Quality over quantity say Hong Kong tourism sector leaders as they put positive spin on 2.1 per cent drop in Christmas visitors to city
‘High quality individuals and overseas visitors’ preferable to tour groups due to enhanced spending power and ability to boost city as ‘international tourism destination’
Tourism sector leaders have put a positive spin on a 2.1 per cent drop in visitor numbers over the Christmas holiday period, claiming they saw more “high quality individuals and overseas visitors” who can enhance Hong Kong’s status as an “international tourist destination”.
According to data compiled by the Immigration Department, the four-day holiday from December 24 to 27, saw total tourist arrivals down to 698,424, with mainland tourists – who represent about 73 per cent – dropping by 3.8 per cent compared with the same period last year.
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Despite the drop, those in the city’s tourism industry remained overwhelmingly optimistic, claiming they saw improvements in “tourist structure” during this year’s holidays.
“Almost all the hotel rooms were fully booked during the Christmas holidays and the rates reached the same level as last year’s,” said William Cheng Kai-man, chairman of Magnificent Hotel Investment, which manages more than 2,500 rooms in seven hotels in the city.
He noted that the hotel bookings came late, with individual visitors from Guangdong province and from overseas filling up most of the rooms,.
Bookings from mainland tours – which used to account for 30 per cent of its total bookings – were “near zero”.
