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Hong kong tourism industry gains momentum amidst challenges, government reveals measures to enhance visitor experience.

17th January 2024 – (Hong Kong) In a recent session of the Legislative Council, the Hon Elizabeth Quat raised concerns about the pace of recovery in visitor arrivals to Hong Kong following the resumption of normal travel between the Mainland and the region in early 2023. Quat highlighted the need to attract more Mainland consumers, explore new visitor markets, and enhance Hong Kong’s capacity to receive tourists. In response, Mr. Kevin Yeung, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, provided an update on the measures taken by the government to address these issues.

Hong Kong’s tourism industry holds significant importance, contributing around 4.5 per cent to the region’s Gross Domestic Product and providing over 250,000 employment opportunities. Despite the challenges posed by changing visitor patterns and local spending behaviour, the industry has shown resilience. The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) initially projected 25.8 million visitor arrivals for 2023, but the concerted efforts of the government and the travel trade resulted in a remarkable 34 million arrivals last year, surpassing expectations.

In response to the first question regarding the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS), which allows Mainland visitors to travel to Hong Kong, Yeung highlighted that the IVS currently covers 49 designated Mainland cities. In 2023, the IVS accounted for 60 per cent of total Mainland visitors, indicating its effectiveness in attracting visitors. The government intends to maintain communication with relevant Mainland authorities to explore ways to enhance the scheme and adjust duty-free shopping allowances, aiming to provide Mainland visitors with more convenient and flexible travel options and enrich their overall experience.

Expanding visitor sources is a key strategy for Hong Kong’s tourism development. The government has been actively promoting Hong Kong as a desirable destination for visitors from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Middle East countries. Efforts include collaborations with airlines, key opinion leaders, and the travel trade to attract visitors from these regions. Notably, HKTB organized familiarization trips for trade representatives from ASEAN countries, aimed at showcasing new tourism products and creating awareness. The number of visitors from ASEAN member states has already recovered to 73 per cent of the average in 2017 and 2018, with notable growth from the Philippines and Thailand.

In addition to diversifying visitor sources, the government recognizes the need to enhance Hong Kong’s capacity to receive tourists. Several initiatives have been undertaken, including the development of new facilities at popular attractions such as Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Ocean Park, and Ngong Ping 360. Cultural spots like the Hong Kong Palace Museum, M+, and the Hong Kong Museum of Art have also been built or renovated to further engage visitors. The number of hotel rooms has increased by 8 per cent compared to 2018, offering over 100,000 rooms to accommodate visitors. The average length of stay for overnight visitors has also increased, reaching 3.5 nights in the third quarter of 2023.

To ensure a high-quality visitor experience, HKTB has established the “Professional Quality Tourism Services Pledge” and implemented the “Quality Tourism Services Scheme.” These initiatives aim to enhance service quality and hospitality by recognizing outstanding merchants and frontline staff, providing training videos, and organizing promotional activities. By fostering a culture of excellence in customer service, Hong Kong aims to consolidate its position as an international tourist destination.

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Hong Kong tourism rebounds in 2023 with 34 million visitors

Chinese mainland remains its largest source market, accounting for 79 percent of the total.

Hong Kong welcomed 34 million visitors in 2023, with the Chinese mainland remaining its largest source market and accounting for 79 percent of the total figure amid the region's tourism rebound, according to the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) on Saturday. 

Some 27 million travelers from the Chinese mainland made trips to Hong Kong last year, which accounted for 79 percent of the region's total visitors with ideal numbers during the May Day holidays, summer vacation and the National Day holidays in October. 

The figure showcased a steady recovery for Hong Kong's tourism sector. The region received nearly 4 million tourists alone in December 2023. In comparison, Hong Kong received a total of 604,564 visitors in 2022, with 375,130 from the mainland, according to HKTB data. 

The Southeast Asian market has shown the fastest recovery for Hong Kong. The number of visitors from the Philippines and Thailand in December surpassed pre-pandemic levels, which were averaged from 2017 to 2018, with a recovery rate of 116 percent for the Philippines and 106 percent for Thailand.

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Hong Kong Disneyland Resort Shines as Beacon of City’s Tourism, Rebound Outpacing the Overall Market

Publish Date

• Improved fiscal year 2023 performance bolstered by record-high local attendance and strong rebound in inbound tourism
• Resort posts profit in calendar year 2023, boosted by distinctly Disney storytelling at new land, attractions and nighttime spectacular
• World of Frozen extends resort’s continued success, with record-breaking revenue, EBITDA and net profit in Q1 of calendar year 2024

June 25, 2024, HONG KONG – Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (HKDL) today shared its business results for the fiscal year of 2023 (FY23) and the latest resort developments. The theme park reported record-high local attendance and an encouraging rebound in mainland China and overseas visitation compared with pre-pandemic levels.

(With a year-end date on the Saturday closest to, if not on, 30 September, the fiscal year consists of 52 weeks with the exception that approximately every six years, the fiscal year comprises a 53-week period. Fiscal 2023 and 2022 were both a 52-week year ending on 30 September 2023 and 1 October 2022, respectively.)

The resort also announced a profit in calendar year 2023, driven by the success of a holistic strategy to create lifelong memories among local guests and robust campaigns that reignite tourists’ intent to visit following the resumption of inbound tourism in early 2023.

“We have entered a new era. I am extremely proud of all we have accomplished at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in the lead-up to our 20th anniversary, achieving profitability in calendar year 2023 and our rebound in visitors outpacing the overall Hong Kong tourism market ,” said Michael Moriarty, managing director, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.

(HKDL’s non-local attendance recovery has outpaced Hong Kong’s total visitor arrival recovery according to figures from the Hong Kong Tourism Board, comparing the same period in 2023 and 2018.)

“And the strong momentum continues. The first quarter of calendar year 2024 was our most successful quarter ever, achieving record levels of revenue, EBITDA and net income.”

