The 40-day Spring Festival travel rush has just come to an end at Harbin Taiping International Airport, the northernmost international airport in China –– with the airport breaking new records for passenger flow.

Harbin in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang province is recognized as the second most popular travel destination in China during the holidays due to its grand ice and snow festival, according to statistics from China’s travel agencies.

Figures released by Heilongjiang Airport Group reveal that Harbin airport handled 16,811 flights, and 2.43 million passengers from Feb 1 to March 12, representing a year-on-year increase of 4.6 percent and 6 percent respectively.

Staff members at the airport said that incoming flights from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Xiamen, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan were extremely busy, with most bringing tourists heading to Harbin to enjoy the winter fun.

Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea, as well as Haikou and Sanya in South China’s Hainan province were the top travel destinations for Harbin residents.

To cope with the passenger numbers, Air China, China Southern Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines and Hainan Airlines arranged extra-large passenger aircraft, such as the Boeing B787 and Airbus A330 for their Harbin services.