Nearly 730 million trips were made by Chinese travelers within China over the seven-day National Day holiday from October 1 to 7, a year-on-year increase of 9.43%, thanks to cheaper tickets and higher-quality travel services, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Travel and tourism-related revenue hit nearly CNY600 billion, up 9.04% compared with 2017. The Ministry said that 981 state-level attractions lowered ticket prices, while 74 were free of charge. The Three Gorges Dam was rated as one of the most popular attractions among venues offering free entry. Tourist attractions received 122 million visits on just the first day of the seven-day break, up 7.54% year-on-year, with revenue increasing by 7.19% to CNY103 billion. The flag-raising ceremony at Tiananmen Square in Beijing attracted about 145,000 travelers on October 1, the 69th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

China’s railway traffic reached its peak on October 7, the last day of the weeklong National Day holiday, with an estimated daily passenger flow of 15.2 million, China Railway Corp said. Rail authorities arranged 814 extra train services nationwide to handle the rush of people returning home and back to work, the company said. Meanwhile, 580,000 people were expected to arrive in Beijing on October 7.