Hong Kong sees tourism bump thanks to handover celebrations
Tourism board says visitor numbers grew at a better than expected rate for the first seven months of the year
Hong Kong’s struggling tourism sector has shown signs of recovery, as visitor numbers jumped 2.4 per cent in the first seven months of the year, according to the Tourism Board.
In July, the number of visitors also increased 2.4 per cent on a year on year basis, with those from the mainland up 5.7 per cent, as more travellers visited the city to attend events for the 20th anniversary of the return of Hong Kong sovereignty to the mainland.
The positive July figure – compared to a 1.9 per cent drop in June – raised hopes Hong Kong might be able to end its tourism downturn, after visitor numbers dipped for two consecutive years.
Sharp rise in Hong Kong tourist arrivals brings hope that slump is over
“At the beginning of the year, we did not expect the recovery to be so strong,” Peter Lam Kin-ngok, chairman at the Tourism Board said. It predicted in February that visitor numbers would fall 2.2 per cent this year.
Lam attributed the upbeat growth to a number of events held in the city to mark the handover anniversary, such as exhibitions, performances and promotions.
“There has been also a lot of media coverage about Hong Kong handover on the mainland. Along with the visit of President Xi Jinping in June ... they made people more interested in Hong Kong,” Lam said. Mainland visitors make up more than 70 per cent of the city’s overall visitors.
