China's cross-border and domestic travel saw a remarkable surge during the five-day May Day holiday, with Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport handling over 230,000 inbound and outbound passengers—a year-on-year increase of 22%, according to Guangzhou Customs.
The uptick reflects the broader boom in outbound tourism and international flight activity, driven by relaxed visa policies and growing demand. May 1 marked the peak travel day, with customs officers processing 335 international flights and nearly 55,000 travelers at Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport alone.
In total, more than 38,000 international flights and 5.8 million passengers passed through the airport in the first four months of 2025, marking respective growth rates of 19% and 25%.
The rise in global travel was also mirrored in booking trends. Data from online travel platform Qunar showed that international flight bookings to visa-free destinations rose by over 30% during the holiday. Countries within a five-hour flight radius, including Vietnam and Spain, saw their hotel bookings double compared to the previous year.
Inbound tourism was equally vibrant. Cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen led the way, while other cities such as Zhuhai, Qingdao, and Wuhan experienced significant spikes in foreign tourist hotel bookings, jumping 50–70%. Australia, Vietnam, and Canada topped the list in terms of year-on-year growth in inbound visitors.
Domestically, southwestern China emerged as the hub of travel activity. Flights to and from cities such as Chengdu, Chongqing, Guiyang, and Kunming dominated the air routes, as travelers from Beijing, Shanghai, and the Pearl River Delta flocked to the region. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) approved 173 additional flights to meet the surge, especially to destinations like Lijiang, Dunhuang, and Sanya.
The CAAC reported that air passenger volume during the holiday exceeded 10.75 million, averaging over 2.15 million travelers per day—a record high for the May Day period.
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