China is bracing for what officials describe as the most intense Lunar New Year travel season in history, as authorities forecast a record 9 billion to 9.5 billion passenger trips crisscrossing the country over a 40 day period.

The annual Spring Festival travel rush, or chunyun, is once again testing the capacity of the nation’s high speed railways, domestic airlines and vast highway network, even as operators roll out extra services, new routes and upgraded technology to keep crowds moving.

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Historic Scale of Chunyun: A Nation on the Move

The Spring Festival travel rush is often labeled the world’s largest annual human migration, but transport planners say this year’s movement of people is on a scale without precedent. A special government task force coordinating the 2025 season has projected more than 9 billion interregional trips between January 14 and February 22, with some internal forecasts from transport planners and analysts suggesting the final tally could edge closer to 9.5 billion when local and repeat journeys are included.

Officials note that the confluence of several factors is driving the surge. This year’s Lunar New Year holiday period runs for eight days, longer than usual, and falls earlier on the Gregorian calendar, compressing student, migrant worker and leisure travel into a tighter window. At the same time, post pandemic economic normalization, rising consumer confidence and the growing popularity of domestic tourism are pushing more people to travel beyond simple hometown reunions.

Data from the Ministry of Transport, the National Development and Reform Commission and other agencies already point to record setting flows. During the 2025 Spring Festival holiday alone, more than 2.3 billion trips were logged across China over just eight days, underscoring the intensity of passenger movement at peak times. For the full 40 day period, interregional trips are expected to surpass all previous years by a wide margin.

Transport planners say that unlike earlier decades when the rush was dominated by migrant workers heading from coastal cities back to inland hometowns, today’s flows are more diversified. Business travelers, university students, self driving families and domestic tourists chasing ice and snow or tropical sunshine are all contributing to a more complex and less predictable national travel map.

Railways Add Trains, High Speed Lines and Night Services

China’s railway system sits at the heart of the chunyun operation, and this year the network is under intensifying pressure. Nationally, rail authorities expect to handle more than 510 million passenger trips during the 40 day period, averaging around 12.75 million journeys per day. On the busiest days, projected ridership exceeds 14 million people, stretching station capacity in megacities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

To meet the demand, China State Railway Group has increased daily train operations to more than 14,000 passenger services. Rail officials say this represents an approximate 4 percent rise in capacity compared with last year, equating to roughly 500,000 additional seats per day. A growing share of these trains are high speed services, with 185 new Fuxing bullet train sets capable of running at up to 350 kilometers per hour now integrated into the timetable.

Rail operators are also leaning on flexible scheduling tools that have been honed over recent years. In corridors with concentrated flows before the holiday, such as outbound routes from the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta toward interior provinces, more than 1,700 pairs of long distance trains are being put into service. During peak days, authorities are operating over 300 pairs of overnight long distance services, effectively turning the country’s high speed railways into rolling dormitories to smooth daytime congestion.

China’s increasingly dense network of newly opened lines is playing a crucial role. Routes such as the Shanghai Suzhou Huzhou high speed railway and the Jining Datong Yuanping corridor in North China are being used to redistribute flows away from older, heavily burdened main lines. Rail planners say these additions not only shorten journey times for passengers but also provide vital redundancy, allowing dispatchers to reroute traffic quickly when weather or operational disruptions arise.

Regional Hotspots: Yangtze River Delta, Northeast Ice Tourism and Southern Gateways

While chunyun is a national phenomenon, several regions have emerged as particular pressure points for railways and airports this year. In the Yangtze River Delta, which encompasses Shanghai and the surrounding provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui, the regional railway network alone is expected to carry about 103 million passengers over the 40 day period. It is the first time the area’s rail systems will surpass the 100 million trip threshold during a single travel season.

Railway authorities in the Delta are adding more than 430 pairs of additional trains to peak schedules, pushing daily operations to over 1,700 train pairs on the busiest days. Transport officials say the region’s status as one of China’s most dynamic economic engines, and its dense intercity commuting pattern, make it uniquely susceptible to crowding during major holidays. Migrant workers heading home to Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan and Chongqing in the southwest typically depart early, while student and tourist flows overlap on return journeys after the festival.

In the northeast, meanwhile, heavy snowfall and a wave of viral attention around winter tourism in cities like Harbin have created a different kind of challenge. Ice and snow tours, hot springs getaways and skiing trips have filled trains and flights bound for Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning, turning some of the country’s coldest cities into seasonal hotspots. Local railway bureaus and airports are adding extra services and deploying de icing equipment to maintain punctuality in subzero conditions.