Moriarty added that HKDL has firmly established itself as a key driver and contributor to Hong Kong’s economy and community through its ongoing investment in bespoke attractions, experiences and storytelling, as well as its corporate citizenship efforts.

“Through a series of record-breaking achievements, fueled by creativity and innovation, including our new signature offerings — the reimagined Castle of Magical Dreams, ‘Momentous’ Nighttime Spectacular and most recently, World of Frozen, we have become a drawcard for Hong Kong tourists,” Moriarty added.

“We’ve created a unique, world-class tourist destination in the Greater Bay Area for our guests in Hong Kong and the region, who have embraced Disney in their own favorable way.”

The rebound of non-local guest attendance outpaced Hong Kong’s overall visitor arrivals recovery in calendar year 2023 when compared with 2018 levels. This positive momentum continued in Q1 of calendar year 2024. Rebound in mainland guest attendance was particularly strong.

Strong FY23 Business Performance

In FY23, HKDL delivered solid financial performance across the board with strong growth compared to the prior fiscal year, despite the impact of travel restrictions under the pandemic for nearly half of the fiscal year.

• Revenue grew 156% to HK$5.7 billion
• EBITDA improved by 207% to HK$924 million
• Net loss improved by 83% to HK$356 million
• Per capita spending grew 54%
• Total attendance grew 87% to 6.4 million
• Hotels’ utilisation rate for the year was 77% and overall occupancy increased by 23 percentage points to 47%

(Hotel utilisation is calculated based on adjusted available capacity, which excludes room inventory temporarily removed from service having regard to a number of factors, such as the temporary closure of hotel rooms for planned renovation and management’s best estimates of the market situation and operational needs.)

HKDL’s local guest affinity continued to grow, with FY23 seeing historically high local attendance, including record attendance among young adults and students from Disney Youth Programs.

In December 2023, the resort marked an important milestone, welcoming its 100 millionth guest since opening in 2005.

Notably, in December 2023, HKDL fully repaid the revolver facility funded by a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company and has not drawn on it thereafter.

Key Accomplishments

• Distinctly Disney experiences spur continued growth: HKDL continuously invests in its offerings to create an exceptional guest experience. The addition of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! in 2019, the reimagined Castle of Magical Dreams in 2020, castle daytime show “Follow Your Dreams” in 2021, “Momentous” Nighttime Spectacular in 2022 and World of Frozen in 2023 have contributed to the resort’s strong rebound.
• Successful seasonal programs powered by popular Disney franchises: Leveraging Disney popular franchises such as Mickey and Friends, Duffy and Friends, Marvel Super Heroes, Disney Villains, Pixar etc., HKDL’s seasonal events for Chinese New Year, spring, summer, Halloween, and Christmas continue to prove successful and attract guests to HKDL all year round.
• Reignite source markets: As travel began its path towards resuming to normal levels, HKDL swiftly launched extensive marketing and sales efforts, deepening its penetration in both the international and mainland China markets and reigniting visit intent among inbound tourists.
• Experiential offerings and entertainment: New immersive products such as “Duffy and Friends Play House” and “Marvel Season of Super Heroes” in addition to live entertainment shows like “StellaLou's Wonderful Wishes Ballet” and the “Disney Live in Concert!” series further enhanced HKDL’s status as one of Hong Kong’s iconic tourism draws.
• Guest-centric premium products and offerings: HKDL is committed to bringing iconic Disney storytelling to life, continually introducing innovative ways to enhance the guest experience. New merchandise and F&B offerings, alongside Disney Premier Access – a favorite among tourists have all contributed towards record per capita spending.
• Ramping up operational capacity: In early 2023 when travel began its path towards resuming to normal levels, HKDL adjusted its operations to open six or seven days a week from June 2023 to meet guest demand. Disney Explorers Lodge also resumed seven-day operations in April 2023, while Disney’s Hollywood Hotel reopened in July 2023.

Continued Contributions to Hong Kong’s Economy and Community

• Contributing to Hong Kong’s economy: Since opening in 2005, the total direct and indirect value generated by HKDL amounted to HK$129.6 billion.
• Creating job opportunities for magic makers: Since opening in 2005, it has cumulatively created 290,700 jobs (in terms of full time equivalent labor years) and is one of Hong Kong’s largest employers in the tourism and family entertainment industry.
• Sharing Disney magic throughout the community: More than 100,000 complimentary theme park tickets were provided to NGOs to help bring happiness to people in underserved communities in FY23. Over 16,000kg of surplus food, equivalent to approximately 40,000 meals, were donated to the community through the resort’s food donation program.
• Delivering happiness and support through volunteering: HKDL cast members have contributed nearly 120,000 Disney VoluntEARS hours since opening in 2005, delivering happiness, support and comfort to the community.
• Fostering family for many: HKDL employed more than 5,600 full-time and 3,000 part-time staff on average in FY24 Q2. More than 2,000 cast members, or about one-third of HKDL’s workforce, have completed 10 or more years of service with the company. Nearly 60% of HKDL’s total workforce has worked at the company for five or more years. In March 2024, the resort held its first-ever Service Celebration to recognize the cast members and Imagineers for their service to the company, including several of whom have been with the company since before opening day in 2005.

HKDL is dedicated to the Hong Kong community and serving those in need. Throughout the year, the resort remained steadfast in its corporate social responsibility commitments, including:

• Spearheading innovation: Inspiring creativity among future generations through the Disney Imaginations Hong Kong competition.
• Making dreams come true: Continued longstanding support of Make-A-Wish Hong Kong to grant life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.
• Championing sports development: Rolling out youth sports training initiatives and supporting those in need.
• Promoting inclusivity and arts accessibility: Integrating theatrical interpretation into popular shows, with performers incorporating sign language through body movements.
• Caring for the environment: Building the city’s single largest solar panel site and incorporating sustainable design and processes in the park.

