China' southernmost city, Sansha, in Hainan Province, held flag-raising ceremonies to mark the first day of 2026 on Thursday.
On the city's Yongxing Island, a grand flag-raising ceremony was held at the square in front of the municipal government building, gathering military officers, government staff members and local fishermen.
"Participating in the first flag-raising ceremony of the New Year on Yongxing Island fills me with pride and honor. In the new year, I wish our motherland prosperity and hope that the development of Sansha continues to improve," said Lin Zhuo, a staff member of the People's Government of Xisha District, Sansha City.
The celebrations extended beyond Yongxing Island. Flag-raising ceremonies were also held on Zhaoshu Island, Jinqing Island, and other islands and reefs. In addition, over 10 fishing vessels operating in the waters of Xisha hoisted the national flag simultaneously, joining in a collective wish for the greater prosperity and strength of the nation.
China's southernmost city Sansha holds flag-raising ceremonies to usher in New Year
China is expected to register over 208 million cross-regional passenger trips on the New Year's Day, which marks a year-on-year increase of 21 percent, the Ministry of Transport said on Thursday.
On the first day of the three-day New Year holiday, road travel is projected to reach 187.26 million passenger trips -- an expected rise of 18.1 percent year on year.
Railway passenger trips are expected to grow by 65.1 percent from one year ago to reach 18.25 million, the waterway passenger volume is expected to go up 0.9 percent to 670,000 trips, and civil aviation passenger trips are anticipated to rise by 12.6 percent to hit 1.95 million.
On New Year's Eve, China reported over 207 million cross-regional passenger trips, 25.4 percent higher than that of the same day of last year.
Road passenger volume hit 188.28 million trips, a growth of 22.8 percent on a yearly basis.
China's railway system handled 16.68 million passenger trips on that day, representing a year-on-year increase of 60 percent.
Waterway and civil aviation passenger volume totaled 626,000 and 2.18 million trips, up 32.3 percent and 21.2 percent year on year respectively.
Cross-regional passenger trips in China expected to go up 21 percent on New Year's Day
