Coronavirus: Hong Kong’s new quarantine measures for Europe leave tour companies scrambling, seeking government help
- With numerous last-minute tour cancellations, city’s operators hope government will help them retrieve down payments made to airlines
- Outbound tourism figures, which already took a heavy hit last month, are expected to languish in March and April as well
The latest tightening of Hong Kong’s coronavirus quarantine measures, resulting in the cancellation of numerous outbound tours to Europe, has prompted the city’s struggling tour operators to call on the government for help.
The move followed Hong Kong extending compulsory quarantine measures to the whole of Italy as well as certain regions of France, Germany, Japan and Spain. The government also simultaneously issued a red travel alert, meaning non-essential travel should be avoided.
Travel Industry Council chairman Jason Wong Chun-tat said the levy the government-backed body collects from local travel agencies on outbound tourism services dropped more than 80 per cent year-on-year last month – indicating a significant downturn in business. He predicted figures would remain sluggish in March and April as well.
Multiple tours to South Korea, Japan and mainland China have already been cancelled due to the coronavirus epidemic.