Guangdong Reopens Airports and Land Ports as Typhoon Shutdown Ends, Immigration Bureau Says

China’s National Immigration Administration (NIA) announced on Friday morning, July 17, that all air, land and rail ports in Guangdong province had reopened after a 24-hour shutdown triggered by Typhoon “Shanzhu.” The storm forced temporary closure of Baiyun International Airport, cross-border rail links to Hong Kong and multiple land checkpoints on July 16. By 14:00 local time on Friday, normal operations had resumed, with additional officers deployed to manage a surge in stranded travelers. The NIA said passenger throughput at Baiyun airport jumped sharply above normal Friday as airlines cleared backlogs. Border-inspection teams opened all counters, added mobile e-gates and used Chinese-language and English loud-speaker announcements to direct foreign visitors unfamiliar with the airport redesign completed earlier this year. Maritime passenger terminals in Shenzhen (Shekou) and Zhuhai (Jiuzhou) remain under repair but are expected to restart services within 48 hours. Guangdong is China’s busiest province for cross-border traffic, handling roughly one-third of all mainland entries thanks to its manufacturing base and proximity to Hong Kong and Macao. Any prolonged closure can ripple across regional supply chains. Electronics exporters in Dongguan, for example, reported delays in shipping-documentation stamping during the shutdown, while Hong Kong-based logistics firms rerouted trucks through less-congested checkpoints in Guangxi. The NIA reminded travelers to check port-status updates via the 12367 hotline or the agency’s WeChat mini-program before departure. Business-travel managers should build weather-related contingencies into itineraries during the July-to-September typhoon season, including buffer days for visa-on-arrival activation and just-in-time cargo clearance. From a policy perspective, the smooth reopening showcases China’s investment in “smart port” systems—such as facial-recognition vehicle lanes—that allowed authorities to flex capacity quickly once weather alerts were lifted. Companies with high-volume cross-border flows may wish to enrol drivers and frequent flyers in these e-gate programs to minimise future disruptions.