Coronavirus: ending all travel curbs only way to bring tour groups back to Hong Kong and stop more agencies from closing, industry leader says
- Travel agencies will continue to close down unless city adopts ‘0+0’ model, Gianna Hsu warns
- Frequent Covid-19 tests major discouraging factor for visitors, adds tourism sector lawmaker Perry Yiu
Ending all Covid-19 restrictions on arrivals is the only way to bring more travel groups to Hong Kong, an industry leader has said, warning the latest round of easing was not enough to throw the sector and other supporting businesses a lifeline.
Gianna Hsu Wong Mei-lun, chairwoman of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, joined other prominent business veterans on Saturday in stepping up pressure on the government to relax additional travel curbs ahead of coming major events as the city’s daily number of cases hovered around 5,000.
“If ‘0+0’ is delayed again and not fully started as soon as possible, I believe there will continue to be travel agencies that close down,” she said in a televised interview, referring to the possible next step for the city’s pandemic control regime. Authorities currently require arrivals to undergo three days of medical surveillance while restricting their movements citywide.
The local tourist market has evaporated in the wake of the tough travel curbs, falling from 65.1 million visitors in 2018 to just 91,398 last year. But as authorities have gradually eased measures, the numbers have started to bounce back, and the city recorded 249,699 visitors between January and September.
But the changes came too late for some – Hong Thai Travel Services, one of the city’s oldest and largest travel agencies, announced two weeks ago it was shutting down due to a loss of revenue.
Earlier this week, the government revealed that group tour visitors would be able to enter designated attractions including restaurants, theme parks and museums while undergoing their three-day medical surveillance.
Travellers are issued an amber health code during the period and barred from entering venues that require vaccine checks, such as eateries and nightlife spots, but can enter shopping malls, department stores and supermarkets, as well as attend work and school.