More than 1.413 billion cross-regional passenger trips were estimated nationwide during the first week of China's 2026 Spring Festival travel rush, the country's Ministry of Transport said Sunday.
Average daily cross-provincial passenger trips are expected to exceed 200 million, up 2 percent year on year, according to the ministry.
The Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year, falls on Feb 17 this year. This year's Spring Festival official holiday lasts nine days, with the travel rush running through March 13.
Each year during this period, millions of people working, studying or living away from their hometowns travel home for the Spring Festival, China's most important traditional holiday.
The country's railway system has seen increasing passenger traffic during the first week of the travel rush. On Sunday, railways nationwide were expected to handle 13.25 million passenger trips, with 1,688 extra passenger trains scheduled to meet travel demand.
Self-driving trips have dominated the total travel, with the road traffic increasing 2.1 percent year on year since the Spring Festival travel rush began.
Civil aviation passenger volumes have also experienced a surge. On Sunday, the country's civil aviation sector was expected to carry 2.39 million passengers on an estimated 19,614 flights, marking a year-on-year increase of 7.5 percent.
Over 1.4 bln trips expected in first week of China’s Spring Festival travel rush
The 24th Mawei-Matsu Lantern Festival, a national-level intangible cultural heritage event, opened on Wednesday in Fuzhou, capital city of east China's Fujian Province, to greet the Year of the Horse, which begins on Feb 17.
The festival is underway at a shipbuilding cultural park, where brilliant lantern installations are artfully integrated into the century-old remains of the former shipbuilding industry, creating a striking contrast that blends maritime heritage with festive light art.
Lanterns shaped like horses and the first steamship built by the shipyard, stand alongside a variety of intricate designs, blending holiday spirit with maritime history.
"This is my first visit here. I have seen lanterns shaped like fish and horses, and I like them very much," said a kid.
The festival originated from the Lantern Festival customs shared between Mawei and Mazu. It is the earliest and now most regularized two-way exchange activity between the two places, with the mutual presentation of lanterns serving as one of its most distinctive traditional features.
The celebration is recognized as China's first cross-Strait national intangible cultural heritage project. In 2024, it, along with the Chinese New Year, was added to the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Running till March 8, the 33-day celebration serves as a luminous bridge connecting Fuzhou's Mawei district and Matsu.
"I've been to the festival four or five times, and it has left a deep impression on me. The festival gets better every year, with very distinctive features. We hope to spend more time together with our compatriots from Matsu," said Zhao Ping, a visitor.
"We've incorporated elements of shipbuilding culture, the local culture, and maritime culture into the lantern design. We welcome everyone to Fuzhou and celebrate the Chinese New Year here," said Lin Hebin, deputy director of the Bureau of Culture, Sports and Tourism in Mawei District.
Mawei-Matsu Lantern Festival opens in east China, honoring cross-Strait cultural heritage
Mawei-Matsu Lantern Festival opens in east China, honoring cross-Strait cultural heritage
Mawei-Matsu Lantern Festival opens in east China, honoring cross-Strait cultural heritage
