Some 766,000 mainlanders visited Hong Kong between May 1 and 5 last year.
Timothy Chui, executive director of the Hong Kong Tourism Association, said this year’s surge is due to the SAR government’s promotional efforts across the border and on-location shooting here by some popular TV dramas on the mainland.
He pointed out in a RTHK programme that the sector has already geared up for the influx, such as by rolling out new itineraries.
He believes Kai Tak Sports Park – the city’s largest sports venue that opened last month – will become a new tourist attraction.
“There was a lot of information about the sports rark on the Rednote app,” he said.
“A lot of people, especially those in the Greater Bay Area and Shenzhen, have heard about the park.
“Recently, there were a few videos showing people singing on buses and trains after concerts. People enjoyed the videos very much.
“Some of my friends also asked me how to get here. Everyone wants to check out the place.”
Although the holiday begins on Thursday, Chui expects arrival figures to be higher on Friday or Saturday, as it takes time for those living in further places on the mainland to get to Hong Kong.
As for the hotel industry, Alan Chan, chief operations officer at Miramar Group, revealed that the occupancy rate at its hotels currently stands at around 70 percent.
The figure is expected to go up to 96 percent on the eve of Labour Day.
That is because many of the customers taking the high-speed rail to Hong Kong tend to only confirm their bookings later, Chan said on the show.
The Immigration Department, meanwhile, expects around 5.71 million people, including locals, to enter and leave the SAR between May 1 and May 5.
