This year's extended May Day holiday has arrived as scheduled, presenting a prime travel opportunity for many tourism enthusiasts. However, alongside rising consumer enthusiasm, travel costs have also increased. High-speed rail tickets to popular cities are hard to secure, airfares are climbing, and refined oil prices have already undergone multiple hikes in 2026. In contrast, electric vehicle (EV) owners who planned their self-drive routes early are free from such cost anxieties.
"We set off on April 30th, covering over 1000 kilometers round trip. The total electricity consumption was about 200 kWh, costing only around 300 yuan in electricity fees," Wen Wu, an EV owner who drove from Beijing to Taiyuan, Shanxi, revealed. For the same distance, the cost for a gasoline-powered vehicle would rise to between 600 and 700 yuan.
Following multiple increases in domestic jet fuel surcharges in April, several domestic and international airlines raised fuel surcharges for May routes effective April 28th. Among international carriers, Korean Air's one-way surcharge for May international routes ranged from 75,000 to 564,000 won (approximately 348 to 2,618 yuan), with short-haul routes like Qingdao set at a uniform 75,000 won. All Nippon Airways increased the fuel surcharge for routes from mainland China to Japan from 275 yuan to 441 yuan starting May 1st, a rise of 166 yuan, representing an increase of over 60%. Domestically, airlines including Juneyao Airlines, Xiamen Airlines, and Spring Airlines have also successively raised fuel surcharges for international routes.
Data from the third-party platform Flight Master shows that as of April 21st, the average pre-tax price for domestic economy class tickets during the May Day holiday was 1,000 yuan, up 13.9% compared to the same period in 2025 and 25.9% higher than in 2019. Beyond rising airfares, refined oil prices have seen six consecutive increases in 2026. Although the first price drop of the year occurred on April 21st, upward pressure remains significant. For example, the cumulative maximum increase for 92-octane gasoline since the beginning of the year has exceeded 1.71 yuan per liter, reaching 8.46 yuan per liter in Beijing.
The simultaneous rise in airfare and oil prices has significantly increased travel costs, whether for those relying on public transport or owners of fuel-powered vehicles planning road trips. Under these circumstances, the low travel costs for new energy vehicle owners are once again sparking envy.
Wen Wu mentioned that because he used the air conditioning extensively, his consumption of 200 kWh for over 1000 km was on the higher side. "Currently, mainstream new energy models typically have an everyday electricity consumption of 11 to 15 kWh per 100 kilometers," he noted. A screenshot provided by another EV owner showed their electricity consumption for the past week ranged between 11.5 and 14.8 kWh per 100 km.
Regarding electricity costs, Wen Wu pointed out that charging at home with a personal charging pile is cheaper, at about 0.5 yuan per kWh, while the current price at public fast-charging stations on highways is approximately 1.64 yuan per kWh. Calculations based on Wen Wu's 200 kWh consumption, if entirely at the highway charging rate of 1.64 yuan/kWh, would total 328 yuan for the 1000 km journey. Using the industry's common average consumption of 11-15 kWh per 100 km, the total electricity needed for 1000 km would be between 110 and 150 kWh. Charging solely at highway stations would cost between 180.4 yuan and 246 yuan. Factoring in cheaper home charging or additional benefits like charging discounts, swap services, or fast-charging privileges offered by some automakers would further reduce the cost for EV owners.
In comparison, the travel cost for a gasoline car owner driving the same 1000 km distance is considerably higher. Calculations based on a typical fuel consumption of 7.5 to 8.5 liters per 100 km and the current Beijing price of 8.46 yuan per liter for 92-octane gasoline show a fuel cost ranging from approximately 637.5 yuan to 722.5 yuan for 1000 km, far exceeding the cost for a new energy vehicle over the same distance.
Low travel cost is an inherent advantage of new energy electric vehicles. Previously, constraints like inadequate charging infrastructure meant that although operating costs were low, the actual travel experience was hampered, with range anxiety and charging inconvenience being major concerns for many owners. Now, thanks to policy support and efforts from automakers and the industrial chain, the shortcomings in charging infrastructure have seen qualitative improvement.
Li Auto's website shows it currently operates over 4,076 supercharging stations and has access to 57,038 fast-charging stations. BYD announced on April 28th that it has cumulatively built over 5,500 flash-charging stations, covering 311 cities across the country. Data disclosed by NIO Inc. shows that as of April 30th, the company had built 8,847 charging and battery swap stations nationwide. This includes 3,838 battery swap stations (1,035 on highways) and 5,009 charging stations, alongside the deployment of 28,800 NIO charging piles.
According to the national charging facility monitoring service platform, by the end of March 2026, the total number of electric vehicle charging points in China reached 21.481 million, a year-on-year increase of 46.9%. This includes 4.863 million public charging points, up 28.1% year-on-year. The total rated power of public charging piles reached 234 million kilowatts, with an average power of approximately 48.06 kW.
During the Spring Festival holiday this year, an EV owner who drove 2,500 kilometers reported encountering a charging queue only once during the entire trip, and the wait was brief, about 20 minutes. The owner mentioned that navigation maps sometimes inaccurately display the number of charging piles, as many newly added piles on provincial highways and some third-party chargers are not promptly updated. "The actual charging experience and speed are already quite good," they added.
Another EV owner who drove from Beijing to Datong on May 1st this year mentioned the one-way trip was about 360 km. "Theoretically, no mid-journey charging was needed, but I took a detour to avoid traffic and was concerned about potential further delays draining the battery, so I charged once along the way. Perhaps because we charged early, not only was there no queue, but there were even some vacant charging piles," the owner said, though they later observed queues at some service areas. Wen Wu also acknowledged that queuing for charging at certain service areas can still be quite severe.
The cost advantages of current electric vehicles extend far beyond low energy consumption. Soaring hotel prices during holidays have long been a common pain point for travelers. The increasingly practical interior space of new energy vehicles has led many EV owners to choose sleeping in their cars. "During my self-drive tour last National Day, over six nights, I stayed in a hotel only once, spent one night at a campsite bonfire party, and slept in the car for the remaining four nights, saving a significant amount," shared one owner. (Note: The name Wen Wu in the article is a pseudonym.)
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