The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced on the 14th that the preliminary statistics of visitor arrivals to Hong Kong in April increased by about 20% compared with the same period last year; In the first four months of this year, visitor arrivals more than doubled year-on-year.
The HKTB announced that 14.62 million visitors were recorded in the first four months of this year, doubling year-on-year. China News Agency
In addition, in response to the central government's recent announcement to further optimize the "Individual Visit Scheme" and add 8 cities eligible for the "Individual Visit Scheme" scheme in the Mainland, Chief Executive John Lee revealed before attending the Executive Council yesterday morning that Hong Kong will look forward to using activities to drive popularity and financial prosperity in the coming months, and at the same time hope that the industry will take the initiative to innovate and seek changes to jointly build Hong Kong into a city.
According to the latest data from the HKTB, visitor arrivals from the Chinese mainland market recorded 2.48 million in April this year, up 7.8% year-on-year. Mainland visitors account for the total number of visitors to Hong Kong and remain the main source of Hong Kong tourism. At the same time, visitor arrivals from non-Mainland markets also grew rapidly, with a year-on-year increase of more than 50%.
As for the short-haul market, visitor arrivals from Indonesia increased by more than 80% on the back of the end of Ramadan. Long-haul markets such as the United States and Canada also recorded year-on-year growth of more than 80%. In the first four months of this year, both the Mainland and non-Mainland markets recorded about double year-on-year growth. Among them, visitors from emerging source markets such as the Middle East.
8 new cities for individual tour travelers
You will receive a $200 coupon
Regarding the announcement of the central government a few days ago, Li Jiachao once again thanked the central government for its care and support for Hong Kong. He believes that this new arrangement has multiple significance: first, "Individual Visit Scheme" is one of the important sources of visitors to Hong Kong, and the addition of new cities will add huge impetus to Hong Kong's economy; Second, the "Individual Visit Scheme" to Hong Kong now covers all provincial capitals, municipalities directly under the Central Government or capital cities of the Mainland, which is believed to further stimulate the interest of Mainland compatriots in visiting Hong Kong. Third, it will increase the number of overnight visitors to Hong Kong, and significantly increase per capita consumption and the income of tourism-related industries. Fourthly, the different consumption preferences and patterns of visitors in these cities will inevitably promote the improvement of Hong Kong's tourism services, introduce new ideas, explore new resources and develop new products.
Mr Lee added that the eight new cities are high-spending cities in the Mainland, with a population of over 33 million, and are estimated to bring peace to Hong Kong in a year. The HKTB will distribute "Individual Visit Schemes" visitors from eight cities to spend at different types of restaurants and shops. The bureau will also invite representatives of the tourism industry and Mainland media from eight cities to Hong Kong to introduce Hong Kong's characteristics and the latest tourism product information to them, so as to jointly encourage visitors to Hong Kong.
He also mentioned that the HKTB will step up efforts to promote Hong Kong's diverse and in-depth experiences and unique tourism through Mainland social media, the travel trade and airlines, including the latest information and offers, including food guides and privileges, to welcome visitors with delicious food and events, such as the Wine & Dine Parade in October.
Mr Lee revealed that the HKSAR Government is vigorously promoting the mega events economy, and Hong Kong will host different mega events and activities in the coming months. China News Agency
The Hong Kong government will soon announce the list of major events in the second half of the year
As for mega events, the HKSAR Government is vigorously promoting the mega event economy, which was held in the first half of this year. The government is about to announce the list of mega events in the second half of the year, so that operators of different industries can prepare. Mr Lee stressed that the government will not rely on a single approach to boost the economy, but will promote the conference economy, cultural economy, sports economy, etc., to create synergies and create opportunities for all walks of life.
In addition, Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council, recently met with the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Yeung Yun-hung in Beijing, saying that he would establish the concept of "Hong Kong is everywhere for tourism" and fully explore Hong Kong's rich tourism resources. In this regard, Lee said that Hong Kong is promoting different tourism resources and tourism products according to the preferences of tourists. He believes that different parts of Hong Kong have attractive characteristics and hopes to do so.
