London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Sep 13, 2025

0:00
0:00

China's New Year travel set to double to 2bn trips after zero-COVID easing

Lunar New Year travel will nearly double to 2.095 billion trips this season, Chinese transportation authorities said Friday, after the country all but abolished zero-COVID restrictions last month. Nation readies for first holiday in four years without limits on movements.
This year's holiday will run for seven days through Jan. 27. Rail and other networks have prepared to serve the crush of travelers for a 40-day period starting Saturday.

The estimated number of passenger trips, released by the Ministry of Transport, would mark a recovery to 70% of the holiday traffic seen in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.

China's surge in COVID-19 cases appears to be easing in some large cities, but the outbreak is far from over. Concerns linger that the travel rush will spread the disease to smaller cities and rural areas.

Migrant workers typically use the Lunar New Year holiday to travel home for family reunions. On Friday, a train station in Guangzhou that serves long-haul trips was thronged with passengers lugging large suitcases.

"My parents at home and I have already recovered from COVID," said a man who gave his surname as Lu and was on the way to visit family in southern China's Guangxi region. "There's nothing to worry about, so we'll get together with relatives."

Overseas trips are expected to climb as well from the zero-COVID lows of last year. The number of travel reservations for the week through Jan. 27 is more than six times that of the Lunar New Year holiday of 2022, according to Chinese booking site Trip.com Group. The most popular destination is Australia, followed by Thailand and Japan.

The Chinese government pave the way for the first Lunar New Year holiday in four years without major travel restrictions when it with announced a major rollback of zero-COVID rules last month.

This reversal followed protests in November where people in Beijing, Shanghai and beyond held up blank sheets of white paper and called for an end to the restrictive measures, which included lockdowns and mass testing.

The economic fallout added to the resentment of the zero-COVID policy. Gross domestic product is believed to have grown by about 3% in real terms in 2022 -- well short of the government's target of around 5.5%. The deteriorating labor market has left a growing number of young people without work.

But as the containment policy eased, COVID-19 flared up in big cities. According to estimates by regional authorities and medical professionals, 80% of Beijing residents had a history of infection at the end of the year. The ratios are 70% for Shanghai and about 64% for the inland province of Sichuan.

U.K. health analytics firm Airfinity pegged daily infections at 2.5 million and daily deaths at 16,600 in China forecasts updated Friday, up from more than 1 million and over 5,000 in a Dec. 21 forecast.

Airfinity predicts that China's cumulative deaths from COVID-19 since Dec. 1 will reach 1.7 million by the end of April, up from more than 209,000 in Friday's numbers.

Beijing and other big cities have been seeing people move about in greater numbers since late last month. In 18 large cities, the volume of subway passengers at the end of the year had bounced back to 60% of the level seen at the same period in 2019, according to Chinese brokerage Haitong Securities.

Nearly all Seven-Eleven convenience stores in Beijing were operating normally as of Monday. In December, 60 stores, or about 20% of the total in the Chinese capital, had to close temporarily as workers called in sick. Customer traffic is recovering, too, said a representative from Seven-Eleven's parent company, Japan's Seven & i Holdings.

The Lunar New Year holiday will provide the first big test of China's looser approach to containing COVID-19.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
Starmer Establishes Economic ‘Budget Board’ to Centralise Policy and Rebuild Business Trust
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Brazilian police say ex-President Bolsonaro had planned to flee to Argentina seeking asylum
Trinidad Leader Applauds U.S. Naval Strike and Advocates Forceful Action Against Traffickers
Kim Jong Un Oversees Final Test of New High-Thrust Solid-Fuel Rocket Engine
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Supreme Court temporarily allows Trump to pause billions in foreign aid
Charlie Sheen says his father, Martin Sheen, turned him in to the police: 'The greatest betrayal possible'
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
Pig Heads Left Outside Multiple Paris Mosques in Outrage-Inducing Acts
Nvidia’s ‘Wow’ Factor Is Fading. The AI chip giant used to beat Wall Street expectations for earnings by a substantial margin. That trajectory is coming down to earth.
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
On the Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Death: Prince Harry Returns to Britain
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Murdoch Family Finalises $3.3 Billion Succession Pact, Ensuring Eldest Son’s Leadership
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Court Staff Cover Up Banksy Image of Judge Beating a Protester
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
Elon Musk Poised to Become First Trillionaire Under Ambitious Tesla Pay Plan
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
Burning the Minister’s House Helped Protesters to Win Justice: Prabowo Fires Finance Minister in Wake of Indonesia Protests
Brazil Braces for Fallout from Bolsonaro Trial by corrupted judge
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
Nearly 40 Years Later: Nike Changes the Legendary Slogan Just Do It
×