Passengers pose for photos on Train K7041, a northeast folk culture-themed train, at Harbin Railway Station in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, on Dec. 22, 2025. (Photo by Xu Shuai/Xinhua)

Beijing - Train tickets for the first day of the 2026 Spring Festival travel rush went on sale on Monday, China's railway operator said.

This year's travel rush period, known as chunyun, will run from Feb. 2 to March 13, according to China State Railway Group Co., Ltd.

The national railway network is expected to handle 539 million passenger trips during the 40-day period this year, representing a 5 percent increase from the 2025 chunyun, the company said.

Each year during the Spring Festival travel rush, millions of people who work, study, or live away from their hometowns return home to reunite with their families for the Spring Festival, China's most important traditional holiday, forming the world's largest annual human migration.

This year's Spring Festival will fall on Feb. 17. To better accommodate the surge in travel demand, railway operators have rolled out a range of service upgrades, including a limited-time free refund policy for mistakenly purchased tickets, expanded "quiet carriage" services, and discounted tickets for students.