Bangkok--1 Oct--Francom Asia
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced today (20 September) a new single-month visitor arrival record in August 2010. Total arrivals during the month reached 3,455,033, marking an increment of 21.9% compared to the same month last year. The record-breaking performance was led by robust travel sentiments among Mainland and other short-haul visitors during the summer holiday (June to August), which recorded 9,211,347 arrivals, 30.9% more than the same period in 2009. Cumulatively, visitor arrivals from January to August 2010 hit 23,447,843, a year-on-year increase of 24.0%.
The table below summarises visitor arrivals from different market regions in August and the first eight months in 2010:
August January to August
Market Regions 2010 Vs. 2009 2010 Vs. 2009
Long-haul markets 348,226 +5.9% 2,977,057 +10.3%
The Americas 128,431 +6.5% 1,114,989 +10.5%
Europe, Africa and the Middle East 168,151 +5.8% 1,379,928 +10.5%
Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific 51,644 +4.5% 482,140 +9.1%
Short-haul markets (excl. Mainland China & Macau) 648,510 +11.4% 5,105,299 +20.3%
North Asia 206,749 +16.6% 1,448,485 +22.9%
South and Southeast Asia 238,983 +20.1% 2,187,838 +26.6%
Taiwan 202,778 -1.4% 1,468,976 +9.7%
Mainland China 2,369,813 +27.7% 14,868,849 +28.7%
Total* 3,455,033 +21.9% 23,447,843 +24.0%
*Total figure includes arrivals from Macau SAR
This August, Mainland China continued to lead the growth in Hong Kong’s inbound tourism, with arrivals reaching 2.37 million, the highest level ever and almost 30% more than the previous August. The remarkable growth was fuelled by the peak summer travel season, as well as the implementation of individual visit arrangements for Shenzhen residents, which has made it even more convenient to travel to Hong Kong.
For other short-haul markets, South and Southeast Asia saw a rise of 20% in arrivals. Contributing to the growth in visitors during the summer holiday were more frequent flights, as well as the many summer promotions put forward by the trade. As for North Asia, the appreciation of the WON currency continued to propel strong propensity for outbound travel among South Koreans. As a result, arrivals from the country rose by 35.7%, driving the region’s overall growth rate to 16.6%.
In the long-haul markets, with a stabilising economic environment and increase in business travellers, arrivals were ahead of the same month last year by 5.9%. As for the emerging markets, a number of favourable factors, such as improved economic conditions and increased flight capacity, were responsible for the year-on-year increase of 84.0% and 41.4% in arrivals from Russia and India respectively.
Overnight Visitors
In August 2010, overnight visitor arrivals surpassed 1.95 million. This figure represents 56.7% of the total arrivals to Hong Kong and is 16.5% more than the figure in 2009. Overnight visitor arrivals in most key market regions registered prominent growth. Among these, short-haul markets, including Mainland China (+20.8%), South and Southeast Asia (+18.9%) and North Asia (+12.7%) were the best performers.
Between January and August 2010, overnight visitor arrivals added up to 13.26 million, 22.3% more than last year. The number represented 56.6% of all visitor arrivals.
Note:
Visitor arrivals mentioned in this release include both overnight visitors and same-day in-town visitors. According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), visitors are divided into two categories:
(i) tourists or overnight visitors, if the trip involves an overnight stay; and
(ii) same-day visitors or excursionists, if the trip does not involve an overnight stay.