Lunar New Year travel boom: China hits 9 billion trip milestone

Saturday, January 27, 2024

Record 9 billion trips expected during China 40-day Lunar New Year rush, doubling 2023’s figure. Millions reunite with families in largest annual migration.

China is experiencing its busiest annual period of mass migration, with a record 9 billion domestic trips anticipated during the 40-day travel rush surrounding the Lunar New Year holidays. This figure is nearly double the 4.7 billion trips made in 2023, following the lifting of strict COVID-19 restrictions. The Lunar New Year, falling on February 10th this year, prompts millions to return to their hometowns for family reunions in what is considered the world’s largest annual mass migration, closely tied to the Lunar New Year celebrations.

Approximately 80% of these trips are expected to be self-driving road trips, setting another record, while the remainder will be by rail, air, and water, as reported by Chinese state television CCTV. Railway and air travel have seen significant increases on the first day of the rush, which coincides with the Lunar New Year travel season. Despite China’s extensive high-speed rail network, passengers are facing challenges in securing train tickets for their Lunar New Year journeys. Miranda Guo, a 25-year-old cartoonist from Hangzhou, managed to get a bullet train ticket to Jinan only after paying extra for an “accelerator package” from a third-party booking app. Guo noted the widespread difficulty in obtaining tickets this year, especially during the Lunar New Year period.

Nearly 11 million train trips are expected on the first day of the Lunar New Year travel rush, with a total of 480 million trips projected nationwide during the 40-day period, representing a 38% increase from 2023 and a 17% rise from 2019, pre-pandemic. Air passenger trips are estimated to reach 2 million on the first day of the Lunar New Year travel period, with an expected surge to 80 million during the rush, an increase of 9.8% from 2019, according to China’s aviation regulator.

Major airports in Beijing and Shanghai are preparing for heavy crowds during the Lunar New Year travel season, with Shanghai’s Pudong and Hongqiao airports expecting a 57.6% year-on-year increase in passenger traffic during the 40 days. Beijing’s airports are projected to see a more than 60% jump. Additionally, overseas travel is on the rise during this peak period of the Lunar New Year. More than 2,500 extra international flights to destinations in Southeast Asia, Japan, and South Korea have been arranged by China’s aviation authorities to accommodate the increased demand during the Lunar New Year. Further accommodations include additional railway services and flights to popular domestic tourism cities like Harbin in northeast China and Sanya, a sought-after tropical destination in the south, catering to the Lunar New Year travelers.

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