Non-stop, Year-round Excitement

Throughout 2024, guests will continue to see distinctly Disney, world-class experiences. The opening of World of Frozen, combined with seasonal surprises throughout the year, promises to captivate fans and guests from around the world.

In closing, Moriarty said, “As HKDL celebrates its 20th anniversary next year, stay tuned for thrilling updates and offerings to come!”.

– THE END –

About Hong Kong Disneyland Resort

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort offers unforgettable, culturally distinctive Disney experiences for guests of all ages and backgrounds. Filled with your favorite Disney stories and characters, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort offers guests the opportunity to explore eight diverse lands that are home to award-winning, one-of-a-kind attractions and entertainment. Complete your adventure with stays at the resort’s luxurious Disney hotels. The magic doesn’t end at our doorstep; as a dedicated member of the local community that cares deeply about societal wellbeing, Hong Kong Disneyland Resort spreads its magic through community service programs that help families in need, boost creativity among children and families, encourage the protection of the environment and inspire healthier living.

Mobile app gives the latest updates & helps plan your visit

The Hong Kong Disneyland mobile app keeps guests informed of all the excitement at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, from operating hours to entertainment schedules. Reserve your park visit and get Disney Standby Pass to meet Disney friends inside the park. Use the GPS-enabled map to find your way around the park or make reservations for park and hotel restaurants, and make every moment count with wait times for each attraction. Magic Access members can also view block-out calendars and membership privileges, designed to make your visit even more magical.

Download the Hong Kong Disneyland mobile app for free:

iOS users: https://itunes.apple.com/app/id1077550649

Android users: https://goo.gl/ZbHHbP

Read about the latest initiatives, highlights and trade activities of the HKTB.

Hong Kong Free Press HKFP

Hong Kong news, breaking updates – 100% Independent, impartial, non-profit

Silent night: Hong Kong tourist traps are empty, locals stay home as gov’t drive to revive evening economy begins

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“Hong Kong is back in business” has become a familiar phrase to fall from the mouths of government officials – uttered in at least 11 high-profile addresses since the beginning of the year, including five times in September alone. 

But for an elderly hawker in Yau Ma Tei, who cut a lonely figure along the northern end of Temple Street, business was far from back. His stall was the only one open at around 7 pm on a late-September Tuesday. Speaking to HKFP on condition that his name was not used, he said he was about to close for the day, hours earlier than he used to.

He had been selling wooden handicrafts and calligraphy brushes at Temple Street Night Market – described by travel guide Lonely Planet as a “tourist trap” and “Hong Kong’s liveliest market” – for about 40 years, reopening in 2022 after shuttering for much of the Covid-19 pandemic, during which visitors were essentially barred from the city. 

Things these days were different. Faded orange national and Hong Kong flags hung limply in the humid night air, and the once animated street was all but empty. He did not get many customers, the stallholder said, squatting on his plastic stool in front of an industrial floor fan. People seemed less keen to spend money, he added, and that included tourists. 

It was a similar story at a footwear store on Mong Kok’s Fa Yuen Street, better known as “sneaker street” and popular with a younger, historically cashed-up clientele. While a website dedicated to the area entreats anyone with “an itch to buy some athletic shoes at 11pm” to head over, the owner of three shops on the street said he had started closing at 9 pm.

Also speaking on condition of anonymity, he told HKFP he had cut staff from six to four during Covid so that he could stay open. But business was down by about 50 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels, and quieter than it was while anti-epidemic restrictions remained in place. Once, customers would buy several pairs of shoes – now he was lucky if they bought one.    

In an effort to redress weak consumption and reinvigorate the city’s evening economy after Covid-related restrictions kept Hongkongers at home for the better part of three years, the government has launched a “Night Vibes Hong Kong” campaign . Much of it is centred around malls, pop-up night markets, and events already firmly entrenched in the city’s calendar – National Day Celebrations, the Hong Kong Wine and Dine Festival, and Halloween events at the city’s theme parks. 

It also runs from Mid-Autumn Festival, which this year fell in late September, until Lunar New Year in early February, traditionally the city’s busiest period for spending and for tourism. 

Speaking to reporters on September 19, Chief Executive John Lee said the campaign aimed to get people “out of their former habits of staying home early.”

“The whole intention and purpose of this Night Vibes Hong Kong programme is to develop a new culture for people to enjoy their night activities more,” Lee said, adding that “activities will mean more people; more people will mean more business and more consumption, which will be good for the overall economic development.”

The campaign kicked off with a weekend market hosted by the Avenue of Stars and shopping centre K11 Musea – both overseen by property and development conglomerate New World Development – along the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront on September 22. In a statement, K11 hailed the first event as a success, with “thriving crowds craving for local specialties” resulting in a 30 per cent surge in footfall. There was no mention of an impact on sales. 

Among the local specialities on offer were quintessential Cantonese dishes such as siu mai, which went viral for costing HK$20 for four pieces – a lot by Hong Kong standards. The Fa Yuen Street sneaker store owner told HKFP he did not think the campaign would have a genuine impact, saying that you could buy such snacks on most Mong Kok streets but they did not bring people out.    

To make a real difference to the night economy, he suggested the government subsidise stores to stay open. He had started closing earlier during Covid because of a lack of customers and to save staffing costs, and now people were used to shops closing at a certain time and did not look to spend late into the evening. He called it a vicious cycle. 

‘Things have changed’ 

For much of three years, since Covid-19 was first detected in the city in January 2020 until Hong Kong’s border with mainland China was fully reopened in February, the city was subject to some of the most stringent pandemic restrictions in the world. 

While spared the strict lockdowns of cities like Shanghai or London, Hongkongers were limited in other ways, including in the number of people allowed to gather in public and around a table at a restaurant – both capped at two when outbreaks were at their worst. 

