Hong Kong aims to double Indian tourists with event lineup

Hong Kong tourism: With a lineup of festivals and activities throughout year, Hong Kong is looking at doubling number of tourists from India, according to a PTI report. In 2022, destination received 208,000 visitors from India.

"We want to double this number this year and have many festivals and events lined up to boost tourism this year," Hong Kong Tourism Board Director, South Asia and Middle East, Puneet Kumar told PTI.

"In first half of 2024, Hong Kong welcomed 181,000 visitors from India, which is 89 per cent of pre-Covid time," Kumar ded.

Aiming beyond 2018

Encouraged by this momentum, Tourism Board hopes to surpass pre-Covid visitor numbers from 2018, a benchmark year before 2019 protests and flight cancellations that severely impacted tourism sector.

In 2018, around 400,000 Indians visited Hong Kong, part of 33 million international travellers that year. By 2023, Hong Kong hosted 34 million international visitors, and 21 million travelled to city between January and June 2024.

Kumar stressed Hong Kong's appeal as a year-round destination, bolstered by its connectivity to major Indian cities and its visa-free status. "Indian travellers only need a quick pre-arrival registration on Hong Kong immigration website, which takes about 10 minutes," he ded.

Targeting Indian youth

Tourism Board is particularly targeting Gen Z and Millennials in India, who are driving tourism growth with ir interest in concerts and festivals. "We aim to encourage frequent and repeat travel by positioning Hong Kong as Asia's event capital," Kumar furr said.

plan includes focusing on both leisure and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) segments. India is amongst top five markets for incentive group travel to Hong Kong. He said Indian visitors are to spenders, averaging HKD 9,139 per person, and ir stay duration has increased to an average of 4.5 days, up from 3 days in 2018.

(With PTI Inputs)