每年三四月，樱花树下人潮涌动。除了早到占位之外，还可以另辟蹊径坐船赏樱。请看本报昨日的报道：

Every spring, crowds flock to tourist destinations across China renowned for beautiful blossoms, with cherry blossoms, or sakura, being one of the highlights. Instead of beating the crowd for a spot under the sakura trees, there are other options, as some of the top cherry blossom destinations also offer boat trips, where visitors can float on lakes while taking in the beauty of spring flowers.

报道中的beat the crowd就是 “早到以避开人流”，例如：

If we want a good view of the parade, we’ll have to get there early and beat the crowd.

要想占个好位置看巡游，我们必须抢在人潮之前到达。