The bustling Hangzhouxi Railway Station. [Photo/WeChat account: gh_4e791dde0ebc]

The 40-day 2024 Spring Festival travel season came to a close on March 5.

During this year's Spring Festival travel rush, there was a strong preference among the public for railway travel, particularly for family visits, student travel, and tourism, and among migrant workers.

The Hangzhou Railway Station handled 10.3 million passengers during the travel rush, averaging 257,000 passengers per day. Compared to the same period in 2023 and 2019, this marked a growth of 35.3 percent and 21.2 percent, respectively.

Hangzhou Station handled 1.24 million passengers, while the eastern branch served 7.36 million passengers and the southern branch served 529,000 passengers. Additionally, the Hangzhou-Huangshan High-speed Railway saw 356,000 passengers across four stations in the city, and the Hangzhou-Huzhou High-speed Railway served 814,000 passengers across three stations in the city.

The seven airports under Zhejiang Airport Group experienced a surge in domestic and international passenger traffic, with a total of 68,000 flights and 9.57 million passengers, marking a year-on-year increase of 26 percent and 45 percent, respectively.

The Hangzhou Airport surpassed the 140,000-passenger mark for eight days in a row, setting a new record. On Feb 16 (the seventh day of the Chinese New Year), the airport reached a peak of 149,100 passengers, setting a new record for the busiest Spring Festival travel period in history.

With the implementation of visa-free policies for countries like Singapore and Thailand, there was a surge in both inbound and outbound tourism. The total number of such passengers at airports in Hangzhou, Ningbo, and Wenzhou exceeded 610,000, with Hangzhou Airport alone handling 500,000 passengers, marking a staggering 340-percent increase compared to the previous year.

The Hangzhou International Airport bustles during the holiday. [Photo/WeChat account: hangzhouairport]