China sees a jump in border crossings on New Year's Day

China's National Immigration Administration said on Thursday that the country’s customs recorded 1.803 million border crossings on the New Year’s Day, a national holiday, which grew by a 13.7 percent year-on-year, indicating a strong travel market rebound.

Of this total, 869,000 crossings were made by Chinese mainlanders, up 11.1 percent year-on-year. Travelers from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan island made 749,000 crossings, a 12.8-percent rise, while foreign visitors made 185,000 crossings, marking a 33.6-percent growth. 

In total, China’s customs officers inspected 67,000 cross-border planes, ships, trains and vehicles on the New Year’s Day, a year-on-year increase of 14.7 percent.

China’s tourism market remained robust during the first day of 2025, with both domestic and international travel experiencing significant growth. The Ministry of Transport projected a total of 182.4 million cross-region passenger trips during the New Year’s Day.

In Hong Kong, the Immigration Department recorded approximately 949,000 border crossings on New Year’s Day, with over 520,000 inbound trips. Among inbound travelers, more than 390,000 were Hong Kong residents, while approximately 100,000 came from China’s mainland. On the outbound front, around 420,000 departures were recorded.

And, Macao reported a total of 1.928 million border crossings from Monday to Wednesday. On New Year’s Day alone, 663,000 border crossings were seen.

According to data from Trip.com, one of China’s leading online travel platforms, inbound tourism surged during the New Year’s Day. Tourist orders for inbound travel more than doubled year-on-year. Tourist bookings from South Korea to China rising 215 percent year-on-year, and bookings from Japan growing 145 percent.