“The daily average number of mainland tourists visiting Hong Kong during Golden Week in May used to exceed 200,000.”
Mr Wong said the purchasing power of solo travelers was also 20% lower than before the pandemic.
“Please ask the secretary [for culture, sports and tourism] He added that more cities should talk to the central government as soon as possible to join the solo traveler scheme.
“The more people that come, the better it will be for the food and beverage industry and the retail industry.”
Mr Wong said sales at bars and restaurants were down 20% from last year due to the 180,000 Hong Kongers who crossed the border on May 1, as well as fewer tourists from the mainland and lower purchasing power. He explained.
But he said stores on both sides of Victoria Harbor benefited from the May 1 fireworks display, with sales up 15% compared to a normal day.
Golden Week tourists flock to Tsim Sha Tsui’s waterfront despite the rain.Photo: Jerry Tse
Mr Wong said about 100 visitors from the mainland cities of Xi’an and Qingdao came to Hong Kong over the holidays as a result of the renewal of the single visitor system, the first since 2007.
In February, Beijing added the two cities to its personal visit scheme, which already covered 49 cities on the mainland, including many first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu and Chongqing.
The plan will allow people in the city to visit Hong Kong on their own, rather than as part of a tour group.
Tourists can visit Hong Kong and Macau once or twice for up to seven days within three months or a year.
Alan Chan Chun-yi, chief operating officer of hotel and property company Miramar Group, said the hospitality industry’s performance during the holiday period was “not ideal”.
He said the group’s two hotels saw occupancy rates decline by 6% and 7% respectively compared to last year, despite a 23% price reduction.
“The most direct method we propose is to [to boost the number of overnight guests] The idea is to increase the number of cities participating in solo travel plans,” said Chan.
“Since the solo traveler scheme was launched in 2003, hotel vacancy rates have increased by 32 per cent.
“We need to tell the mainland that we can add 26 cities.” [connected to Hong Kong by high speed rail and by flight] applied to this scheme without affecting capacity. ”
People looking for souvenirs at a store in Tsim Sha Tsui. Hong Kong tourism leaders are calling for more solo visits by mainland Chinese.Photo: Edmund So
Mr Wong said the solo traveler system needed to be revisited as many of the Greater Bay Area’s 86 million people had already visited Hong Kong.
“How can we make Hong Kong more attractive and attract repeat customers?” he asked.
The Greater Bay Area is China’s plan to connect Hong Kong and Macau with nine mainland cities to form an economic powerhouse.
Hong Kong leader John Lee Kathu earlier pledged to lobby the Chinese government to expand the solo travel policy before Golden Week begins.
Hong Kong Tourism Association executive director Timothy Chew Tingpeng said competition from destinations in other parts of China needed to be considered, especially during the busy holiday season.
“Mainland residents have many options,” Chui said. “After the pandemic, the mainland’s tourism industry is booming.
“Direct competition exists between cities within the Greater Bay Area and between states.”
He added that the average number of visitors for the first three days of the five-day holiday was “almost ideal,” as visitor numbers on a normal day ranged from 80,000 to 10,000.
“At the same time, we also recognize that we have shortfalls. We need to improve the quality of our services, especially when our competitors are doing so well. We can be better prepared. “Sho,” Chui said.
