The China National Tourism Administration announced on Friday that more than 67 million trips were made that day, generating 54.6 billion yuan ($8.2 billion).

The number was 12 percent more than the same day last year, the authority said, adding that destinations with distinct cultures and folk arts had been the most popular with visitors.

“Our performances and tourism projects relating to local folk arts and culture attracted many visitors,” said Zhang Kexin, deputy director of the tourism administration of Anxin county in Hebei province.

For example, visitors could enjoy folklore shows in a grand view lotus garden in Baiyangdian, one of the largest freshwater wetlands in North China, as well as fishing or sailing at Wangjiazhai, a cultural village in the area, according to Zhang.

Ma Hepeng, deputy manager of the lotus garden, said the garden received about 4,000 visitors on Oct 1, of whom, 30 percent came from outside the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

Anxin is part of the Xiongan New Area, the national level economic zone announced by the central leadership on April 1. It has proved to be one of the hottest travel destinations during the Golden Week holiday, the nation’s top tourism authority said.

“I came to Xiongan with my friends as we want to see whether the cultural performance market is good. If possible, we’ll consider investing in the area,” said one visitor from Macao.

A report by the China Tourism Academy in late September estimated that the tourism industry would make 590 billion yuan during the National Day holiday this year, up 12.2 percent from last year, while the number of trips made by tourists might exceed 710 million over the eight days.

And Hebei has been playing its part in that, the province received 5.86 million trips and made 3.8 billion yuan from tourism on Thursday, according to the national tourism administration on that day.

Data from the China Tourism Academy and Ctrip, one of the country’s leading providers of travel services, showed that Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou in Jiangsu province were the top three travel destinations during the holiday.

And, according to iqilu.com, an official website of Shandong provincial broadcasting and television station, about 60 percent of travelers nationwide during the holiday were women.

Despite a retreat in daily passenger traffic from Sunday’s peak, Chinese railways were still busy carrying passengers back to work and college as the week-long holiday nears its end.

More than 12 million trips were made Thursday, up 12.3 percent year on year, China Railway Corporation (CRC) said. Major city clusters surrounding metropolises of Beijing and Shanghai and Guangdong Province contributed more than 40 percent of the total.

CRC expects more to come on Friday and said it has arranged 539 more trains to ensure smooth travel, as well as free shuttle buses and more ticket vending machines.

Railways nationwide will receive around 130 million passengers in the 11 days following Sept. 28, according to an early forecast.

The National Day holiday has been extended to eight days this year to celebrate Mid-Autumn, or Moon Cake Festival, that falls on Oct. 4.

[unable to retrieve full-text content]The Three Gorges Dam, a gigantic hydropower project on the Yangtze River, discharged water on Oct.5, 2017.

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has been exercising “Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong” with a high degree of autonomy in strict accordance with the Basic Law, since Hong Kong returned to the motherland, a spokesman for the HKSAR government said on Friday.

This demonstrates the full and successful implementation of the “one country, two systems” principle, which has been widely recognized by the international community, he noted.

The spokesman made the remarks in response to a report issued by the United States Congressional-Executive Commission on China on Thursday local time.

“Foreign legislatures should not interfere in any form in the internal affairs of the HKSAR,” the spokesman said.

The Basic Law of the HKSAR specifies the guidelines of “one country, two systems” and “Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong” with a high degree of autonomy.

The previous economic and social systems of Hong Kong and the way of life have remained unchanged, and most laws continue to apply.

The Basic Law ensures the HKSAR has a high degree of autonomy and enjoys executive, legislative and independent judicial power, including that of final adjudication.

World Bank data show that Hong Kong’s indicator of the rule of law, a core value of Hong Kong society, has jumped from behind 60th in the world in 1996 to the 11th place in 2015, well ahead of some major Western economies.

A documentary highlighting China’s social and economic achievements since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2012 will be aired on the state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV), according to an official statement Thursday.

The seven-episode documentary, named “Forging Ahead with Original Aspirations in Mind,” also summarizes the thoughts and footsteps of Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee.

The film shows how policies and top-down designs were formulated and carried out by the CPC Central Committee, detailing its courage, intelligence and sense of responsibility in fulfilling its dreams.

By telling inspiring stories, the documentary gives a vivid depiction of Party members forging ahead while keeping original aspirations in mind.