1.4 million mainland tourists to visit Hong Kong over Lunar New Year: John Lee


Hong Kong will welcome more than 1.4 million mainland Chinese tourists over Lunar New Year, the city leader has predicted, saying the trend of having overseas visitors will be noticeable in the Year of the Snake.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said on Tuesday a 23-minute fireworks display and a parade featuring international performance groups would be among a string of celebratory events set for the holiday, which will run from January 28 and February 4 on the mainland.

“[We] estimate that more than 1.4 million mainland tourists will visit Hong Kong via different borders during the eight-day holiday,” Lee said before his weekly meeting with the Executive Council, the city’s top decision-making body.

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He said the estimated number of daily visitors would represent 3 and 14 per cent increases compared with the statistics recorded during the National Day and Lunar New Year holidays last year.

Lee said the fireworks display would light up Victoria Harbour on January 30, expecting it to attract more than 100,000 residents and tourists.

Hundreds of thousands of revellers packed both sides of Victoria Harbour for a fireworks display on New Year’s Eve. Photo: Sun Yeung

He added that 55 groups would take part in the parade that would be held on the first day of Lunar New Year on January 29, with artists from France, Argentina, Austria, India, Indonesia and Thailand performing for the first time.

The city leader also announced that he, alongside other secretaries and bureau chiefs, would visit various communities between Saturday and Tuesday next week to send care and support to residents, especially those from underprivileged families.

When asked if the border checkpoints would extend operation hours, Lee said his administration had been working closely with the relevant mainland officials.

“We will consider the actual needs and discuss if we need to extend operation hours of some borders and how long should be extended. We will announce the results during this week,” Lee said.

Lee said the number of arrivals from around the world reached close to 45 million in 2024, with those from the mainland increasing by about 30 per cent year on year and visitors from Southeast Asia experiencing strong growth.

He also pointed to the record number of visitors from the Philippines, which doubled to nearly 1.2 million.

Lee added that the long-haul markets from Europe and America also showed strong growth momentum, increasing by 50 per cent year on year.

“Both short- and long-haul visitors from mainland China and various other countries saw significant increases. This strong growth is expected to become even more pronounced in the Year of the Snake,” he said.

He also referred to Hong Kong’s air transport capacity, which largely recovered to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024, saying it would continue to increase.

Last year, the airport’s passenger throughput reached 53 million, a 35 per cent increase year on year, setting a new post-pandemic high, Lee highlighted.

He added that 18 new air routes had been opened, such as Riyadh in Saudi Arabia and Cairns in Australia, among other long-haul destinations.

Hong Kong International Airport would continue to expand its long-haul route network in 2025, with new planned destinations including the Gold Coast in Australia, Dallas in the United States, Munich in Germany, Brussels in Belgium, Rome in Italy and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, he said.

The government’s forecast of mainland tourists is close to an earlier estimate by the local industry.

Travel Industry Council’s new chairman Tommy Tam Kwong-shun earlier told the Post that the city would have 1.45 million mainland visitors over the Lunar New Year period, about 15 per cent more than in 2024, thanks to mega-events and recently relaxed visa restrictions.

Other signature holiday events that are being promoted by the Hong Kong Tourism Board include the Chinese New Year Raceday at Sha Tin Racecourse, a wishing tree festival at Lam Tsuen and the Lunar New Year Cup at Hong Kong Stadium.

The West Kowloon Cultural District will also hold a Lunar New Year-themed market with six speciality stalls, performances, workshops, exhibitions and other events.

It will host live Chinese music shows, a lion dance and street performances on its harbourside lawn and at Art Park on select weekends and public holidays.

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