The latest official data from China's Ministry of Transport show that travel demand during the upcoming Qingming Festival, also known as the Tomb-Sweeping Day, is expected to surge significantly as compared to previous years, driven by a strong public desire for outdoor activities such as tomb visits and spring outings.
The official Qingming Festival holiday season will run from April 4 to 6.
During this peak travel and tourism season, expressways across the country will offer toll-free access to passenger cars with up to seven seats.
The Ministry of Transport predicts that road traffic will reach its highest level for this year's holiday.
The combination of tomb-sweeping traditions and spring tourism is expected to result in heavy traffic congestion, with highways expected to see a significant increase in the number of passenger vehicles, particularly self-driving trips. The number of NEVs on the road is also expected to rise.
Highways in the affluent Pearl River Delta in south China and Yangtze River Delta in east China are expected to face the most severe congestion during the holiday.
Beyond road travel, waterway passenger volumes are also expected to surge.
In Zhoushan City, east China's Zhejiang Province, the main gateway to the famous Putuo Mountain Scenic Area, water transport saw 370,000 passenger trips from March 21 to 23. This number is expected to climb to 400,000 during the Qingming Holiday period.
Famous scenic areas and some cemeteries are also likely to experience significant traffic pressure, according to the ministry.
During the holiday season, high-demand destinations include tourist attractions such as the West Lake Scenic Area in Hangzhou City of Zhejiang, the Taihu Yuantouzhu Scenic Area in east China's Jiangsu Province, and the Luoyang Wangcheng Park in central China's Henan Province.
Qingming Festival travel rush in China expected to hit record levels
Artificial intelligence and robotics, both major topics of discussion at the ongoing Boao Forum this year, are also being widely adopted at the event as ways to improve the service inside and outside the venue.
The BFA Annual Conference 2026 is being held in Boao, south China's Hainan Province. Running from March 24 to 27, this year's conference is themed "Shaping a Shared Future: New Dynamics, New Opportunities, New Cooperation."
A water generator at the venue cools and condenses moisture from the air into water, then filters and sterilizes it. It can also run on solar power for a completely off-grid, zero-carbon operation.
Meanwhile, a special robot barista operates a coffee stand where guests can order a drink with the press of a button, prompting the robotic arm to get to work -- grabbing a cup, brewing, and frothing -- all in one smooth motion.
The venue has also adopted an AI-based management system, which can automatically adjust a range of factors based on current conditions and detect and respond to anomalies when they occur.
These sorts of systems are already being adopted at a wider scale across Hainan.
"This is our operational management center for the zero-carbon demonstration zone. It’s powered by an AI-driven system that manages all energy consumption and carbon emissions. From here, we can remotely control over three thousand devices across the island with a click, including air conditioners and lighting. It's smart management, done remotely," said Zeng Youwen, chief general engineer of the China Academy of Urban Planning and Design Hainan Branch.
Outside the venue, some smart equipment is also sharing the workload. On Boao's coastline, a beach-cleaning robot moves along the shore, sweeping up cigarette butts, debris, and coconut shells.
The robots can work before visitors arrive or after sunset, cleaning up to 3,000 square meters of beach per hour. In the water, a diving robot that clears debris and even has emergency rescue capabilities.
These on-site applications of emerging technologies have helped spur discussions at the forum on how the deep integration of technology and industry is gaining momentum as China enters the 15th Five-Year Plan period.
"Industries can only be upgraded by applying the new technologies, by applying AI, by applying other innovative technology, science and technology, there should all be injected into industries. And that's how the industries are going to produce high quality products. And you will have high quality productive forces that will change the lifestyle, the living standard of the Chinese people and the people living beyond," said Sohail Khan, deputy secretary-general of Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Founded in 2001, the BFA is a non-governmental and non-profit international organization committed to promoting regional economic integration and bringing Asian countries closer to their development goals.
Robots, AI facilitate guest services at Boao Forum venue
