More than 5,000 Beijing residents registered for passes to visit Taiwan in February, a record high, according to the Public Security Bureau of Beijing.

The department for overseas travel under the bureau has received more than 25,000 applications from Beijing residents for trips to Taiwan since the island began admitting mainland tourists on July 4 last year.

The daily average number of applications submitted has climbed from 70 in last July to more than 300, and the majority of applicants are tourists, according to statistics released by the bureau.

More than 80,000 Chinese mainland tourists have visited Taiwan as of February 28, said Shao Qiwei, chairman of the mainland-based Cross-strait Tourism Exchange Association.

During the Spring Festival peak season, about 13,400 Chinese mainland tourists flocked to Taiwan.