Hong Kong tourism sector urges action with visitor spending 44% below 2018 level
Lawmaker Perry Yiu calls for more events and cross-border cooperation as visitor spending falls from HK$353b in 2018 to HK$197.5b last year
Hong Kong’s tourism industry has called for more experiential events, enhanced transport measures and closer cross-border cooperation to draw overnight visitors, after tourist spending fell to HK$197.5 billion (US$25.2 billion) last year, 44 per cent below its 2018 level.
Lawmaker Perry Yiu Pak-leung, chairman of China Travel Service (Hong Kong), said on Friday that the fall reflected changing travel patterns, with tourists placing greater value on experiences and in-depth exploration than on shopping.
Yiu made the call after the latest Legislative Council research found that visitor spending had fallen 44 per cent from about HK$353 billion in the pre-pandemic year of 2018.
Noting that lower visitor spending was a global trend, Yiu said some tourists still had strong purchasing power, but their expenditure depended on whether Hong Kong could encourage them to stay longer and offer a wider variety of events.
“The tourism industry is very much affected by the external environment, such as weather, flight prices and transport costs, among others,” he said.
“While we cannot control these factors, providing more and different travel experiences, and strengthening connections and synergy are some important directions to bring an upgrade to our industry, enhance tourists’ travel experience and boost their spending.”