(Yicai) Dec. 22 -- China has seen the number of reservations for high-speed train tickets soar for the upcoming New Year's holiday, with routes under four hours becoming a top choice among travelers.

The number of high-speed train ticket bookings for New Year's Day break, which runs from Jan. 1 through 3, has surged nearly five times from a year earlier, according to data from Meituan Travel. The most popular destinations are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Harbin, and Nanjing.

Tickets for high-speed trains on several popular tourist routes, including Beijing-Shenyang, Beijing-Harbin, and Shanghai-Taizhou, as well as tickets of many other routes departing on the evening of Dec. 31 and the morning of Jan. 1 have either been sold out or are in short supply, with those for trips lasting less than four hours being the most scarce, Yicai found.

The growing popularity of four-hour high-speed train travel is most evident in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Sichuan-Chongqing area, and other major urban agglomerations.

Residents of first tier or transportation hub cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Zhengzhou, have a particularly strong rail travel demand. In addition, more than 60 percent of train bookings for the New Year's Day holiday have been made by people born after 1995.

Regarding flight reservations, southern Guangzhou, with its mild temperatures, has become the most popular destination for New Year's Eve, Meituan Travel data shows. Tourists from Beijing, Shanghai, and other colder cities have chosen to fly to warmer regions to celebrate.

Such a preference is also directly reflected in the search data for accommodation near popular tourist attractions in Guangzhou, with searches for hotels near the Canton Tower jumping 56 percent from a year ago and near Guangzhou Zengcheng Square soaring 113 percent. Reservations for four-star and above hotels have skyrocketed 357 percent.

The Platinum Five-Star Guangzhou Garden Hotel's occupancy rate during the New Year's Day holiday is expected to exceed 90 percent, or even reach full capacity, Deputy General Manager Liang Jianfen told Yicai, noting that guests are mainly young people and families.

The revolving restaurant on the Garden Hotel's 30th floor will likely be fully booked during the break, Liang said. "The restaurant is very popular because diners can enjoy the city's night view."

Guangzhou has become a popular city for New Year's Eve travel mainly due to its pleasant winter climate, Liang pointed out. The number of overseas tourists is also increasing rapidly, with the Garden Hotel receiving many guests from Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Europe this year, she added.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev