Hong Kong recorded a 7.5 per cent increase in visitor numbers over the Christmas and New Year period, immigration data shows, while local businesses grappled with lacklustre sales amid a 10.1 per cent rise in outbound trips by residents.
According to official figures, the city recorded 12.41 million trips between December 21 and January 1, a 15 per cent increase over the number from the same 12-day period the year before, but still 5 per cent below the Immigration Department’s forecast.
There were 1.77 million visitor arrivals during this year’s festive period, 7.5 per cent more than the 1.65 million recorded last Christmas season.
The most recent holiday’s tally of 1.28 million mainland Chinese tourists represented a year-on-year increase of 3.5 per cent. There were 496,166 foreign arrivals, up by nearly a fifth from a year ago.
The uptick in visitors was a boon for some establishments well-known among mainlanders, while other businesses lamented lacklustre sales despite enjoying strong online followings.
A restaurant on Granville Road in Tsim Sha Tsui popular with users on the Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu was fully occupied on New Year’s Day at 2.30pm, with about 30 customers waiting outside for a table.