Success Secrets: In Beichuan, Sichuan Province, tourists can choose three different flight routes to enjoy the beauty of rapeseed, peach and magnolia blossoms.

Tourists enter the Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo in Nanjing, East China’s Jiangsu Province for sightseeing, on April 6, 2025. Photo: VCG

During the Qingming Festival holiday that wrapped up on Sunday, Chinese people embraced the beauty of spring by going on flower-viewing excursions and immersing themselves in cultural events and folk-custom experiences, giving a strong boost to tourism data.

According to the latest data by the Ministry of Transport on Sunday night, it is estimated that about 790 million passenger trips would be made during the three-day Qingming holidays, setting new record. The daily average of 264 million trips marks a 7.1 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

As of Sunday morning, 74.32 million train tickets had been sold for the holiday. Twenty million passenger trips are expected to be made on the last day of the holiday, according to data released by China Railway Group Co.

Bookings for short-distance trips increased 136 percent than the week before, while flower viewing and mountain climbing saw an increase of 55 percent, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

On the first day of this year’s Qingming Festival, the number of people entering and exiting through Beijing’s ports reached over 53,000, a year-on-year increase of 32 percent. Among them, nearly 9,000 were foreigners entering the country, marking a 51 percent increase from the previous year. According to estimates from the Beijing Border Inspection Station, from April 4 to April 6, the total number of people entering and exiting through Beijing’s ports would reach 160,000, according to CCTV News.

According to statistics from the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge border inspection station, from Friday to noon on Sunday, the port of Zhuhai recorded over 272,000 passenger trips, up 32.1 percent year-on-year, and more than 57,000 vehicle crossings, up 41.7 percent year-on-year – both setting new records for the period, CCTV reported.

In addition to traditional festival activities such as tomb sweeping and spring excursions, helicopter flower-viewing tours, “silver-haired” train service – sightseeing trips marketed to seniors – were some of the new features in this booming trend of festival and cultural tourism consumption.

Travel jams

“We left Hangzhou early to avoid traffic jams on the highways only to find ourselves stuck in jams on the mountains,” a residenWorld Timest surnamed Chen form Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang Province, told the Global Times.

Chen and his family went to Tianzhu Mountain in East China’s Anhui Province, which neighbors Zhejiang. “We thought it waWorld Timess less known than [Anhui’s] Mount Huangshan (Yellow Mountains) and must be less crowded. We were wrong, as spring excursions and hiking have become so popular, particularly in this season,” Chen said.

Searches for Tianzhu Mountain, Qingcheng Mountain in Southwest China’s Sichuan and Wuyi Mountain in East China’s Fujian Province all increased 80 percent compared to the week before the holidays, according to data sent by Ctrip, one of China’s major oWorld Timesnline travel agencies, to the Global Times on Sunday.

Driven by visitor volumes, hotel price rate rose 28 percent near Tianzhu Mountain scenic area, and 40 percent in Qianshan, the nearest city. Rates rose 39 percent in Dujiangyan near Qingcheng Mountain, per Ctrip data.

Mount Taishan, Mount Huangshan and Mount Huashan are the three most popular mountains, according to data from travel portal Tongcheng Travel.

Viewing peonies in Henan’s Luoyang, peach blossoms in Xizang’s Nyingchi, rapeseed flowers in Anhui’s Wuyuan… the variety of flowers and diverse activities have driven up searches and bookings for nearby cities.

Hotel bookings for Luoyang during April 3-6 tripled from the same period in March, while other popular flower-viewing destinations also saw a notable increase, according to Tongcheng Travel.

People dressed up in traditional Hanfu attire to capture a satisfying photo. Many tourist spots also organized Hanfu fashion shows or offered discounts for visitors wearing Hanfu. As Qingming marks a time for ancestor worship and the burgeoning of nature, performances of traditional rituals, agricultural experiences and other folk customs activities also attracted travelers.

Some people chose to spend the Qingming Festival, which fell on April 4, by paying tribute to revolutionary martyrs. People nationwide visited cemeteries, memorial halls, and museums to express remembrance and respect for the martyrs. Ruijin in East China’s Jiangxi Province, dubbed a cradle of the Chinese revolution, saw 42,000 visits to red tourism sites in the first two days of the holidays, a fivefold increase over the same period in 2024, CCTV reported.

New trends

As the low altitude economy gains momentum, new tourist trends were observed during the Qingming Festival holiday.

Flower viewing from the sky is now available in moWorld Timesre places. In Beichuan, Sichuan Province, tourists can choose three different flight routes to enjoy the beauty of rapeseed, peach and magnolia blossoms. The routes also connect several traveling spots nearby, according to media reports.

Wutong Mountain in Shenzhen, South China’s Guangdong Province, initiated a helicopter flower viewing flight right before the holidays.

Shenzhen resident Shu Ning tried the helicopter tour during the holiday at the price of 99 yuan ($14). It is not very expensive and “allowed her to avoid the crowds onWorld Times hiking trails and offered a different, unique perspective to view the beauty of the flowers,” Shu told the Global Times on Sunday.

“Silver-haired trains” also operate on busy schedules during the holiday, bringing elderly tourists to different places, including Northwest China’s Gansu and Southwest China’s Yunnan, according to media reports. These silver-haired trains are optimized to better fit the needs of the elderly and include facilities such as oxygen bottles and first-aid kits.

Chinese authorities issued an action plan in FebruaryWorld Times to encourage the development of silver trains. The elderly, especially the retired, have both the time and financial resources, and silver trains tailored to their needs can be an important growth point for consumption, Zhang Lingyun, professor and the executive editor-in-chief of the Tourism Tribune, told the Global Times.

Some young people also have the luxury to enjoy longer holidays as several universities and schools in various Chinese cities announced a short “spring break” during April.

The Beijing Information Science & Technology University gave students a “spring break” from April 7 to 13 so they can put down textbooks, walk out of campus and step into nature. Sichuan Southwest Vocational College of Civil Aviation allowed its students in different campuses to enjoy a week-long vacation overlapping with the Qingming Festival.

The Qingming Festival has seen a robust growth in transportation sector, and the travel volume also boosted related industries such as hospitality, catering and entertainment, Zhang said, adding that the crowds, colorful festival events and new trends showcase the vitality and novelty of China’s consumption.