Farther south, transport hubs in the Greater Bay Area and Hainan are handling booming flows headed for warm weather destinations. On the Guangzhou Shenzhen Hong Kong Express Rail Link, cross border passenger volumes have hit record highs during the Spring Festival period, while crossings via the Hong Kong Zhuhai Macao Bridge have similarly surged. Hainan’s Haikou and Sanya airports, as well as coastal airports along China’s southeastern seaboard, are posting strong growth in holiday traffic as travelers seek sun, beaches and duty free shopping.

Airports Prepare for Record Flights and Packed Terminals

China’s civil aviation sector is also bracing for a record Lunar New Year season, reflecting a broader rebound in domestic air travel. The Civil Aviation Administration of China has projected around 90 million passenger trips for the Spring Festival travel window, with airlines scheduled to operate an average of 18,500 flights per day. That represents an increase of more than 8 percent compared with last year and marks a new all time high for the holiday period.

Major airports such as Beijing Capital, Beijing Daxing, Shanghai Pudong, Shanghai Hongqiao, Guangzhou Baiyun and Shenzhen Baoan are extending operating hours, opening additional security lanes and deploying more staff at check in and boarding gates. At regional hubs like Wuhan Tianhe International Airport, local authorities forecast double digit year on year growth in holiday passenger volumes, driven both by outbound leisure trips and returning residents.

Popular domestic routes track China’s shifting tourism patterns. Airlines report strong demand on flights to ice and snow destinations in the northeast, including Harbin, Changchun and Shenyang, as well as on routes to southern coastal cities and island getaways such as Haikou, Sanya, Xiamen and Zhuhai. Internationally, looser visa free transit policies and expanding bilateral agreements are fuelling more outbound trips to nearby destinations such as Singapore, Thailand and the Middle East.

To cope, carriers are upgauging aircraft, adding charter flights and deploying widebody jets on traditionally narrowbody routes at peak times. Many are also emphasizing digital tools, encouraging passengers to use mobile apps for check in, baggage tracking and rescheduling. Airport operators, for their part, are warning travelers to arrive earlier than usual and to be prepared for heavier security screening, particularly on days immediately before and after Lunar New Year’s Day.

Highways, New Energy Vehicles and the Self Driving Boom

Despite the visibility of crowded trains and packed airport terminals, road transport still accounts for the majority of holiday journeys. Authorities estimate that more than 8 billion of this year’s interregional trips will be made by road, including more than 7 billion journeys in private or non commercial vehicles. On peak days, national highway networks are expected to record some of the highest daily traffic volumes in history.

China’s ongoing love affair with self driving homecomings is reshaping how the Spring Festival is experienced. Families load cars with luggage and gifts, then embark on journeys that can span thousands of kilometers from the industrial southeast to the interior northwest. Social media platforms have amplified carpooling trends, with hashtags about sharing rides home for the New Year drawing millions of views and connecting travelers from the same province or hometown.

The rapid rise of new energy vehicles adds a fresh logistical layer. Transport officials report that daily flows of electric cars on national highways have jumped significantly compared with previous years. To meet charging demand, the government and state owned utilities have built tens of thousands of charging stations at highway service areas, with nearly all major rest stops now equipped with fast charging facilities.

In several provinces, local operators are experimenting with mobile charging trucks and robotic chargers that can navigate crowded service areas to reach vehicles, flipping the traditional model that required drivers to hunt for available chargers. State Grid branches in provinces such as Jiangsu have deployed mobile charging vehicles and temporary charging banks at high traffic locations, reallocating them in real time based on road data to reduce queues and range anxiety.

Technology, Ticketing Platforms and Crowd Management

Behind the scenes, a web of digital platforms and data systems is working to keep the travel rush manageable. China Railway’s 12306 online ticketing platform remains the primary portal for rail passengers, and usage figures underscore its centrality. On the eve of this year’s travel rush, the system had already processed about 120 million ticket orders for chunyun, reflecting both pent up travel demand and a steady shift away from in person ticket purchases.

Artificial intelligence and big data analytics are being used to forecast passenger flows, identify emerging bottlenecks and inform last minute capacity adjustments. Transport authorities say algorithms pull from ticketing data, highway toll sensors, weather reports and even social media trends to anticipate where extra trains, buses or flights may be needed. This allows operators to schedule additional night trains or extend highway service area operations before congestion reaches critical levels.

On the ground, stations and airports are introducing more traveler facing technology to ease stress. High speed rail hubs increasingly rely on facial recognition turnstiles, electronic boarding passes and self service baggage drop machines to accelerate boarding and reduce queues. Many stations now provide app based navigation, allowing passengers to receive step by step directions to platforms, restrooms or transfer corridors, an important tool for elderly travelers and those unfamiliar with sprawling new terminals.

