Hong Kong’s first Portuguese culture fest to attract 6,000, but organisers faced red tape
- Organisers also say event planning in Hong Kong hobbled by limited suitable venues and poorly coordinated government agencies
Hong Kong’s inaugural Portuguese culture festival is expected to attract more than 6,000 people, including tourists from around the region, but finding a venue for the event had proved to be a big hurdle, organisers have said.
The city will host its first Sardine Festival from Thursday until September 1 at AIA Vitality Park along Central’s harbourfront, offering Portuguese classics such as grilled sardines, piri piri chicken, egg custard tarts, meat sandwiches and caldo verde – a traditional soup of vegetables and sausages.
The event will also offer a selection of the country’s most popular wines and feature performances by Portuguese artists and DJs.
But organisers have said they experienced challenges getting the festival off the ground.
Cristina Salavarria, marketing manager for Lemon Three Sports and Entertainment Management, the company behind the event, said the city lacked sufficient venues for festivals and lengthy bureaucratic procedures had proved to be a major hurdle.
She noted that facilities had to be booked a year in advance and it took weeks for the government to respond to inquiries.
“For example, if you want to hold a concert, you have to submit dates, and you get three options each time,” she said. “After four to six weeks, you get an answer saying ‘no, it’s fully booked’, so you have to keep repeating the process again and again.”
