The container throughput of Beibu Gulf Port in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region this year reached record 10 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) on Tuesday.
Made up of Qinzhou, Beihai and Fangcheng ports, the Beibu Gulf Port serves as the gateway to China's New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, a key connectivity program under the Belt and Road Initiative.
At the Qinzhou Automated Container Terminal, containers are transported by intelligently guided vehicles and efficiently loaded onto ships via automated cranes.
The terminal is a cornerstone project on the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, with two 100,000-ton and two 200,000-ton berths. Key exports from the Qinzhou Port include mechanical and electrical products, automobiles and new energy materials, while imports through the port mainly consist of bulk commodities and agricultural products.
According to the local railway bureau, by the end of 2025, container cargo shipments via the Land-Sea Corridor had exceeded 1.4 million TEUs, marking a 50 percent surge over the previous year.
Since the launch of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor cargo train service in 2017, more than five million TEUs have been shipped via the corridor.
In 2025, the Beibu Gulf Port further underpinned its hub position. As of December 30, its cargo train services had made 10,218 trips, with the number of container routes surpassing 100 and connecting the port with more than 200 ports in over 100 countries and regions, including all major ports in ASEAN.
Guangxi's maritime authorities have opened a "green channel" for ships from other RCEP members, reducing single-ship customs clearance time to an average of 30 minutes.
Beibu Gulf Port in south China's Guangxi sees annual container throughput hit record high
A surge in winter tourism during the three-day New Year's Day holiday has sent travel demand soaring in China, with ice-snow-themed destinations drawing record crowds.
Data from major travel platforms show a sharp increase in bookings for railways and flights to northern China, driven largely by the popularity of winter attractions.
In northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, ticket sales for the famed Snow Town scenic area in Mudanjiang City and for the Yabuli Ski Resort in the provincial capital Harbin surged 2.7-fold and twofold, respectively, year on year.
Searches related to "Harbin" spiked more than five fold on a yearly basis, according to travel data.
Harbin's iconic Ice and Snow World, a winter wonderland, emerged as the holiday's top attraction.
"The hottest destination on the New Year's Eve was undoubtedly Harbin's Ice and Snow World. According to data from Qunar Travel, the Ice and Snow World topped the national charts as soon as tickets went on sale, with its popularity surging more than four fold compared with the same period last year," said Shi Ke, a researcher at the Qunar Big Data Research Institute.
The travel rush has put heavy strain on the country's transportation system. Trains from Beijing to major northeastern cities, including Harbin, Shenyang, and Changchun, have only limited seats remaining for the holiday period, and return tickets on Jan. 3, the last day of the holiday, from these cities back to Beijing are nearly sold out.
In response, railway authorities are adding multiple dedicated ice-snow tourism trains, including both high-speed and conventional services.
Air travel is also experiencing robust growth. According to Umetrip, a leading flight data provider, destinations offering high-quality ski resorts and unique winter experiences are seeing the strongest demand.
The Altay Prefecture, a prestigious ski destination in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and Ulanqab City in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region ranked among the fastest-growing destinations in terms of New Year's Day holiday flight bookings.
"Notably, during the 2026 New Year's Day holiday, travelers from southern China emerged as a key driver behind the growth of ice and snow tourism. Southern cities such as Shanghai and Shenzhen have become among the primary sources of visitors to Altay," said Zhao Nan, general manager of the industry development department at Umetrip.
Winter tourism booms during New Year's Day holiday
