide tailor made services for Chinese passengers," Giulio De Metrio, chief operating officer (COO) of the Malpensa Airport management company Sea, told Xinhua at the China Awards charity dinner, which was held on Thursday night in the Italian business capital.

Initiatives already in place include signage in Chinese throughout the airport, Mandarin-speaking shopping helpers, a smartphone app in Chinese and latest news in Chinese from Xinhua News Agency broadcast on the airport's monitors.

Milan Malpensa has inaugurated a "Luxury Square", home to the world's best known luxury brands, which is ideal for the growing number of Chinese tourists in Italy.

The airport will launch a website in Chinese shortly and is training its personnel to understand China's culture with the goal to make Chinese passengers "feel at home in Malpensa," De Metrio highlighted.

The China Awards charity dinner, this year at its ninth edition, is aimed at advancing exchanges between Italian and Chinese entrepreneurs and enhancing mutual knowledge by sharing best experiences, also as a way to boost sustainable economic growth in the two countries.