The week-long Labour Day holiday, from yesterday to May 7, gives Chinese people the chance to take a breather from the increasing pressures of the workplace and the accelerated pace of life.

The increase in transportation indicated that going outdoors still remained the top choice for many Chinese to enjoy their holidays.

Beijing Railway Station saw a total of 170,000 passengers on Tuesday, and the number was continuously increasing, according to a Xinhua report.

The capital's railway bureau has prepared more than 150 extra trains to meet the expected 2.4 million passengers who will leave the city during the week-long holiday.

But still tickets remain hard to get, according to the report.

Sources with the Ministry of Communications said the number of travellers in the past two days, though estimated at slightly less than that of the Spring Festival in February, still reached a high level.

A recent survey by Feng & Associates Marketing Services said 34 per cent of Beijing and Guangzhou residents planned to go on tours during the coming week and the percentage in Shanghai and Chengdu reached 40 per cent and 48 per cent respectively.

The survey also said that 80 per cent of the outbound Shanghainese would choose tour destinations outside the city or abroad.

An upcoming rainfall is expected to calm some of the travel chaos.

According to the Central Meteorological Observatory, drizzle or moderate rain will sweep most areas of the country today and tomorrow, and on May 6 and 7.

A sandstorm is not likely to hit North China, including Beijing, in the following week according to the observatory, but tourists are reminded to better prepare for the coming temperature drop for most areas of the country.

According to the National Holiday Affairs Office, major tourism cities around the country have been flexing their muscles to attract more visitors.

Shanghai is holding an international fashion festival and a martial arts Kungfu expo, according to the office.

Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province, invited more than 100 folk artists from around the country to give folk performances like puppet shows, Peking Opera, paper-cutting, lantern shows and dough figurine moulding.

The flag-raising ceremony at Tian'anmen Square in Beijing yesterday attracted more than 30,000 tourists, as well as local residents, Xinhua reported.

More than 30 artistic troupes from Asia, Europe, North and South America and Africa, along with a dozen of domestic drama troupes are also expected to give performances in the capital during the holiday, according to the report.

( China Daily May 2, 2002)