On the same day, Mr Yeung also met with representatives from the tourism, hotel, aviation, catering and retail sectors to exchange views on how to accelerate and improve the quality of Hong Kong's tourism industry, and to discuss the marketing strategy and tourism promotion direction of the Individual Visit Scheme after the expansion of the programme to eight more cities. At the meeting, Mr Yeung also announced that the Government would announce the list of mega event projects in the second half of the year, and encouraged the industry to make good use of the business opportunities brought by the mega event and make early preparations and arrangements.
Last night, the Hong Kong government took the lead in announcing four major events in the second half of the year on social media platforms, including the Chinese Cultural Festival, the 2024 Hong Kong International Dragon Boat Races, the Hong Kong Book Fair and the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival, etc., allowing residents and visitors to participate in the event and experience the extraordinary charm of Hong Kong from different perspectives.
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The TIC has selected 6 creative in-depth tours
The Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong (TIC) has earlier organised a "Creative & In-Depth Tour" Itinerary Design Competition, and a total of 6 winners have been selected for the "Premium Routes". Among them, the two-day and one-night "In-depth Cheung Chau" itinerary includes a visit to Cheung Chau Ice Factory, unicorn dancing experience, Ping An Bao workshop, three-dimensional relief carving, sugar pulling experience workshop, etc., hoping to let participants experience the unique local culture of Cheung Chau.
"Deep Cheung Chau" is a unique local cultural experience
On the first day of the "In-Depth Cheung Chau" itinerary, visitors will visit the Cheung Chau Cinema Revitalisation Park and experience the traditional "crane boss" unicorn dance in Cheung Chau. Afterwards, visitors will participate in a safety bag workshop to make their own safety bags. Spend the night at Cheung Chau West Park Park, experience glamping and participate in a variety of adventure activities. On the second day, you can make a three-dimensional relief sculpture about Taiping Jiao in the workshop, try out the candy blowing workshop, and visit the "Cheung Chau Ice Factory".
Ping An Bag Workshop. Photo by China News Agency
The 60-year-old Cheung Chau Ice Factory is the earliest ice factory in Hong Kong, producing more than 100 tonnes of ice per day at its peak, and is now the only ice factory in Hong Kong still operating by hand. The person in charge of the ice factory pointed out that the in-depth tour does not hope to bring considerable income, but hopes that more people will know about Hong Kong's ice industry, and pointed out that many tourists have come to visit as a family in the past, and the children have been happy and happy.
In addition to the "In-depth Cheung Chau" Cultural Tour, the other 5 themed itineraries selected this time are:
The Director-General of the TIC, Ms Yeung Suk-fan, believes that visitors from all over the world tend to know the story before they can travel with a sense of substitution, and believes that Hong Kong should continue to explore in-depth tour routes to attract visitors to stay in Hong Kong for a longer period of time, so that Hong Kong's tourism can only be sustainable.
The Floating Colour Parade and the Bun Grab Finals were staged today
On the other hand. A person in charge of a Ping An Bao shop said that the current situation in the retail market is not ideal, and this year's Buddha's Day is not a consecutive holiday, and it is expected that the business during this year's Taiping Jiao Festival will be two to three percent less than last year, and about 50,000 bags have been prepared this time, which is less than before the epidemic. The person in charge also mentioned that the price of logistics and transportation, masters, and raw materials has increased significantly during the epidemic, and the price of each safe package has also increased from 10 yuan to 11 yuan this year.
China News Agency profile picture
The Chairman of the Cheung Chau Jiao Council, Mr Yung Chi-ming, said that the drone show organised by the HKTB this year to promote the Jiao Festival was more than in previous years. As for this year's Floating Colour Parade, there are about 18 vehicles in total, and the route is the same as in previous years, Weng Zhiming said that in response to the decline in the birth rate, it is more difficult to find children to participate in the Colourful Parade this year.
