China’s May Day travel surges but spending chases ‘value’ in budget-conscious pivot

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By Ralph Jennings

Published May 6, 2026

Thousands of domestic train services added on last day of ‘golden week’ to meet record demand, and high energy costs affect consumer spending

China’s railway network broke passenger records during the long May Day holiday as millions hit the rails. Meanwhile, a shift towards budget-conscious destinations such as the African coast, coupled with rising fuel costs, signalled a cautious consumer landscape despite the surge in mobility.

China’s Ministry of Transport said on Wednesday that “cross-regional” trips during the holiday reached nearly 1.52 billion, a 3.49 per cent increase over the 2025 break, and a record high for the period.

The 24.84 million railway trips on the first day of the break were a single-day high, according to official data from the China State Railway Group. And the total volume reached 117 million during the five-day “golden week” that ran from Friday to Tuesday and marks China’s Labour Day.

To handle the return-traffic surge, the state-run railway system said it added 2,225 train services on Tuesday.

“China’s May Day holiday again showed the enormous scale of domestic mobility,” said Subramania Bhatt, CEO of the technology and marketing firm China Trading Desk. The firm’s data tracked more than 300 million domestic trips over the holiday.

China Trading Desk estimated 3 million outbound trips from mainland China, and the bulk were concentrated in next-door regions such as Hong Kong and Macau. However, travellers are increasingly venturing farther afield to unconventional value destinations – ranging from the snorkelling waters of Zanzibar to the mountain-rimmed Lake Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan – according to state media.

The appeal of these remote locales is bolstered by China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which has fostered closer diplomatic ties and streamlined travel to various regions. State media notes that several African countries, including Tanzania, have implemented visa policies that court Chinese tourists, making exotic locales more accessible to budget-conscious travellers.

Per-capita spending among China’s May Day holiday travellers grew this year from a “relatively restrained base” of 566 yuan (US$83) per trip in post-pandemic 2024, and 574 yuan per trip last year, to an estimated 680 to 690 yuan per trip this past week, China Trading Desk calculated based on traveller surveys.

Visitors swamp Chinese tourist sites during ‘golden week’

This increase in outlays for the 2026 holiday was attributed primarily to higher transport and lodging costs, Bhatt said. Airfares, in particular, have edged up due to fuel surcharges driven by shortages of oil and gas shipped through the Strait of Hormuz amid the US-Israeli war on Iran.

On Wednesday, the National Immigration Administration said border agents handled 11.28 million entries and exits, averaging 2.26 million per day, or a year-on-year increase of 3.5 per cent. The number of foreign nationals entering and leaving the country reached about 1.26 million – a 12.5 per cent increase over last year’s break.

The May Day break is one of China’s three extended public holidays. The other so-called golden weeks coincide with National Day in October and the Chinese New Year, which falls sometime in the first two calendar months. Chinese officials often see the holidays as chances to stimulate otherwise soft consumption.

Holiday makers spent judiciously this past week by picking concerts, self-drive trips and cultural activities, Bhatt said. He noted that smaller Chinese cities excelled by using lower costs to draw visitors.

And the hunt for value is increasingly pushing travellers towards international options that offer exotic appeal at bargain prices.

Overseas, half-day snorkelling trips in Zanzibar start at US$45, according to the Scuba Fish Dive Centre located on the Indian Ocean island that is part of Tanzania. A stay at a Kyrgyz guest house costs as little as US$10 per night.

“The market is stronger in both volume and value, but the consumer remains highly value-conscious,” Bhatt said.

Enoch Lin, a 49-year-old compliance professional from Shanghai, visited the Nepal Himalayas with friends this month, opting for a budget-friendly group trek over the usual family-of-four vacation. He saved further by buying outdoor gear through a local e-commerce platform rather than abroad.

“There it is [online] – and it’s delivered to your home,” Lin said.