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Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Gregory So
Has Hong Kong lost its lustre as a tourist attraction? Has the Hong Kong SAR Government done enough to develop tourism infrastructure in the city?
These are questions being asked around town as Hong Kong experiences its first downturn in visitor arrivals since 2009, and a continued weakening in visitor spending.
We have also heard that perhaps we should look beyond shopping and dining when promoting Hong Kong, or that we should do more to promote different aspects of Hong Kong such as arts, culture or even hiking trails to attract a more diverse visitor mix.
These are all valid questions, and ones that I and my colleagues in the Tourism Commission and Hong Kong Tourism Board are looking at closely. Our goal: to ensure that Asia’s world city remains a must-see destination for people from all corners of the globe.
A unique city
Here, we not only have a challenge but a great opportunity to look at what we can and should do as a Government to facilitate holistic and sustainable tourism growth.
There is no doubt that Hong Kong has much to offer. For decade upon decade, visitors have been beguiled by our eclectic mix of East and West, old and new, tradition and innovation. These are part of our tourism DNA and, I believe, will continue to be an attraction in the years ahead.
When we look at any tourist destination, a number of aspects need to be considered, including connectivity, ease of access, receiving capacity, attractions, value for money and packaging. Changes in exchange rates, for example, may make people think twice about whether a destination is good value, or indeed even affordable.
As a global business, financial and trading centre, Hong Kong is fortunate to be well connected by air, with about half the world’s population within a five-hour flight. Our airport ranks consistently among the best in the world for visitor experience. We are pressing ahead with plans for a third runway to ensure our capacity can meet expected demand. Not only that, once you are in Hong Kong our public transport system is one of the best in the world – in terms of affordability and network.
On ease of access, we have a liberal immigration regime which provides visa-free access for people from about 170 countries. In recent years we have tweaked our immigration rules to make it even easier for people to study, work and live in Hong Kong.
In terms of capacity, Hong Kong has around 74,000 hotel rooms of varying price-points. We have added more than 32,000 rooms over the past decade, and expect another 10,000 to come on stream by 2017. In this case, the Government has always worked closely with the tourism industry to ensure the timely provision of enough suitable land for hotel and tourism-related development.
In terms of attractions, there are experiences galore within easy reach. The Central Business District is a good example. Apart from the huge range of Asian and Western cuisine on offer, not to mention shops and markets, visitors can explore back lanes or admire the architecture and contrasts of heritage and contemporary buildings nestled side-by-side.
Not far from the bustling commercial district – as close as a 5 or 10-minute cab ride – visitors can enjoy the serene silence of a country trail, or take in the views of the harbor from the back of a ferry to an outlying island. Few cities in the world have dense urban and commercial districts within such easy reach of harbour and hillsides.
While Hong Kong’s iconic cityscape is an attraction in itself, we are acutely aware of the need to develop new attractions to lure new visitors and bring back familiar friends.
Over the past 10 years we have seen the opening of Hong Kong Disneyland, the Ngong Ping 360 cable car, Wetland Park, Kai Tak Cruise Terminal and the Observation Wheel. During that period we have also seen new attractions added to Disneyland and Ocean Park.
Around town, PMQ – a revitalised historic building cluster – has become a cultural attraction that is also helping to develop and promote our creative talent. The new Central Waterfront has become a popular destination for visitors but is also being put to good use for large-scale events such as the annual Wine & Dine Festival which goes from strength to strength.
More attractions to come
Looking ahead, the West Kowloon Cultural District and the revitalised Old Central Police Station Compound will start to open to the public from next year. These two destinations will provide a welcome boost and new variety for visitors.
Ocean Park is developing an all-weather indoor-outdoor waterpark which will feature an impressive cascade of pools that blend in with the natural environment. Hong Kong Disneyland Resort will celebrate its 10th anniversary in style while it gears up for the opening of the new Marvel’s Iron Man attraction in 2016, and a new hotel themed on the spirit of exploration in 2017.
In the longer term, more attractions and entertainment venues are being planned at the former Kai Tak Airport site and on Lantau Island, both of which have excellent potential to become tourism and resort nodes.
Apart from upgrading and developing attractions and venues, Hong Kong’s events calendar is packed with exciting offerings throughout the year. These include the innovative Hong Kong Pulse 3D Light Show launched last year, and the inaugural Hong Kong Cyclothon in October this year. Favourites such as the Hong Kong Tennis Open, Hong Kong Open Golf Championship, International Racing Carnival, the Rugby 7s, the Wine & Dine Festival and the Hong Kong Arts Festival continue to enhance their appeal and attract visitors from around the globe.
In addition, Hong Kong remains one of the world’s most popular destinations for MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions, exhibitions) travel. With the concerted efforts of the Government, the Hong Kong Tourism Board and the MICE trade, overnight MICE visitors increased from 1.2 million in 2009 to 1.8 million in 2014.
On the infrastructure side, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council is, at our invitation, proceeding with the planning of a new convention centre at Wan Chai North to support the long-term development of the convention sector.
To help lure visitors to Asia’s world city, the Government provides annual funding of over $300 million to the HKTB to support its external promotion efforts. If more initiatives are needed to tackle the challenges faced by the tourism sector, we will never hesitate to scale up our support.
Earlier this year, an additional $80 million was given to the HKTB to step up promotion of Hong Kong in light of cooling tourism performance. As a further gesture of support, we have this week provided an extra $10 million to the HKTB to set up a one-off matching fund that aims to attract high value-added, overnight visitors to Hong Kong in the coming months.
Local tourist attractions may take advantage of this new funding to boost publicity in Hong Kong’s source markets and/or to develop discounted tourism products in partnership with hotels and travel agents. I am very pleased to note that this initiative has been enthusiastically supported by the tourism sector, which shares the view that we must work together for sustainable tourism development in Hong Kong.
Tourism is one of the pillar industries in Hong Kong. We will continue to improve our tourism attractiveness and foster a welcoming atmosphere for our guests. We welcome all visitors from the Mainland and overseas to come to Hong Kong to personally experience the charms of this dynamic, world city.
This column by Secretary for Commerce & Economic Development Gregory So appeared in several local newspapers.