Many of the businesses associated with the night economy – bars, restaurants, karaoke lounges, massage parlours, nightclubs and live music venues – were forced to close completely or operate according to rigorous regulations and curtailed opening hours. Dinner service at eateries was banned for months on end. Several did not survive .

Dining out in large groups has long been part of Hong Kong’s food culture. “People used to go out 15 at a time, families, friends… but now, a lot of them go home at nine o’clock because they’re used to it,” Allan Zeman, the nightlife impresario behind Lan Kwai Fong, one of Hong Kong’s best known after-dark areas, told HKFP by phone in early September. 

“Covid changed a lot of habits for a lot of people… people are used to eating at home,” Zeman said. “Things have changed.” 

Syed Asim Hussain, founder of hospitality group Black Sheep Restaurants, echoed Zeman’s assertion that things were different. “The landscape has changed, it’s dramatically changed,” he told HKFP by video call in late September. “The message internally is we’re not holding our collective breath for things to go back to how they were in 2018.”

Without tourism, a pillar industry that in 2019 contributed around 3.6 per cent to Hong Kong’s gross domestic product and employed some 232,700 people, according to government figures , consumption in the city fell off a cliff in early 2020. Spending still lags behind 2019 levels, which were depressed during the protests and unrest that shook Hong Kong that year. 

Restaurant receipts have shown a more consistent rise, but likewise languish below the amount spent on eating out in 2019, with provisional data for the second quarter showing a decline from the first.  

Economic sociologist at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University Anson Au told HKFP that the impact of Covid on Hongkongers was “longitudinal.” 

Speaking via video call in September, Au spoke of the “disruption” many suffered. “If they had any spells of unemployment, which [many] did during that time, the financial effects are… long term, because you had to dip into your savings to basically recuperate, and that takes some time to bounce back,” Au said. 

The timing of Hong Kong’s reopening also played a role in people’s willingness to spend, he added. 

“We’re at this time when consumer confidence is a little bit lower than is normal because there is some concern about a recession on both sides of the aisle,” Au said. “We have concerns about slowdown in China , we have concerns about a slowdown in America, and whenever consumers are afraid about that, that usually shows up in discretionary spending – so that’s basically stuff that is a luxury but not a need.” 

Hongkongers have seemed keener to part with their money while overseas – another blow for domestic consumption. Even before the border reopened, a 2022 report from Mastercard Economic Institute highlighted a “sharp recovery in outbound travel” across the Asia-Pacific region, adding it was “notable” in Hong Kong, “where the demand has been growing since the implementation of the ‘0+3’ quarantine policy .”

Introduced last September, the 0+3 requirement replaced quarantine for arrivals with a complex series of nucleic and rapid tests, allowing Hongkongers for the first time in years to travel without having to undergo isolation upon their return.

The trend for overseas travel has continued since all border controls were dropped, with Hussain saying “revenge travel” – people’s desire to expand their horizons after not being able to do so – was evident. “Our guests that we would see a few times a week, they’re on the road all the time,” he said.

“The other thing that we’re seeing is guests even within our portfolio are trading down,” Hussain said, referring to the phenomenon of spending less than before.

Hongkongers are not the only ones taking advantage of the post-Covid opportunity to travel. However, the 1.3 million Chinese arrivals recorded in the city from January to July was still 41 per cent below 2019 figures for the same period, according to Hong Kong Tourism Bureau data, and international tourists were yet to make a noticeable return . 

Lan Kwai Fong’s Zeman said mainland Chinese tourists made up about 35 per cent of the area’s customers now, compensating for a drop in expatriates. “Our business has really been very good,” he said. 

He said that the type of mainland Chinese tourist had changed . “In the old days, all they wanted to do is go shopping in the shopping centres because the prices were a lot cheaper than in mainland China, especially for all the labels,” Zeman said. 

Deflated consumption trends in Hong Kong indicate that travellers, like locals, are less willing to spend. Retail receipts in almost every sector were down compared to before Covid, with clothing and department store expenditure particularly depressed. 

“Now that the tax [of luxury goods in mainland China] is almost equal to Hong Kong, they don’t come here. It’s a different kind of client who’s coming now. They’re much better dressed, they’re more sophisticated, they travel,” he said, adding that these tourists were looking for experiences unique to Hong Kong. 

Enjoying Hong Kong nightlife ‘prohibited’ 

The issue with that, said many involved in the city’s nightlife economy who spoke to HKFP for this article, was that Hong Kong’s unique culture had been eroded, and in some cases, commodified. 

Dai pai dongs – street food stalls that have served classic Hong Kong dishes for decades – are under threat because of government bureaucracy and no new licences have been issued since the 1970s, citing concerns over food safety and hygiene. Acknowledging their cultural importance, though, a dai pai dong will pop up at Wan Chai Harbourfront as part of the Hong Kong Night Vibes campaign offering “nostalgia” and “an enticing array of traditional Hong Kong-style street food,” according to a press release. 

Similarly, neon signs – visually synonymous with the city for many foreigners – have fallen foul of regulations and been removed , with some of what remains relegated to museums. Street performers, who drew crowds but were largely disliked by local residents and business owners, were popularly sent packing from Sai Yeung Choi Street in Mong Kok in 2018. Today the once pedestrianised area is quiet, both audibly and in terms of footfall.       

In Tsim Sha Tsui, street photographers who took tourists’ pictures against the backdrop of Victoria Harbour have mostly been moved on . Jumbo, one of Hong Kong’s floating restaurants fell victim to Covid restrictions then sank in the South China Sea in June 2022 as it was being towed away, sparking memes that it was a metaphor for Hong Kong’s future . 

Without even a hint of irony, the Government Records Service launched an exhibition on September 15 titled, “Yesterday’s Vacation in HK,” assembling images of bygone tourist attractions that “remain a crucial part of locals’ and visitors’ memory towards Hong Kong despite having become part of history.”

