Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is banking on the soon-to-be-operational Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) and Express Rail Link to attract even more European visitors who tend to explore the city as part of a multi-destination itinerary covering the Pearl River Delta region.
According to a HKTB spokesperson, 80 per cent of overnight visitors from the UK, Germany and France arrive in Hong Kong on multi-destination itineraries.
“(The new transport links) will greatly enhance connectivity between Hong Kong and mainland China. We are collaborating with neighbouring destinations in the Pearl River Delta region, such as Guangdong and Macau, to enhance travellers’ and trade partners’ awareness of our tourism offerings, and encourage the travel trade to develop multi-destination itineraries covering Hong Kong,” said the spokesperson.
Faces of Hong Kong, CEO, Ivy Sung, added that the experience of crossing the 42km HZMB is an attraction in itself.
“The massive scale of the project and the fact that it is a journey above and under the sea make HZMB worth showcasing to my clients,” she remarked.
And for business event visitors, Cathay Pacific’s new routes from European capitals are presenting “very good prospects”, said Gunther Homerlein, general manager of Destination China. Examples of new connections are from Copenhagen, Dublin and Brussels.
Meanwhile, HKTB’s latest destination push is the Best of All, It’s in Hong Kong brand campaign – which seeks to highlight the rich diversity and quality of experiences that Hong Kong can offer to European visitors. Areas of appeal include gourmet dining, fashion and entertainment, family adventures by land, sea and sky, and the great outdoors.
Following the success of the Old Town Central campaign in 2017, which comprised self-guided walks through the historical Central district, HKTB will debut a Sham Shui Po Neighbourhood equivalent, an initiative that has garnered a nod from Travel’s general manager Cary Chiu.
In addition, Sung believes that the in-depth peek into a local neighbourhood could be just the bait to lure Europeans to Hong Kong, a destination with a far shorter history than Europe.
