The mainland's restriction on tours to Hong Kong is set to be lifted next month. Tour agents on both sides of the border are preparing for the resumption of their business, which has been devastated by the Sars outbreak. The Guangdong Tourism Administration today will announce plans to revive tourism. This follows the World Health Organisation's lifting of its travel advisory against Hong Kong and Guangdong last Friday. It is expected that the announcement will include the resumption of tours between different provinces, as well as to Hong Kong and Macau. 'Definitely, we'll talk about the Hong Kong tours,' said Wang Yiqun, spokesman for the Guangdong provincial government. The central government has suspended almost all travel activities including Hong Kong tours since April 26. The suspension was due to expire at the end of the month. Ronnie Yuen Ka-chai, chairman of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, said the lifting of the restriction was expected but it had yet to be approved by the central government. Mr Yuen said he was optimistic that the number of mainland arrivals in Hong Kong next month would be even higher than in the pre-Sars period, reaching between 80,000 and 100,000. 'I am very optimistic that many mainland visitors, particularly those who have joined tours before the outbreak, will flock to Hong Kong,' he said. Mr Yuen said the first Hong Kong tour could come in a week but it would take one to two months for business to fully resume. Guangdong China Travel Service's sales director Wen Qingong said his company's Hong Kong tours would be ready to resume within three days of the restriction being lifted. He said the company issued more than 30 application forms yesterday for Hong Kong tours. About 4,000 mainland travellers, who had been issued with visas in late April, were ready to visit Hong Kong, he said. To boost business, tour members will be offered free entrance tickets for the Asia Fashion Jewellery and Accessories Fair on June 19 at the Convention Centre, Mr Wen said. He said all tour members would be required to declare their health status and their temperatures would be taken before departure and every day during the trip. Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun, Hong Kong's Director of Health, said the government would increase staffing to monitor the tourists' health. She said an additional 50 infrared temperature-measuring devices would be installed at the land border checkpoints. Last weekend, the number of visitors arriving at land borders was up about 10 per cent.