China expects 760 mln cross-regional trips during Qingming Festival holiday

China

China expects 760 mln cross-regional trips during Qingming Festival holiday

2025-04-03 16:59 Last Updated At：17:57

A total of 760 million cross-regional passenger trips are expected to be made across China during the Qingming Festival holiday, running from Friday to Sunday, the Ministry of Transport predicted.

The Qingming Festival, also known as the Tomb-Sweeping Day, is a traditional Chinese festival observed to honor ancestors by visiting their graves to clean the tombstones, offer sacrifices, and pay respects.

Travel demand is expected to be particularly high during this period, driven by family visits for tomb-sweeping rituals, as well as leisure travel and spring outings.

From Thursday to Monday, China's railways are projected to handle 84.5 million passenger trips, with an average of 16.9 million trips per day. The busiest day is expected to be Friday, the festival itself.

The railway authorities will maximize efforts to meet the surging demand by adding more train services, attaching extra carriages, and extending operating hours.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport forecast that an average of 59 million vehicles will travel on expressways each day during the holiday, a 1.1-percent increase over the same period last year.

Of this, new energy vehicles (NEVs) are expected to make up 18 percent of the total daily traffic, a 7-percentage-point rise from last year.

In anticipation of the increase, provinces like Fujian, Shandong, and Zhejiang have already conducted inspections of charging facilities to ensure smooth and efficient travel for NEV drivers.

The aviation sector is also seeing increased demand, especially for flights to popular flower-viewing destinations such as Wuxi and Huangshan in China, as well as international destinations like Japan and South Korea. This rise in demand has led to slight increases in airfare prices.

In southern China, water transportation is entering its peak season. The Qiongzhou Strait, which separates the island province of Hainan from Guangdong Province, is expected to see a surge in passenger and vehicle travel during the holiday.

Around 220,000 passenger trips and 58,000 vehicle trips are forecast, with the highest travel day expected on Friday, when about 85,000 passenger trips and 20,000 vehicle trips are expected to cross the strait.

"The total cross-regional passenger flow during the Qingming Festival holiday is expected to reach some 760 million trips, marking a year-on-year increase of about 3 percent. Travel in key regions, including the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and the Chengdu-Chongqing region, will account for nearly 50 percent of the national total. We are strengthening information sharing among different transportation modes, enhancing the coordination of railway, highway, and air transport services, and actively promoting intermodal passenger transportation," said Gao Bo, deputy director of the transport services department at the Ministry of Transport.

China, Lesotho to strengthen exchanges, advance cooperation

Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Saturday China is willing to work with Lesotho to strengthen exchanges on governance experience, enhance coordination in multilateral affairs, and advance the China-Lesotho strategic partnership.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks when meeting with Lesotho Prime Minister Sam Matekane in the capital of Lesotho.

During the meeting, Wang congratulated Lesotho on the 60th anniversary of its independence this year, and spoke highly of Lesotho government's efforts to prioritize economic development and steer the African country onto a path of sustainable growth. Since the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in 2024, the two sides have advanced cooperation under the 10 partnership action plans unveiled at the summit, successfully implementing a number of key projects to effectively promote Lesotho's development and revitalization, Wang said.

China stands ready to work with Lesotho to strengthen exchanges on governance experience, enhance coordination in multilateral affairs, and push for greater development of the China-Lesotho strategic partnership, he added.

Calling on the two sides to firmly support each other, Wang said that China will accelerate the implementation of its zero-tariff policy for African countries, including Lesotho, expand bilateral trade, investment and industrial cooperation, facilitate broader access of Lesotho's specialty products to the Chinese market, and continue to support Lesotho's national development.

China will continue to stand firmly with African countries, uphold justice for the Global South, including Lesotho, oppose unilateralism and acts of bullying, and work together to build a community with a shared future for humanity, Wang said.

On his part, Matekane said during the meeting that Lesotho cherishes its friendship with China and the strategic partnership between the two countries, and expressed gratitude for China's valuable support for the development of African countries, including Lesotho.

Lesotho firmly adheres to the one-China principle and resolutely supports China in safeguarding its core interests, he said, noting that his country stands ready to strengthen strategic mutual trust with China, expand people-to-people exchanges, jointly implement the outcomes of the FOCAC Beijing Summit, and deepen cooperation in areas such as infrastructure, manufacturing and energy.

Matekane stressed that China's zero-tariff policy for African products will inject new impetus into Lesotho's development. He also expressed Lesotho's willingness to strengthen solidarity and cooperation with China on multilateral platforms such as BRICS to jointly address global challenges.

On the same day, Wang also held talks with Lejone Mpotjoana, minister of foreign affairs and international relations of Lesotho.