London is only weeks away from the opening of the Olympics. And with each day, the city puts the squeeze on tourists just a little more firmly.
Hotel prices for August have doubled since the same time last year, according to Hotels.com. Flight costs are also rising: a Hong Kong-London round trip with British Airways in late July costs HK$11,560, and that's economy class.
But for the mainland's top tier of spenders, the pricier the better. High prices keep out the riff-raff and turn luxury travel packages into supreme networking opportunities. And because the trips are indulgent and scream status, there is a boom in luxury tourism out of China, for which the London Olympics provides the perfect hook.
Take, for example, a series of Olympic packages recently launched by an outfit called Caissa Travel, the starting price for which is 259,999 yuan (HK$320,000).
But why go luxury when you can have the 'extravagant' package, with an eye-watering price tag of 8.88 million yuan for a group of 12, or 733,300 yuan per person.
According to a Caissa representative, the eight-day package starts with a flight out on a Boeing business jet with full-size showers, an executive boardroom and a queen-sized bed in a private room.
The tour kicks off with the opening ceremony at the London Bowl, viewed from the best seats in the house: box seats that would otherwise cost ?2,012 (HK$24,700) apiece. The group can then watch one Olympic event of their choice before flying first-class to Iceland to play night golf.