Hong Kong posts big arrivals gains

More than 30.6 million visitor arrivals to Hong Kong were recorded in the first half of 2018, representing year-on-year growth of 10.1 per cent, according to new statistics released by the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Of these, overnight visitor arrivals exceeded 13.85 million, up 6.2 per cent year on year, while Canada recorded an increase of 4.8 per cent, a total of 191,359 visitor arrivals from January to June. The June 2018 figure was 23,147 compared to 22,517 same month last year, an increase of 2.8 per cent.

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“Additional air capacity and effective campaigns partnered with media & trade partners contributed to the result”, said Michael Lim, HKTB Director of Canada, Central & South America. “We’ll continue our market promotion with 'Best of all, it's in Hong Kong,' inviting visitors to discover Hong Kong Like A Local, explore the neighborhood attractions and enjoy the authentic experiences."

Anthony Lau, Executive Director of the HKTB, added “the growth in total visitor arrivals in the first half of this year was driven mainly by the mainland market. As for international arrivals, long-haul markets performed well, growing 2.6 per cent. With the continued intense competition among travel destinations in the region, visitor arrivals from short-haul markets fluctuated, falling of 1.5 per cent. Looking ahead, the business environment for the tourism industry will face different challenges caused by the unstable global economy and exchange rates, which may affect tourism growth in the second half of the year. The HKTB will continue to work with the travel trade to attract more overnight visitors from different source markets to Hong Kong.”

Leveraging the upcoming opening of the Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong High Speed Rail and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the HKTB will introduce related promotions through various channels to promote the two main infrastructure additions and travel experiences featuring Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area.

For more information, visit www.discoverhongkong.com.