Tourist push gets back to the basics
Tourism chiefs are going back to the city's roots in an attempt to boost the number of visitors.
Long-term plans for theme parks and a cable-car link to Ngong Ping monastery will continue but speedy spruce-ups for existing attractions are the main focus of an initiative announced yesterday.
A six-month pilot study has been launched by the Hong Kong Tourist Association in Central and Western District to identify existing attractions or events that are not yet being promoted, areas that can be beautified or possibilities for new sights.
Stanley Yip Cho-tat, the association's general manager in charge of research and development, said one example would be telling visitors there were art galleries as well as antique shops on Hollywood Road.
They could also promote the cosmopolitan restaurants that have popped up alongside the Mid-Levels escalator.
Other projects which could be completed quickly could include the renovation of an interesting old shop sign or putting up more information boards.
Mr Yip agreed with a Citizens Party plea to promote Hong Kong's heritage and way of life, but that was only part of the story, he said.
'There is no doubt that our heritage, our history and our natural and built heritage are important.
'We put emphasis on our heritage but there are visitors who come to Hong Kong because they see it as a vibrant city and we cannot afford, at this time, to say we will only look at that aspect.' Choosing Central and Western district for the pilot study made sense because it encapsulated the past, present and future of Hong Kong, Mr Yip said.
Another plan was to produce a 'green guide' to Hong Kong to go beyond the visual beauty of the main area and highlight the SAR's biodiversity, he said. Making it easy to get a permit to visit Mai Po marshes was also planned.
Once the Central and Western study is finished, similar reviews are set to be made in Aberdeen, Sai Kung and Tsim Sha Tsui.
