Easter exodus bites hard as Hong Kong restaurants report 50% drop in business

Residents made more than 2 million trips out of Hong Kong over the past four days, a nearly 9 per cent increase against the same period last year, while a catering representative lamented a drop in business of up to 50 per cent from normal weekends. The number of visitor arrivals between Thursday and Sunday rose by 20 per cent compared with the same period last year, reaching 522,000. The 365,000 arrivals from mainland China made up nearly 70 per cent of the figure. Hong Kong residents made 2.22 million outbound trips between Thursday and Sunday, 8.9 per cent more than the 2.03 million in the same period last year. The latest figures from the Immigration Department also showed the city recorded about 326,000 outbound trips and around 631,000 inbound ones on Monday as of 9pm. Authorities said they expected the number of residents returning home to peak on Monday. Simon Wong Ka-wo, president of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants and Related Trades, said local eateries had suffered a 30 to 50 per cent drop in business over the Easter holiday compared with normal weekends amid the exodus of Hongkongers. “The outflow of Hongkongers was not limited to those making regular trips across the border to Shenzhen and Guangzhou, but also residents travelling further into the mainland only four to five hours on the high-speed rail to places such as Wuhan, Shanghai and Yunnan province to make the most of the break,” Wong said. He noted that restaurants with mid to high-price ranges suffered the most as many residents with spending power would be travelling, but cha chaan teng and fast food shops were less affected. There had also been isolated cases of restaurants doing well because they were located near venues holding various popular events or activities, such as Kai Tak Sports Park and the West Kowloon Cultural District, he said. Wong said restaurants were staying open later in the day to take advantage of mega-events such as the Hong Kong Sevens and concerts, as attendees were likely to be looking for a snack afterwards, a business move that would also benefit visitors. Some residents staying in Hong Kong for the break visited the Coffee HK x Tokyo Coffee Festival at the West Kowloon Cultural District, with long queues forming even before the doors opened at 11am. More than 100 patrons, including families and people with pets, lined up for the final day of the festival, which started on Good Friday. Attendees beat the heat with umbrellas and fans as they waited to buy gourmet coffees from Japan, which are considered to be a highlight of the festival. Some coffee aficionados said they were willing to wait for more than an hour to buy a cup of special hand-dripped coffee, which can take several minutes to make. A cup of coffee at the event typically costs between HK$50 (US$6.44) and HK$75. Some festivalgoers said parts of Hong Kong felt emptier due to so many residents leaving the city for the break. Coffee hobbyist Mark Kwong also said the hour-long wait for coffee from Tokyo was worth it. The retiree, who is in his sixties, said he was not in the habit of travelling to the mainland, adding that he preferred to support small brands instead of chain businesses. “It’s quite crowded here. The malls felt a bit empty, but the Chinese restaurant I went to last night was full of customers,” he said. “It’s a matter of whether businesses can attract customers. If you have a good reputation, people will come.” Media worker Allen Ng, who visited the festival with his poodle, agreed that shopping centres felt emptier over the extended weekend. “It’s good for us because the city feels more spacious these few days, but it’s probably not good for Hong Kong’s economy,” he said. Ng said that, similar to most of his friends with pets, he rarely travelled to the mainland during holidays as he preferred to spend time visiting pet-friendly parks and businesses. “We had hotpot and I travelled especially to Wan Chai to buy roast meat and Kowloon City to buy fresh beef and tofu,” he said, adding that he preferred to support small local businesses. Festival organisers said 33,000 people visited over the past three days, and they expected the final day of the event to be crowded. On Hong Kong Island at the Central piers, residents queued for a ferry to Cheung Chau, where they planned to enjoy nature and eat street food. But Calvin Luk, in his fifties, said he and his friends were changing their plans after seeing the long queues. He said there were about 30 per cent fewer people on the streets compared with a normal weekend, but he had enjoyed the past few days by visiting other outlying islands and watching films in theatres, as he avoided the crowds heading to the mainland. “I also visited some of my favourite restaurants, which are time-honoured establishments, as I believe Hong Kong’s unique dining culture should be treasured by locals,” he said. “Businesses should do more to attract Hongkongers to stay and spend in the city, instead of catering to tourists.”

Easter exodus bites hard as Hong Kong restaurants report 50% drop in business

Local eateries left reeling despite arrivals reaching 522,000, a 20 per cent increase compared with same period last year