China’s Holiday Travel Growth Slows Sharply

The number of travelers in China who ventured to other parts of the country during this year’s weeklong National Day holiday barely grew from the same period in 2025, as high fuel prices and bad weather weighed on demand.

From Oct. 1 to Wednesday, the number of passenger-trips across regions rose 0.6% year-on-year to 2.1 billion, according to data released Thursday by China’s Ministry of Transport. That growth rate was down from last year’s 6.2% increase for the holiday week, though it should be noted that the 2025 holiday was one day longer.