Beijing (TDI): China witnessed a strong surge in travel and tourism activity over the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, with millions hitting the roads and rails to explore cities, heritage sites, and scenic spots.
According to official figures released Tuesday, a staggering 657 million inter-provincial trips were made during the break, an average of 219 million daily, marking a 3% increase compared to last year.
The railway network remained the backbone of domestic travel, transporting over 47 million passengers, up 2.3% year-on-year.
To accommodate the rush, more than 11,000 trains ran each day as part of a special holiday schedule.
In Beijing, the capital welcomed 8.21 million visitors, a 5.4% increase over last year, with tourism revenue hitting 10.77 billion yuan (around $1.49 billion), up 6.7%, according to the city’s Culture and Tourism Bureau.
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Local parks alone saw 4.49 million visits, an impressive 14.67% jump from last year.
Shanghai recorded 6.48 million visitors, generating 12.48 billion yuan (approximately $1.72 billion) in tourism-related spending, including hotels, restaurants, shopping, entertainment, and transport, reflecting a 3.3% year-on-year rise.
Key attractions in the city drew 2.27 million tourists, while hotel occupancy edged up to 59%, a one-point increase from last year.
The travel spike wasn’t limited to big cities. In Henan Province, over 15 million tourist visits were logged, up 4.7%, bringing in 6.79 billion yuan in tourism revenue, a 5.3% increase.
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Local tourism authorities noted a steady rise in both visitor volume and overall quality of services.
In the southwest, Sichuan Province reported brisk business as well.
From May 31 to June 1, more than 550 tourism enterprises generated 1.56 billion yuan in sales, up 7.8% year-on-year.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
