Chinese tourists made 133 million domestic trips during the three-day New Year holiday, according to the top tourism authority.
The trips generated tourism revenue of 75.5 billion yuan, up by 11.2 percent year-on-year, the China National Tourism Administration said.
Trips by car and countryside outings were preferred in most areas, the tourism department said.
Famous cities in the south, such as Sanya, Xiamen, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Kunming, were regarded as good destinations for escaping the cold, though some cities in northeastern China, including Harbin, Shenyang and Jilin, welcomed visitors for winter tourism.
On New Year's Eve, themed activities such as gourmet festivals and countdown celebrations attracted a large number of people, according to the tourism administration.
The booming tourism was accompanied by busy traffic. On Sunday, 8.732 million passengers traveled by train, 17.3 percent higher year on year, according to China Railway Corporation or CRC which was forced to add 261 temporary trains on the New Year’s Day to meet the demand.
China's domestic tourism industry generated 3.9 trillion yuan in 2016. The Chinese government plans to raise this figure to 7 trillion yuan, accounting for around 12% of China's GDP growth, by 2020.
China Railway Corp estimated that about 31 million rail trips were made during the New Year holiday travel rush, an increase of 16 percent compared with last year.
The company added 598 trains to help people get to their destinations during the break.
