Full coverage: International Workers' Day

Saturday marks the beginning of China's 3-day Labor Day holiday, and people are going out of their ways to spend it in leisure. The country's railway authorities estimate that more than 45 million train trips will be made from Friday to Monday, an almost 10 percent growth from last year.

Sanya, at the Southern tip of the island province of Hainan, is the most popular domestic destination. While Thailand remains Chinese travellers' go-to choice for overseas travel during the May Day holiday. The number of short-haul trips is also on the rise, as a spell of generally good and warm weather is visiting large parts of the country.