Losing its shine: Chinese tourists skipping Hong Kong during 'Golden week' holiday

The "golden week" holiday is losing its lustre in Hong Kong, with the number of mainland tour groups arriving for next week's National Day break expected to be at least 15 per cent lower than usual.

Instead, mainlanders are taking advantage of a late Mid-Autumn Festival and the loosening of visa regimes elsewhere in the world to take long-haul trips.

The Inbound Tour Operators Association yesterday said the number of bookings so far was just 60 per cent of last year's total. While last-minute bookings are expected to boost the figure, the association expects only 270 groups to arrive this year - 15 per cent fewer than in 2014.

"Mainland tourists prefer long-haul tours," said association chairman Ricky Tse Kam-ting.

By taking just three extra vacation days, mainlanders can use the Mid-Autumn holiday on Sunday and the seven days off for National Day from Wednesday next week to take 11 days off in total.

"The relaxation of visa restrictions prompted the Chinese to visit Europe - a totally new place to them," Tse said.