'We researched what was out there for local guests and what they were looking for,' she said.

'And we found people are not travelling as far afield so there's an opportunity where people are now staying closer to home but still looking for a break.

'You don't have to leave Hong Kong for a resort vacation, you can escape the city by just coming across the harbour.'

Ms Klein said the offer was launched this year and had been extremely popular on public holidays, especially the Lunar New Year, and weekends. Many people also made use of the package for anniversaries, birthdays and other special occasions.

Peninsula public relations manager Lamey Chang said the number of room-nights sold as part of packages targeted at locals had almost doubled compared to last year. Ms Chang said the local offers were popular with spur-of-the-moment holidaymakers who did not want to fly.

Mandarin Oriental communications director Sally De Souza said residents' packages filled the void left by business clientele at weekends. 'We have had packages in the past, it is not a new thing to attract the local market on weekends . . . but this time it's been quite successful,' she said.

'I guess locals who are worried about their job or work might prefer a night in Macau or here in Hong Kong.'

Conrad director of sales and marketing Lucy Lau said that although the hotel only offered packages on public holidays or long weekends it had seen an increase in the number of local residents holidaying at home.

'People don't want to rush during the holiday period, and also tickets overseas become more pricey, so many choose to stay in town,' Ms Lau said.

Ritz-Carlton public relations manager Eva Lui Chi-ying agreed, saying it had tailor-made its special offer at the beginning of this year in response to an overwhelming demand from locals.

Grand Hyatt spokeswoman Portia Lau said it had introduced a new local package last month but so far had not tracked reaction to the offer.

But Marriott communications director Therese Necio-Ortega said the Marriott did not offer special packages to residents because of negative long-term effects associated with discounting.

'As a policy, discounting does not help everybody, if you're undercutting you just have to force the expense on to somebody else,' Ms Necio-Ortega said.

'With a lower revenue you would still have the same costs for service and wages so we are not helping anyone in the long-term.'

Graphic: HOTEL6GET