More than 8 million visitors are expected to flood Shanghai during the coming seven-day National Day holiday, which starts October 1, as tourists drop in to visit the Expo 2010 in its last month. The forecast was made by Zhu Chengrong, a senior official with the Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration, according to Xinhuanet, citing a report by China Tourism News. Zhu expects the city to receive 40% more visitors this year compared to last year. "There is no doubt that Shanghai will be the most popular destination during this year’s National Day holiday," said Mao Weihai, a department manager at Shanghai Business Holiday Travel Service. As tourists flood into Shanghai, local residents have found overseas travel a good alternative to avoid the swarm of people.