Hong Kong is giving away air tickets and vouchers to woo tourists back. Read to know how the international financial hub is trying to catch up with other travel destinations.
Hong Kong and its attempt to woo tourists
During the pandemic, Hong Kong was mainly aligned with the mainland Chinese policy of “zero covid”. However, it has now relaxed entry rules, following rivals such as Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan. However, the recovery of tourism is sluggish despite opening the border with mainland China in January 2023. John Lee, the CEO launched “Hello Hong Kong” a tourism campaign and is offering 500,000 free air tickets to welcome tourists from across the world.
In the new campaign, most of the plane tickets totaling $225 million will come from three airlines based in the city. However, most of them are through promotions such as “buy one, get one free” and games.”Hong Kong is now seamlessly connected to mainland of China and the whole world and there will be no isolation, no quarantine. This is the perfect timing for tourists, business travelers, and investors from near and far to come and say, ‘Hello, Hong Kong,'” stated Lee.
More on the new campaign
Before the pandemic began, the city received about 56 million visitors, more than seven times its population. However, its strict covid restrictions and policies have been shooing visitors away over the last three years. This brings devastating blows to the tourism sector. Last year, the city’s GDP saw a 3.5 percent fall from 2021.
“The project will begin in March and last about six months,” stated Fred Lam. Lam is the CEO of the Airport Authority. “We hope those who secure the air tickets can bring two or three more relatives and friends to the city. Although we are just giving away 500,000 air tickets, we believe this can help bring Hong Kong over 1.5 million visitors. The airlines will distribute the tickets in phases, with the Southeast Asian markets set to benefit in the first stage,” he explained.