Becky Lam and Mike Watt, the duo behind popular Peel Street bar Shady Acres in Central, questioned why Hong Kong did not appear on any lists of the world’s best cities for nightlife. 

“Hongkongers are as creative, educated, cosmopolitan, youthful, and entrepreneurial as any other people in Asia, if not more so,” they said in emailed responses to HKFP, adding that the city had “the economic and human resources to sustain a world-class nightlife scene and then some. And yet why doesn’t it?”

The answer, Lam and Watt said, was simple. “Bit by bit, we’ve basically made key elements of nightlife all but illegal. We’ve hunted them to the point where they’re endangered or even extinct,” they said.  

“There are a wide variety of individual laws and regulations which, when you add them up, essentially prohibit the city from enjoying a world-class nightlife scene,” Lam and Watt added.

“Think of the ingredients that make up a thrilling nightlife destination: live entertainment, outdoor dining, street food, night markets, public performances, bars and clubs that seemingly never close, and so on. Offering these activities legally in Hong Kong is very challenging, frequently impossible, and therefore the opportunity to have those experiences is very limited relative to other major global cities.”

Lam and Watt said they were not advocating a “free for all” and regulations were essential. “It’s a balancing act.”  

Whether that act can be achieved by the government’s night economy push remains to be seen. 

Black Sheep Restaurants’ Hussain seemed unconvinced. “I feel like we’re playing someone else’s game, we’re not playing to our strengths,” he said, among which were “world class hospitality, excellent experiential dining.”

Zeman, whose Lan Kwai Fong was participating in the reinvigoration efforts by offering a series of performances and discounts mid-week , said: “We just have to keep on being innovative.” Night markets offering what he called “cheap, cheap, cheap stuff” were “not the answer to our problems,” he added. 

Hussain agreed that “cheap and cheerful” was not the way ahead. ” We’ve got to return back to things that made Hong Kong so glossy… We are a really dynamic city when we’re making space for arts and culture… those are the sort of events that I think we should be creating more space for.”

As for what was on the Night Vibes Hong Kong agenda, Zeman said: “I’ve talked to a lot of operators that are doing it because the government’s asked them to… I’m not sure it will bring a lot of business. It’ll bring more people out, for sure.” 

He continued: “I don’t know if that’s really going to bring out spenders, you know. A lot of these people, they might go to the shopping mall, they’ll look, but they’re not really going to be shopping.” 

Emigration, integration

After losing tens of thousands of residents to an emigration wave after the 2019 pro-democracy protests and the arrival of Covid-19 and the national security law the following year, recent mid-year population figures rose to 7.5 million. However, almost 250,000 of them were “mobile residents,” or those who do not live in the city full-time. 

The Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute last March found that 24 per cent of respondents planned to leave the city. An immigration route introduced for Hongkongers by the UK in January 2021 had resulted in 144,500 visas issued by February , and British magazine The Spectator reported in late September that 125,000 Hongkongers had entered the UK under the scheme thus far. 

While Chinese University of Hong Kong cultural anthropologist Sidney Cheung pointed out that the decline in domestic spending was “much bigger than the percentage of people who are moving out,” a survey commissioned by Hong Kong-based digital life insurer Blue in 2021 highlighted other ways in which relocation plans may affect consumption habits. 

It found that Hongkongers on average saved a quarter of their monthly income, with two in five savers saying they intended to emigrate, many within five years. 

Zeman pointed to another factor at play in how and where residents splash their cash: Hong Kong’s role in the Greater Bay Area, a megalopolis and port hub that is critical to mainland China’s export industry spanning nine cities in Guangdong province, as well as Hong Kong and Macau. 

“On the weekend… a lot of locals are going to Shenzhen,” Zeman said, referring to the city just across the border to the north of Hong Kong. Connectivity and cost – both hotels and Michelin-starred meals were “half the price,” he said – were enticing Hongkongers to spend not only in Shenzhen, but Macau and Guangzhou, too. 

“It’s become what a future in the Greater Bay Area will be about,” Zeman said. “I think that’s really something we are living with at the moment.”  

Hussain, though, said he was “frustrated that we’re trying to sort of compete.”

“There is this narrative about how everyone’s going up to China for the weekend, and even if that’s true – and the numbers actually show that it’s true, if you look at the data I think some 300,000 people are going up north – even if that is true, I feel we’ve got to continue to play to our strengths instead of adjusting or pivoting to something that’s not really what makes Hong Kong special,” Hussain said.

“What’s really frustrating is… this sort of V-shape recovery post-Covid that places like London, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, other tier-one restaurant markets, other tier-one cities [had]… didn’t happen for us,” Hussain added, referring to a quick, decisive economic recovery witnessed elsewhere after Covid restrictions were dropped. “We’re still kind of languishing.” 

As for whether the Hong Kong Night Vibes campaign will be successful, or if seasonal spending between the Mid-Autumn Festival and Lunar New Year will peak as per previous years, only time will tell. The Travel Industry Council has estimated that 1 million mainland Chinese tourists will visit the city during the Golden Week holiday in the first week of October.

“I think we need to know whether we are going to move back to the old model – like doing Mid-Autumn Festival or Chinese New Year at restaurants – or have we got used to the new model of ordering things and eating at home,” Cheung said. 

Au acknowledged he was “more optimistic” about tourism, saying that globally, “the big picture story for tourism is improving,” and adding that he did not see “any fundamental reason why Hong Kong would be left out from that.” 

However, he was less bullish on domestic spending, and whether changes catalysed by Covid could end up being permanent. 

“The short answer is, we’ll see,” Au said. “Because the pandemic did something to the economy altogether. That itself, the effects of that, remain to be seen. You know, we walked out of one of the most stringent lockdowns in the world, where we basically isolated ourselves from global flows of trade and capital, and that itself took a toll,” he said. 