【Business Daily Review】
People come to be distinguished guests, and they are flexible
In anticipation of the addition of eight new cities eligible for the "Individual Visit Scheme" by the Central Government, Chief Executive John Lee announced yesterday that a $200 coupon will be distributed to relevant visitors. At the same time, he pointed out that the tastes of tourists have changed, and so must the Hong Kong industry, and the government will do a good job in setting up the stage and directing the role, and the industry must play its own role well. Indeed, as inbound tourism to Hong Kong has undergone new changes since the pandemic, Hong Kong's tourism industry must also adapt to the current situation, first introducing new thinking and then adopting new strategies. The Central Government and the HKSAR Government have already blown a spring breeze in terms of policies, and the market and the public must not only adapt and implement them well, so that Hong Kong's tourism competitiveness can be further enhanced.
Recently, some voices have suggested that in view of the fact that the hotel occupancy rate in Hong Kong since the full resumption of the border is lower than before the epidemic, and there are reports that there are few overnight visitors, they have questioned the low contribution of mainland tourists to Hong Kong's tourism. However, the 8 new cities are far away from Hong Kong, so they will definitely involve a large number of overnight visitors, which will benefit Hong Kong's hotel industry. In addition, the number of rooms must be increased by more than 10% during the period to be considered in conjunction with the occupancy rate – after a simple calculation, the latest occupancy situation is not necessarily worse than before.
Recently, it has also been said that in addition to mainland tourists who are reluctant to stay overnight in Hong Kong, they have also reduced their consumption in Hong Kong, and some people even spend only a few hundred yuan. On the one hand, the eight new cities are not only populous but also high-spenders, with estimates that they can bring in about $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion a year. In fact, even though the per capita and overall consumption of mainland visitors in Hong Kong decreased last year, firstly, due to the resumption of passenger flow soon after the full reopening of the border, and secondly, the relevant consumption still exceeded 100 billion yuan, that is, almost two and a half times that of other visitors combined, and equivalent to about a quarter of the total value of retail sales in Hong Kong during the same period, how can it be said that the contribution of mainland tourists to spending in Hong Kong is low?
In the past, most of the mainland visitors came to Hong Kong for the first time with the purpose of buying, buying, buying, but now they are repeating their visits to Hong Kong, pursuing experiential activities, including favoring cultural and tourism consumption, such as art exhibitions, galleries, competitions, international performances, playgrounds, Hong Kong culture, etc., which is also Hong Kong's strength. Therefore. While the addition of "Individual Visit Visit" cities has driven more tourists to visit Hong Kong for the first time, the proportion of returning visitors is undoubtedly increasing. This is a testament to Hong Kong's attractiveness, as not many cities are well-positioned to attract repeat visitors. In response to the latter, the Hong Kong government has focused on attracting customers in new ways such as the "night economy" and "event economy", but in the final analysis, the industry needs to make efforts, and the authorities can only play the role of leader and promoter. A few days ago, the TIC of Hong Kong (TIC) selected the "Premium Route" in the "Creative & In-depth Tour" competition, and the travel agents launched the relevant in-depth tour activities, starting with the Cheung Chau Jiao Festival and bun grabbing activities that will be held today. , including Xiaohongshu, which signed a strategic cooperation intention with Xiaohongshu earlier, to promote the most innovative and in-depth tourism activities in Hong Kong through the Mainland's social media platform and its big data, but the industry has always been required to formulate relevant tourism products and supporting facilities first, so as to avoid demand but no supply; In addition, the safety of professional tour guides is also more guaranteed, otherwise it may be extremely sad and suffocate visitors to Hong Kong.
The warm spring breeze of the policy has been blowing, and the passengers have proved the existence of demand with their footsteps; Only by adapting to the situation and innovating supply can the industry adapt to the situation and meet the demand, so as to implement policies, enhance Hong Kong's competitiveness and enable the tourism industry to continue to move forward.
Hong Kong Commercial Daily commentator Li Mingsheng