"Red tourism" was a main theme of the National Day holiday with over 78 percent of the tourists participating in various activities to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

The Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders in east China's Jiangsu Province, for instance, saw a record high in visitor arrivals during the weeklong holiday.

The single-day passenger flow reached a record 133,000 on October 3, with long queues forming at the entrance before 8 a.m., half an hour prior to the hall's opening. A total of 560,000 people visited the site over the past week, 100,000 more than the previous year, data from the hall showed.

Apart from local citizens, students, tourists and delegations from all over the world came to pay tribute to the victims and left messages during the holiday.

"I wish for world peace and a brighter future for my country," reads a message on the guestbook. Staff at the hall said they went through nearly 1,000 sheets of paper and eight pens every day during the holiday.

Among the red tourism sites across China, Beijing, Yan'an in northwest China's Shaanxi Province and Jinggangshan in east China's Jiangxi Province were the most visited. Also, youngsters constituted the majority of the total number of visitors.

China has 33,315 revolutionary historical sites and relics on record. In recent years, red tourism has gained great popularity in China. 

Read more: China sees 782 mln domestic tourist trips during National Day holiday

(With input from Xinhua)

(Cover: The Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders in east China's Jiangsu Province sees a record high in visitor arrivals, October 3, 2019. /VCG Photo)