Authorities are also emphasizing accessibility and passenger comfort. Special check in counters, dedicated waiting rooms and priority boarding channels are being reserved for elderly travelers, passengers with disabilities, pregnant women and families with small children. Public announcements and signage have been expanded in multiple languages in cities with high inbound tourism or significant international communities, reflecting the increasingly global profile of China’s Lunar New Year travel.

Travel Tips for Domestic and International Passengers

For travelers navigating China during the Spring Festival season, preparation is becoming as critical as securing a ticket. Transport authorities strongly recommend booking rail and air travel as early as possible and staying flexible on departure dates. Journeys scheduled two to three days before or after the absolute holiday peaks often mean less crowding and a higher chance of securing preferred seats or flights.

Travelers are being encouraged to use official apps for real time updates on delays, gate changes and weather related disruptions. For those relying on rail, monitoring 12306 notifications can be essential, as extra services or adjusted timetables may open last minute options on otherwise sold out routes. Many urban metro systems and city bus networks also publish live crowding data and recommended transfer routes to help passengers reach mainline stations and airports more efficiently.

On the road, drivers are advised to check highway forecasts, plan routes that factor in charging stops for new energy vehicles and keep emergency supplies onboard in case of unexpected congestion or winter weather. Choosing off peak departure times, such as early mornings or late evenings, can reduce the risk of multi hour traffic jams at major highway interchanges and toll stations.

International visitors in China during the Lunar New Year are likely to encounter both logistical challenges and unique cultural experiences. Hotels near major stations and airports may fill quickly, but staying slightly farther away can offer better availability and quieter surroundings. At the same time, witnessing packed departure halls decorated with red lanterns, hearing reunion greetings echo through trains and experiencing holiday themed services at airports can provide a vivid introduction to the emotional importance of the Spring Festival journey.

FAQ

Q1. Why are there an estimated 9 to 9.5 billion passenger trips during this year’s Lunar New Year travel rush?
China counts every individual journey taken across rail, road, air and waterways, including return and local trips, over a 40 day period. With a large population, longer holidays, more domestic tourism and greater car ownership, the cumulative number of trips rapidly climbs into the billions.

Q2. How long does the Spring Festival travel rush last, and when is the peak?
The official chunyun period runs for 40 days, typically starting about two weeks before Lunar New Year’s Day and ending around three weeks afterward. Peak outbound flows usually occur in the three to five days before the festival, while peak return flows cluster in the days immediately after the holiday ends.

Q3. Which mode of transport carries the most passengers during chunyun?
Road transport accounts for the majority of journeys, with billions of trips made by private cars, buses and other vehicles. Railways and airlines handle smaller but still massive volumes and bear a disproportionate share of long distance and interprovincial travel.

Q4. How is China’s railway system coping with the surge in passengers?
Railway authorities have added thousands of extra train services, including high speed and overnight long distance trains, expanded daily operations to more than 14,000 passenger trains, and deployed new high speed train sets. They are also using flexible timetables and digital ticketing to match capacity with real time demand.

Q5. Are airports in China expecting record traffic this Lunar New Year?
Yes. Civil aviation regulators forecast around 90 million passenger trips during the Spring Festival period, with airlines operating roughly 18,500 flights per day. Major hubs have increased staffing, extended operating hours and introduced more self service options to handle the crowds.

Q6. What role do new energy vehicles play in the holiday travel rush?
New energy vehicles, especially electric cars, now make up a significant share of self driving trips. This has prompted authorities and utilities to expand highway charging networks, deploy mobile charging units and experiment with intelligent charging solutions to keep vehicles powered on long journeys.

Q7. Which regions are the main hotspots for travel congestion?
Key hotspots include the Yangtze River Delta around Shanghai, the Pearl River Delta in the south, cross border corridors linking Guangdong and Hong Kong, winter tourism centers in the northeast and coastal and island destinations such as Hainan. Major inland hubs like Wuhan and Chengdu also see heavy volumes.

Q8. How can travelers improve their chances of getting train or plane tickets?
Booking as early as possible via official platforms, being flexible on travel dates and times, and monitoring apps for newly added services or released seats all help. Travelers who can adjust by one or two days away from peak departures often find better availability and less crowded journeys.

Q9. Is it advisable for international tourists to travel within China during chunyun?
It is possible but requires careful planning. International visitors should secure transport and accommodation well in advance, allow extra time for transfers and be prepared for crowded stations and airports. In return, they gain a unique window into China’s most important annual celebration.

Q10. What measures are in place to protect vulnerable travelers during the rush?
Transport operators commonly set up priority lanes and waiting areas for elderly passengers, people with disabilities, pregnant women and families with young children. Additional staff and volunteers are deployed to help with directions, luggage and boarding, and many stations now feature more accessible facilities and clearer signage.