China's summer travel rush concludes with record railway passenger trips

China's railway operator reported a record 887 million passenger trips during the 62-day summer travel season, up 6.7 percent from last year.

China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. (China Railway) said that student vacations, tourism and family visits drove the surge in travel between July 1 and Aug. 31.

During the period, daily railway passenger trips averaged 14.3 million, also setting a record high.

By the end of 2023, China's railway network stretched 159,000 kilometers, including over 45,000 kilometers of high-speed rail. In the first half of 2024, China added nearly 980 kilometers of new lines, further increasing capacity.

Passengers are seen on the platform at the Tianjin West Railway Station in Tianjin, north China, July 6, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran)

During the summer rush, an average of 10,905 passenger trains operated daily, an increase of 636 trains, or 6.2 percent, from the same period last year.

The railway operator reported Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Xi'an, Wuhan, Nanjing and Zhengzhou as the most popular destinations during the summer travel season.

China's railway authorities introduced "quiet carriages" on 92 high-speed trains to enhance passenger comfort. Travelers can select this option when booking through the official mobile app, agreeing to maintain a quiet environment.

Additionally, some high-speed trains now feature dedicated children's compartments, equipped with playgrounds and mobile libraries.

Railway authorities also provided special services to optimize the passenger travel experience. For instance, Shanghai Railway Station opened a fast-track entrance for travelers with small items to improve efficiency.

This year's travel surge reflects new trends in China's culture and tourism market.

Ancient town tours and museum exhibition trips were popular among tourists during the summer.

This year marked the first summer travel season for a new high-speed rail section connecting Huangshan city in east China's Anhui Province with Nanchang city in east China's Jiangxi Province. This section is part of the larger Hangzhou-Nanchang line, which links several popular tourist destinations. The new connection boosted traffic at Jingdezhen North Railway Station in Jiangxi's "porcelain capital." The station handled over 1.19 million passenger trips during the summer rush, up 78.4 percent from last year.

Tourists lined up to photograph popular porcelain exhibits at the Jingdezhen China Ceramics Museum.

"After visiting the museum, I knew how complex the procedures of making ceramics were," said Jiang Tongfei, a tourist from Hangzhou, which is now linked to Jingdezhen via high-speed rail.

"Tourists visiting Jingdezhen have significantly increased since the Huangshan-Nanchang section of the high-speed railway opened. During this summer, Jingdezhen received 12.06 million tourist arrivals, up 21.7 percent year on year," said Sheng Jingjing, head of the city's culture and tourism bureau.

Tourist trains emerged as a new option for travelers during the summer rush. China Railway Zhengzhou Bureau Group Co., Ltd. launched seven tourist trains from Zhengzhou, central China’s Henan Province, to popular destinations, including Harbin in northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province and Kashgar in the northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.