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Some 280 million Chinese will travel on the nation's airlines, trains, boats and buses during the weeklong International Labor Day holiday that starts today, according to the Ministry of Communications. A sizable number of Shanghai residents will venture out of town, and an equally large crowd of tourists will pour into the city. The government began its "golden weeks," or "holiday economics" policy last year in an attempt to boost tourism and consumer spending. Flights and railway services to popular destinations, from Yunan Province in the southwest to overseas resorts in Thailand, have been booked out for weeks. In Shanghai, more than 70 percent of the hotel rooms have been reserved for the coming four days. Local holiday events abound. Most parks, from Shanghai Zoo to the botanical garden, have arranged special shows and exhibitions. To handle the traffic, additional subway and bus services will be available. The interval between trains on Metro Line 1 will be shortened from seven minutes to five minutes. Banks will remain open, but services are restricted to the needs of private customers, such as deposits. Corporate account holders will have to wait until next Tuesday to get anything done. Foreign consulates will not issue visas during the seven-day period. Hospital emergency rooms will be staffed at all hospitals. Most department stores and restaurants plan to cash in on the long holiday by attracting customers with special offers. But don't expect too much sunshine. Due to a weak high pressure system, the temperature is likely to hover around 17 degrees Celsius this week, with the highest perhaps reaching 25 degrees. This year, people were required to work the past weekend. Credit for those two days is added to the three official days off. Combined with next weekend, the vacation period thus is stretched to seven days. International Labor Day commemorates the achievement of working people throughout the world and is recognized in most countries. The holiday began in the 1880s in the United States as a rallying point in the battle for an eight-hour work day. (The United States and Canada celebrate their Labor Day on the first Monday in September, however.) In 1884, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions of the United States and Canada passed a resolution that asserted the eight-hour work day starting on May 1, 1886. With workers being forced to work 10, 12 and 14 hours a day, support for the movement grew rapidly. In the months prior to May 1, 1886, thousands of workers were drawn into the struggle. China celebrated its first International Labor Day in 1920. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the central government designated May 1 as an official holiday. Du Daofu, a 66-year-old retired professor from the city's Chinese Academy of Sciences, recalled huge government-organized parades on May 1 in People's Square when he was young. Workers, divided into different groups by occupation, marched around the square several times, voicing slogans such as "serve the people" and "unity is power." Fireworks displays often followed at night, Du said.