“We will bounce back, but we’re also bouncing back at a time when there are recessionary fears in the world economy at large… whatever happens for night markets in Hong Kong, and tourism, and consumer confidence, will be driven by this bigger story.” 

Additional reporting: Kyle Lam

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Hong Kong Disneyland Reports Record-Breaking Q1 2024, Attendance Rebound in FY23

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort achieved profitability and a major attendance rebound in fiscal year 2023 (FY23).

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort FY23

The resort shared their FY23 results on Tuesday. According to figures from the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the theme park’s attendance rebound outpaced Hong Kong’s total visitor recovery when compared to 2018 numbers. The resort also saw record-high local attendance.

“We have entered a new era. I am extremely proud of all we have accomplished at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort in the lead-up to our 20th anniversary, achieving profitability in calendar year 2023 and our rebound in visitors outpacing the overall Hong Kong tourism market,” said Michael Moriarty, managing director of Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.

Hong Kong Disneyland had significant financial growth compared to the prior fiscal year:

• Revenue grew 156% to HK$5.7 billion
• EBITDA improved by 207% to HK$924 million
• Net loss improved by 83% to HK$356 million
• Per capita spending grew 54%
• Total attendance grew 87% to 6.4 million
• Hotels’ utilisation rate for the year was 77% and overall occupancy increased by 23 percentage points to 47%

Q1 of 2024 was the resort’s most successful quarter ever, bolstered by the opening of World of Frozen in late 2023. They welcomed their 100 millionth guest soon after the land opened. The resort achieved record-breaking revenue, EBITDA, and net income in the quarter.

In December 2023, Hong Kong Disneyland also fully repaid their revolving loan facility funded by a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company and has not drawn on it since.

Moriarty said Hong Kong Disneyland has firmly established as a key driver and contributor to Hong Kong’s economy and community through its ongoing investment in bespoke attractions, experiences, storytelling, and corporate citizenship efforts.

“Through a series of record-breaking achievements, fueled by creativity and innovation, including our new signature offerings — the reimagined Castle of Magical Dreams, ‘Momentous’ Nighttime Spectacular and most recently, World of Frozen, we have become a drawcard for Hong Kong tourists,” Moriarty said.

“We’ve created a unique, world-class tourist destination in the Greater Bay Area for our guests in Hong Kong and the region, who have embraced Disney in their own favorable way.”

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort lists their key accomplishments:

• Distinctly Disney experiences spur continued growth
• Successful seasonal programs powered by popular Disney franchises
• Reignite source markets
• Experiential offerings and entertainment
• Guest-centric premium products and offerings
• Ramping up operational capacity

Some new and seasonal offerings they cite include Chinese New Year celebrations, castle daytime show “Follow Your Dreams,” “Duffy and Friends Play House,” “Marvel Season of Super Heroes,” “StellaLou’s Wonderful Wishes Ballet,” and “Disney Live in Concert!”

They say new merchandise, food and beverage offerings, and Disney Premier Access contribute to record per capita spending.

There were still COVID-19 travel restrictions in early 2023 and Hong Kong Disneyland notes that they adjusted their operations to be open six or seven days a week in June 2023. Disney Explorers Lodge resumed seven-day operations in April 2023 and Disney’s Hollywood Hotel reopened in July 2023.

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort notes their continued contributions to Hong Kong’s economy and community include creating jobs (cumulatively 290,700 jobs since opening), providing more than 100,000 complimentary theme park tickets to NGOs, donating over 16,000kg of surplus food, and contributing nearly 120,000 Disney VoluntEARS hours.

Hong Kong Disneyland’s corporate social responsibility commitments include:

• “ Spearheading innovation:  Inspiring creativity among future generations through the Disney Imaginations Hong Kong competition.”
• “ Making dreams come true:  Continued longstanding support of Make-A-Wish Hong Kong to grant life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.”
• “ Championing sports development:  Rolling out youth sports training initiatives and supporting those in need.”
• “ Promoting inclusivity and arts accessibility:  Integrating theatrical interpretation into popular shows, with performers incorporating sign language through body movements.”
• “ Caring for the environment:  Building the city’s single largest solar panel site and incorporating sustainable design and processes in the park.”

To close his presentation, Moriarty said, “As HKDL celebrates its 20th anniversary next year, stay tuned for thrilling updates and offerings to come!”

For the latest Disney Parks news and info, follow WDW News Today on  Twitter ,  Facebook , and  Instagram .

The post Hong Kong Disneyland Reports Record-Breaking Q1 2024, Attendance Rebound in FY23 appeared first on WDW News Today .

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Spicy Noodles and Pickled Fish: Chinese Eateries Move Into Hong Kong

As the cultural lines between Hong Kong and China blur, restaurants from the mainland are finding opportunities in the city. But not everyone is happy.

By Alexandra Stevenson and Zixu Wang

Reporting from Hong Kong

The ravenous came for a taste of home in a dish of spicy fried beef or steamed fish head. Waiters, speaking in Mandarin, delivered plates heated with green and red chiles.

It was opening night in Hong Kong at Return Home Hunan, a well-known chain from mainland China trying to wedge into the city’s competitive food scene. Huang Haiying, the restaurant’s founder, greeted customers in a bright red suit while waiters handed out red envelopes stuffed with coupons.

Hong Kong is a difficult place to open a restaurant these days. Fewer people are dining out, and more restaurants have closed than opened this year. But restaurant owners from mainland China, facing their own challenges at home, see an opening.

“Everyone has their own way of surviving, and now it’s about surviving on the margins,” Ms. Huang said. “We’ll see who has more grit and succeeds.”

