Hong Kong welcomes 213,000 mainland tourists as ‘golden week’ break starts

More than 213,000 mainland Chinese visitors flocked to Hong Kong on the first day of the Labour Day “golden week” holiday on Thursday, looking forward to some hiking, treating their taste buds at street food stalls and restaurants, and enjoying a dazzling drone show in the night sky above Victoria Harbour. Immigration Department data showed that 253,200 visitors had entered the city as of 9pm. That included 213,181 from the mainland, compared with 181,400 for the whole day last year, while more than 281,000 Hong Kong residents had departed for other destinations. In the afternoon, hundreds of early birds gathered at the Wan Chai temporary promenade hours ahead of a 12-minute Labour Day drone show at 8pm. The event featured 1,000 drones weaving through the skies above Victoria Harbour, forming shapes such as firecrackers, dancing qilin – mythical hoofed beasts – and traditional buns in a nod to the Cheung Chau Bun Festival. Among the crowd was Zhang Hui, a business owner from Shenzhen, who had arrived in Hong Kong on Thursday for three days with her 17-year-old daughter. The 48-year-old said she was excited to see the drone show despite such events already enjoying huge popularity on the mainland. “This is one which features the uniqueness of Hong Kong that we don’t want to miss. We were here last year to watch the Mid-Autumn show as well,” she said. The event was part of the Tourism Board’s “Hong Kong Cultural Beat” drive to introduce traditional festivals and selected cultural activities to tourists and residents alike. In Tuen Mun in the New Territories, crowds gathered to enjoy the Gold Coast Hydrangea Festival. The event, which runs until Monday, started with a special “Love in the Sky” aerial show, where 1,288 drones formed floral patterns, butterflies and dolphins. Earlier in the day, mainland visitors were seen queuing at traditional noodle shops, the city’s popular “Mobile Softee” ice-cream vans, restaurants favoured by Cantopop singers, and various street stalls for Hong Kong’s signature food such as egg waffles and fish balls at the start of the five-day golden week holiday. Many visitors were also among more than 200 people at the West Kowloon Cultural District’s Art Park, enjoying food and drinks at a jazz concert. One of them was Yuki Yang Ruoqi, 28, an online store owner from Guangzhou, who said she would stay in Hong Kong until Sunday and planned to spend less than HK$4,000 (US$515). “Even though I’m not a music lover, I bought a glass of champagne and some snacks for a picnic here. In fact, this kind of leisure lifestyle of Hong Kong people is something we can look forward to during the holidays,” she said. Zheng Lichang, 26, a skincare product saleswoman from Shenzhen, visited West Kowloon specifically to sample charcoal-grilled egg waffles. She said she had heard about a stall in Sai Wan selling charcoal-grilled egg waffles that had faced fines exceeding HK$20,000 on multiple occasions for illegal hawking, but which had later been invited and granted a temporary licence to sell its products at the arts hub. “I came across the story of the stall owner on RedNote, so the first thing I did this time was to support him and have some authentic egg waffles, although it’s kind of pricey for HK$40,” Zheng said, who will stay in the city for two days before heading to Macau. The government estimates that around 840,000 mainland tourists will visit the city between Thursday and Monday, a 10 per cent increase compared with the same period last year. The dining industry anticipates a 5 per cent rise in business compared with a typical weekend. Mong Kok was also filled with tourists in the afternoon, many of whom were using RedNote to find recommendations for local street food such as fish balls and beef entrails. Meanwhile, High Island Reservoir in Sai Kung was packed with hundreds of mainland tourists, including nature lovers, with a heavy police presence deployed to maintain order. Among them was Felix Lee, 30, a tourist from Guangdong, who said he was planning to go hiking on the MacLehose Trail. “I came here today to hike. I saw that this location is a very famous spot. It is one of the hiking trails that people recommend online,” he said, adding that he would spend two days in the city. Lee, who is visiting with some friends, said he decided to go to the reservoir’s East Dam after seeing recommendations on social media platforms Douyin and RedNote. Tourist Wen Haozhou was visiting Hong Kong from Jiangxi province. He said he would be going hiking on the MacLehose Trail after seeing recommendations online. The popular 100km (62-mile) hiking trail crosses much of the New Territories. The situation at the East Dam stood in sharp contrast to the chaos previously seen at the site amid heavy crowds and long lines for public transport. Multiple police vehicles were stationed at the East Dam, with many uniformed officers deployed at the site. Staff from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department were also at the location, where they answered questions from tourists and warned visitors against breaking rules. Labour Day is also a public holiday in Hong Kong. Residents can enjoy a five-day break by taking Friday off and combining it with the weekend and Buddha’s Birthday on Monday, also a public holiday.

Hong Kong welcomes 213,000 mainland tourists as ‘golden week’ break starts

With Labour Day also a public holiday in Hong Kong, more than 281,000 residents head off for other destinations