Hong Kong mainland visitor numbers unlikely to ‘reach pre-pandemic levels in next 2 years’

The number of mainland Chinese visitors coming to Hong Kong is unlikely to recover to pre-pandemic levels in the next two years despite a rising trend of tour groups and individuals travelling to the city, according to a trade body.
 
Travel Industry Council executive director Fanny Yeung Suk-fan said on Sunday that 1.15 million to 1.2 million mainland visitors were expected in Hong Kong during the National Day “golden week” holiday from Oct 1 to Oct 7, a 20% rise compared with last year but only about 75% of the 2018 figure.
“We believe that in the next two years, we may not be able to reach [pre-pandemic mainland visitor numbers]. The main thing is the global economy has worsened,” Yeung told a television show.
“The mainland’s economy has worsened, too. People will definitely spend less on travel. Another thing we see is that the pattern of mainland tourists has changed. Previously, they mainly came to shop, but that’s no longer the case.”
In the first eight months this year, Hong Kong welcomed 23 million mainland visitors, a year-on-year increase of about 39%.
Yeung said that while the city was starting to promote distinctive and in-depth travel experiences, there was a shortage of tour guides, especially those skilled in foreign languages such as Thai and Russian.
She said this underscored the need for the government to consider relaxing licensing requirements. Yeung said individuals who were not university graduates were required to complete a six- to eight-week course and pass an exam before obtaining a tour guide licence.
“Unless you are a university graduate, if people simply want to try it out on a part-time basis for six to eight weeks to see if they enjoy the tourism industry, I believe it would be challenging to invest time in taking classes,” she said.
“We have preliminarily raised this matter with the government, and it is receptive and open to reviewing it.”
She also suggested that university students could work as tour guides on a part-time basis. The scope of the Vocational Professionals Admission Scheme for non-local students could also be broadened to address the shortage of foreign language guides as it currently did not cover the tourism industry.
The government scheme aims to nurture high-calibre professionals to expand the talent pool for Hong Kong, the Greater Bay Area and the country.
On the city’s attractions, Yeung expressed confidence in the development of the panda economy, pointing to the recent excitement after Ocean Park’s Ying Ying delivered a set of twins, complemented by Beijing’s gifting of another pair of bears to Hong Kong.
She noted that aside from mainland cities, Hong Kong had the largest population of pandas, and the bears had no leasing restrictions.
“The government has made a good start with initiatives such as naming contests and art competitions,” she said.
“But we need to cultivate an atmosphere where everyone loves pandas in the long term.”
She stressed the importance of commercialising pandas as intellectual property, such as through panda-themed dim sum and animations.
“We believe it is worth considering opening up the intellectual property with the government taking the lead,” Yeung said.
“Give it a year for some businesses to assess the opportunity for development to make money and then recoup the investment. I think this approach could work.”
Yeung also said the coming Kai Tak Sports Park, which is set to open next year, could drive the use of the nearby cruise terminal for disembarked passengers to attend concerts and other events, creating a synergistic effect.