China kicked off 2025 with a vibrant New Year holiday, witnessing a significant boost in tourism, consumer spending, and transportation. According to the National Immigration Administration (NIA), cross-border trips surged by 13.7% compared to the previous year, totaling over 1.8 million passenger trips during the holiday on Wednesday.
Among these trips, 869,000 were made by Chinese mainland residents, marking an 11.1% increase year-on-year, while foreign visitors accounted for 185,000 trips, soaring by 33.6%, as per the NIA data released on Thursday.
Outbound tourism continued its strong growth trajectory since 2023. Data from Fliggy, a leading online travel platform, showed that as of the early hours of January 1, 2025, outbound tourism bookings had risen by nearly 70% year-on-year. The relaxation of China’s visa-free policy has played a significant role, with inbound tourism bookings from December 31, 2024, to January 1, 2025, growing exponentially.
Neighboring countries like South Korea and Japan saw substantial increases in travel bookings to China. According to reports, orders from South Korea increased by 215%, and those from Japan by 145% on the Ctrip platform during the same period, highlighting a renewed interest in travel to China.
The holiday season also brought a boom to China’s film industry. The New Year’s Day box office revenue surpassed 3 billion yuan (approximately $411 million), as per data from box office tracker Dengta. Popular films such as “Sheep Without a Shepherd 3”, “Big World”, and “Honey Money Phony” led the charts, attracting large audiences across the country.
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China's 2025 New Year holiday sees boost in spending, travel
cgtn.com
