A surge in cross-border travel has swept through the Zhuhai Port of the Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macao Bridge in south China during the five-day May Day holiday starting from Friday, as growing numbers of residents from the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macao head to the mainland for leisure and tourism.

Since April 29, or Wednesday, the border inspection station of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge has recorded 226,000 passenger trips and 52,000 vehicle crossings as of 16:00 on Friday. The current flow is primarily inbound, with many travelers choosing to enter the mainland ahead of the official holiday rush.

According to data from the border inspection station of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the holiday traffic has been predominantly inbound. The port officially entered its peak period on Wednesday, with daily passenger flow averaging around 80,000 people, a 10-percent increase compared to pre-holiday levels. This year’s travel boom has come from sharp increase in family tours and parent-child tours.

“Today is the [first day of] May Day holiday, and I’m traveling with my family to Nansha [in Guangzhou] and Zhuhai,” said a tourist from Hong Kong.

In addition to Guangdong Province, many other places near Guangdong on the mainland are also among the tourism options of people from Hong Kong and Macao.

“The number of residents from Hong Kong and Macao embarking on in-depth and long-distance tours to provinces on the mainland has seen a significant rise. We’ve seen an increase of about 20 percent compared to previous periods, with destinations like Yunnan, Sichuan and Guizhou emerging as popular choices,” said Bao Haiyang, a customs officer with the border inspection station of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge.

According to authorities with the border inspection station of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the vehicle traffic is projected to hit its peak on May 3, or Sunday, with an estimated 28,000 vehicles expected to cross in a single day.

To cope with the high traffic volume, the border inspection station has implemented a specialized operational plan to manage the traffic influx and ensure a smooth and efficient travel experience for everyone.

Ports of entry in south China’s Shenzhen City have processed more than 100 million cross-border passenger trips as of Saturday, reaching the milestone 17 days earlier than last year and cementing the city’s role among the country’s busiest gateways.

According to Shenzhen General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection, daily average passenger flow stood at 825,000, up 13.5 percent year on year, keeping Shenzhen firmly in first place nationwide.

Officials said the introduction of 240-hour visa-free transit, mutual visa exemptions, and unilateral visa-free entry has further boosted foreign travel through Shenzhen.

By Saturday, the second day of the five-day May Day holiday, nearly 3 million border crossings by international passengers had been recorded via Shenzhen ports, a 28-percent increase year on year. Among them, visa-free entries accounted for about 700,000, up 48 percent from the previous year.

The city of Shenzhen, bordering Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, serves as a key gateway to the Chinese mainland for both Hong Kong and Macao, as well as for the world through the bays on either side of the city and its Bao’an International Airport.