Return Home Hunan is one of more than a dozen famous Chinese eateries that have opened in Hong Kong in recent months. The owners have been encouraged by a steady flow of new customers from Hong Kong, who have been traveling to Shenzhen, the mainland city next door, in search of more choices.

But the arrival of these restaurants in Hong Kong has been met with some hesitation. A Chinese territory that long operated with a high degree of autonomy, Hong Kong has increasingly come under the tighter grip of Beijing. To some people in the city, the migration of these restaurants is an illustration of how Hong Kong’s culture is slowly being taken over by the rest of China.

Not far from Return Home Hunan, new restaurants offer food from three southern Chinese provinces: There’s the Guizhou rice noodles place, the Guangxi river snail noodles shop and stinky tofu from the province of Hunan.

These establishments cater to locals and a growing community of mainland Chinese, some of whom have made the city their home in the past decade.

“When I first came to Hong Kong, finding authentic restaurants with mainland cuisine was difficult,” said Karen Lin, a banker and part-time business school student at the University of Hong Kong, who was eating spicy fried beef at Return Home Hunan on a recent evening.

“The Chinese restaurants here were all based on Hong Kong ‘local tastes,’” said Ms. Lin, who has lived in the city for six years.

The gripe among mainland transplants that Hong Kong food is bland has more of a sting for locals these days as they grapple with the city’s changing identity.

In 2020, Beijing enforced a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong after citywide democracy protests . Many expatriates and local Hong Kongers left the city. The exodus was intensified by the Covid-19 pandemic and the city’s public health measures — among the strictest in the world.

Now, as Hong Kong is pulled closer into China’s orbit, an economic slowdown and real estate crisis on the mainland is weighing on its long-awaited recovery.

The fastest-growing group of migrants to Hong Kong is people from mainland China looking for better jobs, obtaining special visas that the government started offering. They have found a city that is more welcoming than it was before the pandemic, when mainlanders were often greeted with hostility from Hong Kong residents.

“Hong Kong has become much more inclusive for mainlanders,” said Zheng Huiwen, the manager at one of the Hong Kong branches of Tai Er Pickled Fish, a Sichuan fish restaurant from mainland China. At the restaurant, waiters announce the arrival of a dish in the inflected style of traditional Peking Opera, declaring, “Delicious fish is coming!”

Mr. Zheng, who moved to Hong Kong as a teenager from neighboring Guangdong Province and spent his summers waiting tables, recalled how Hong Kong diners would treat him more rudely once they heard his mainland accent.

The tone is changing as Hong Kong residents spend more time on the other side of the border, eating and shopping.

Tai Er Pickled Fish became so popular among Hong Kong tourists in Shenzhen that, in December, it opened four locations in Hong Kong.

Among the newly built apartments next to the location where Mr. Zheng is manager, in a mall where the city’s old Kai Tak airport once stood, more than half the apartments for sale in March were snapped up by mainland Chinese buyers, local news media reported.

At Xita Grandma BBQ, a new restaurant from China, Cambridge Zhang, the franchise owner, complained that mainland diners were interested mostly in trendy restaurants. Mr. Zhang wanted to find different customers in a new market.

He soon discovered that many others had the same idea.

“I came here and found, ‘Hey, here is this mainland restaurant, and there is another mainland restaurant,’” Mr. Zhang said animatedly.

To some local restaurants that are barely holding on, the flurry of openings is baffling. In April, nearly twice as many restaurants folded as opened, according to OpenRice, an online restaurant and market insight platform.

In the Shek Tong Tsui area, where Return Home Hunan opened in May, many of the brightly colored restaurants — once neighborhood mainstays — had recently closed down. A diner that served cheap noodles and milk tea was gone, as was an eatery where retirees gathered to eat dim sum and catch up on the day’s news.

“The restaurant business is hard work,” said Roy Tse, a local restaurant owner who sold lunch rice dishes once popular with office workers in the Taikoo Shing business district of Hong Kong. There are fewer lunchtime visitors these days. Those who still come order the basics.

Yeung Hei, the manager of Fu Ging Aromatic Noodles, a longtime local Hong Kong restaurant where a chef stews beef brisket in the front window, said he used to have customers who came in every day.

“But then, one day, they just disappeared and never came back,” he said.

These days, restaurants that offer inexpensive dishes tend to do better. Many of the mainland newcomers attract diners with deep discounts, coupons and fan club specials.

On a recent Thursday afternoon, Chester Kwong and Sonja Cheng were hunched over big bowls at Meet Noodles, a fast-food chain famous for its spicy-and-sour noodles made with potato flour from the southern Chinese city of Chongqing.

“This is dirt cheap,” Mr. Kwong said. He was referring to a hot-and-sour noodle set that Ms. Cheng had ordered for 36 Hong Kong dollars, or $4.61. It included a bowl of hot-and-sour noodle soup and a side of fried chicken.

Both Ms. Cheng and Mr. Kwong, recent college graduates, expressed concern that the Chinese eateries would replace their favorite local spots. “It’s good to have these places and options for Chinese food, but it’s a little scary to think that one day they might overtake what we had in Hong Kong,” Mr. Kwong said.

There are others who feel similarly and choose not to patronize mainland restaurants.

“I use every opportunity to help local restaurants,” said Audrey Chan, who grew up in mainland China but moved to Hong Kong as a student six years ago and identified as a Hong Konger.

Fu Ging Aromatic Noodles once counted nearby residents in the middle-class neighborhood of Chai Wan as its main source of income. But so many people have moved away — many of them out of Hong Kong — that it has been left searching for new customers.

Ms. Huang of Return Home Hunan said she knew it would be tough.

But, she added, “no matter how bad the economy is, people always have to eat.”

An earlier version of this article misstated when Beijing imposed a national security law in Hong Kong. It was 2020, not 2019.

