People rest near a bus carrying visitors to Peking University in Beijing, July 10, 2011. [Photo by Uking Sun/chinadaily.com.cn]

Tens of thousands of students from all over China are swamping leading universities in the capital city during the summer vacation, some in organized groups for a summer camp and some accompanied by their parents, with travel costs differing depending on the situation.

Elementary students from Yuci, North China's Shanxi province, about 500 kilometers south of Beijing, spent 1,480 yuan ($229) for a five-day stay in Beijing.

A mother from Linyi, East China's Shandong province, spent 1,000 yuan for her and her child to visit.

A father from Hebei province and his son waited for nearly an hour in a queue that was hundreds of meters long to visit the prestigious Peking University.

He said he hoped the travel, although exhausting for his son, would open his mind and inspire an ambition to enter into the prestigious university.

Visitors queue to enter Peking University in Beijing, July 10, 2011. [Photo by Uking Sun/chinadaily.com.cn]