Hong Kong’s ‘Art March’ mega events may attract 4 million attendees amid anticipated tourism uptick: city official
- Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong also says Hong Kong expected to welcome about 50 million tourists in 2024, up from 34 million logged last year
- Forecast takes into account government culture and arts drive encompassing Art Basel, Art Central and International Cultural Summit
Hong Kong’s deputy financial secretary has said a string of mega events that started earlier this month may attract a combined 4 million overseas and local attendees, while visitor numbers this year are predicted to increase nearly 50 per cent from 2023.
Deputy Financial Secretary Michael Wong Wai-lun said on Saturday the city was expected to welcome about 50 million tourists in 2024, a significant increase over last year’s 34 million.
The forecast takes into consideration the government’s “Art March” campaign, which encompasses Art Basel, Art Central, the International Cultural Summit in the West Kowloon Cultural District and a display of hundreds of illuminated egg-shaped objects in Victoria Harbour later this month.
The events were expected to attract a combined 4 million people from Hong Kong and overseas, Wong said.
According to government economists, every batch of 1.5 million tourists was expected to contribute HK$3 billion (US$383.5 million) to Hong Kong’s gross domestic product, he added.
Authorities also planned to share more timely details of the city’s calendar of mega events to ensure the commercial sector had advanced notice of potential business opportunities, he said.