How we handle corrections

Alexandra Stevenson is the Shanghai bureau chief for The Times, reporting on China’s economy and society. More about Alexandra Stevenson

Zixu Wang is a Times reporter and researcher covering news in mainland China and Hong Kong. More about Zixu Wang

Hong Kong Disneyland Cuts Losses, Repays Loan to Disney

By Patrick Frater

Patrick Frater

Asia Bureau Chief

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In a financial statement published nearly nine months in arrears, the Hong Kong Disneyland theme park revealed that its revenues in the year to September 2023 had more than doubled and that its losses had been slashed.

The park, which is a joint venture between the Hong Kong government and the Walt Disney Company, with the government owning a majority stake, saw revenue between October 2022 and September 2023 climb by 156% to HK$5.7 billion ($731 million) as total attendance grew by 87% to 6.4 million.

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The improvement in EBITDA means that Disney will be able to charge a management fee, local media reported. The base management fee is set at 6.5% of EBITDA with a variable management fee of zero to 8%

Park operators said that Hong Kong Disneyland had also fully paid back the revolver credit facility funded by a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company in Dec. 2023 and has not drawn on it thereafter.

We are back and have turned the corner financially, said park MD Michael Moriarty on Tuesday. He described a challenging journey through the COVID-19 pandemic, as Hong Kong adopted some of the world s most stringent anti-disease controls, largely closed its borders and remained somewhat restricted for longer than most other territories. That process damaged the city s tourist resources and mean that its leading airline is unlikely to fully recover until the first quarter of 2025.

The park added infrastructure in each of the past five years. Ant-Man and The Wasp: Nano Battle! in 2019; the reimagined Castle of Magical Dreams in 2020; castle daytime show Follow Your Dreams in 2021; Momentous Nighttime Spectacular in 2022; and World of Frozen in 2023.

Non-local attendance rebounded after the lifting of travel restrictions and outpaced the recovery of the Hong Kong local market. Mainland China visitors had exceeded its 2017-18 financial year levels by the end of the reporting period. Arrivals from Southeast Asia markets also grew. Cumulative attendance by end of September 2023 surpassed 98 million.

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Taiwan Warns Against Travel to China After Execution Threat

FILE PHOTO: A general view of Taipei skyline during sunrise in Taipei, Taiwan, September 29, 2022. REUTERS/Ann Wang/File Photo

By Ben Blanchard and Jeanny Kao

TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwan's government raised its travel warning for China on Thursday, telling its citizens not to go unless absolutely necessary, following a threat from Beijing last week to execute those deemed "diehard" Taiwan independence supporters.

Liang Wen-chieh, spokesperson for Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, told reporters the raised travel warning also applied to the Chinese-run cities of Hong Kong and Macau.

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has made no secret of its dislike of President Lai Ching-te, whom it views as a "separatist", and staged two days of war games after he took office last month.

Last week, announcing new legal guidelines, China threatened to execute Taiwan independence separatists in extreme cases, a further ramping up of tensions that drew condemnation from Lai and his government, as well as the United States.

Liang, making the announcement at a regular news conference in Taipei, said those guidelines represented a serious threat to the safety of Taiwanese visiting China, in addition to other measures China has been taking to strengthen its national security laws.

"If it is not necessary to go, then don't," he said, adding this did not amount to a ban on visiting and was about protecting Taiwan's people and reminding them of the risk rather than being a "countermeasure".

China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

On Wednesday, asked about concerns that the guidelines could cause fear for Taiwan's people and not help improve relations, the office said they were only aimed at a very small number of independence "diehards' evil words and actions".

China has vowed to go after people it views as Taiwan separatists wherever they may be, though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan and it is not clear how China could seek to enforce any judgments outside its borders.

As to whether China could seek to extradite Taiwanese overseas who it accused of separatism, Liang said separatism was a political crime and in this particular case one specific to China, and that developed countries would not cooperate with such a request.

"We can't rule out certain countries would cooperate," he added, without naming any countries.

President Lai has repeatedly offered talks with China but been rebuffed. He rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims and says only Taiwan's people can decide their future.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Jeanny Kao;Editing by Christina Fincher and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

Copyright 2024 Thomson Reuters .

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Taiwan warns against travel to China after execution threat

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan ’s government raised its travel warning for China on Thursday, telling its citizens not to go unless absolutely necessary, following a threat from Beijing last week to execute those deemed “diehard” Taiwan independence supporters.

Liang Wen-chieh, spokesperson for Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, told reporters the raised travel warning also applied to the Chinese-run cities of Hong Kong and Macau.

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory , has made no secret of its dislike of President Lai Ching-te , whom it views as a “separatist,” and staged two days of war games  after he took office last month.

Last week, announcing new legal guidelines, China threatened to execute Taiwan independence separatists in extreme cases, a further ramping up of tensions that drew condemnation from Lai and his government, as well as the United States.

Liang, making the announcement at a regular news conference in Taipei, said those guidelines represented a serious threat to the safety of Taiwanese visiting China, in addition to other measures China has been taking to strengthen its national security laws.

“If it is not necessary to go, then don’t,” he said, adding this did not amount to a ban on visiting and was about protecting Taiwan’s people and reminding them of the risk rather than being a “countermeasure.”

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

On Wednesday, asked about concerns that the guidelines could cause fear for Taiwan’s people and not help improve relations, the office said they were only aimed at a very small number of independence “diehards’ evil words and actions.”

China has vowed to go after people it views as Taiwan separatists wherever they may be, though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan and it is not clear how China could seek to enforce any judgments outside its borders.

As to whether China could seek to extradite Taiwanese overseas who it accused of separatism, Liang said separatism was a political crime and in this particular case one specific to China, and that developed countries would not cooperate with such a request.

“We can’t rule out certain countries would cooperate,” he added, without naming any countries.

Lai has repeatedly offered talks with China but been rebuffed. He rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims and says only Taiwan’s people can decide their future.

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