China records 15.46 million cross-border trips during National Day holiday

China recorded more than 15.46 million cross-border trips during the week-long National Day holiday, as international travel has continued to rebound and visa-free policies have helped drive inbound tourism, official data released on Thursday showed.

According to the National Immigration Administration, border inspection authorities across the country handled a total of 15.462 million inbound and outbound passenger crossings by Chinese and foreign travelers during the holiday, averaging 2.209 million trips per day. The figure was 6.7 percent higher than that in the same period of last year.

Foreign nationals made 682,000 inbound trips during the holiday, up 5.4 percent year on year. Of these, 505,000 entered under visa-free policies, an increase of 9.2 percent from a year earlier.

Major cities, including Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu, witnessed busy cross-border passenger flows.

At the Mohan Railway Port in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, nearly 7,000 travelers from 31 countries and regions crossed the border during the holiday. Visa-free foreign travelers accounted for more than 58 percent of inbound passengers there.

In Chengdu City, southwest China’s Sichuan Province, international visitors explored attractions such as the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding and Du Fu Thatched Cottage, sampled local cuisine and experienced traditional cultural activities.

As of October 7, Sichuan border inspection authorities had processed more than 141,000 inbound and outbound passenger trips and 840 flights during the holiday, with passenger traffic up 7.8 percent year on year.

Other parts of the country also saw strong travel and consumption activities. In south China’s Hainan Province, the offshore duty-free market recorded sales of 855 million yuan (about 127 million U.S. dollars) from October 1 to 7. Nearly 700,000 items were sold, while the number of shopping trips reached 123,000, up 10.41 percent year on year.

In Guangzhou City, south China’s Guangdong Province, where the 140th Canton Fair is approaching, ports also recorded heavy passenger flows.

The Guangzhou General Station of Immigration Inspection said its ports handled about 405,000 inbound and outbound traveler trips during the holiday, the highest National Day holiday figure in nearly five years.

“Many businesspeople arrived in Guangzhou ahead of schedule to visit factories and hold business negotiations, bringing a peak in inbound passenger flows at Pazhou Port. We have fully implemented the 16 measures introduced by the Guangzhou General Station of Immigration Inspection to provide services and support for the 140th Canton Fair. We’ve opened special lanes for Canton Fair businesspeople to ensure that travelers and overseas businesspeople can pass through border controls safely, conveniently and efficiently,” said Xiao Yan, an inspection officer at Zhoutouzui Border Inspection Station.

Yemen’s Houthi group on Thursday claimed a second ballistic missile strike this week on King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement on social media platform X that the group fired a ballistic missile at King Khalid International Airport around midday, claiming it “successfully hit its target,” causing damage and disrupting air traffic.

The Houthi group also claimed to have launched ballistic missiles at staging areas of the Saudi-led coalition in southern Yemen, causing dozens of casualties and sparking fires at several weapons’ storage sites. The group also said it had shot down a Saudi armed reconnaissance drone in the southwestern province of Taiz.

Several explosions were heard in Riyadh on Thursday morning, according to media reports, with several schools implementing security measures and some companies evacuating their staff from their offices.

The Saudi-led coalition said in a statement on Thursday that its forces intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis toward Riyadh and another missile targeting Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia.

The conflict appears to have escalated this week as the Houthis intensified missile and drone attacks against Saudi airports, energy facilities and military targets, while Saudi forces stepped up strikes on Houthi-held areas in Yemen.

Heavy fighting is continuing between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen, particularly near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the strategic maritime chokepoint linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.

Yemen has been embroiled in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of the north. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government, now based in the southern port city of Aden. The renewed fighting marked a major escalation after a UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted major hostilities.