Airplane tickets are overpriced. Railway tickets are hard to get. Yes, going home for the Lunar New Year is a problem.

Some have found solutions in car rentals. It's a little pricey, but less troublesome.

This year Zhang Wenzhi, a self-employed 43-year-old in Beijing, has decided to take a 2.5-hour drive to his hometown Tangshan, Hebei province, with his wife and son.