Golden Week Cross-Border Travel Peaked Oct. 4 at 2.397 Million Trips
Cross-border travel during China's 2026 National Day Golden Week peaked on Oct. 4, with 2.397 million inbound and outbound trips recorded in a single day, according to National Immigration Administration figures. Daily border crossings averaged about 2.209 million across the holiday, and inspection authorities processed 732,000 cross-border transport movements — planes, ships, trains and vehicles — up 14.7% year on year.
On the outbound side, mainland residents' trips kept growing, with long-haul destinations such as New Zealand and Iceland gaining popularity on platforms including Mafengwo and Ctrip. Inbound travel continued to benefit from visa policy: China now grants unilateral visa-free entry to 50 countries and 240-hour visa-free transit to 57, and travelers from markets including Russia and Malaysia were among the drivers of record cross-border flight bookings.
Authorities waived expressway tolls for small passenger cars, scheduled 2,449 additional trains for the return peak, and local governments staged more than 20,000 cultural and tourism activities alongside about 310 million yuan in consumer vouchers to convert the travel surge into local spending.
Structurally, this year's Golden Week cross-border growth was driven by visa convenience, restored air capacity and exchange-rate factors together. Travel companies cautioned that hotels and ground services in popular visa-free destinations also run tight during the holiday, making advance booking the surest way to avoid peak pricing; border posts added lanes for the Oct. 7 return peak.
Photo: 机场出入境旅客实景，Public domain（Wikimedia Commons，摄影：U.S. Customs and Border Protection）
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 机场出入境旅客实景，Public domain（Wikimedia Commons，摄影：U.S. Customs and Border Protection）
