Soy sauce factory Lee Kum Kee, Yau Ma Tei Police Station, and Hong Kong’s hill and mountain peaks are among nine locations a government working group has named in a new tourism drive.
Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk, who chairs the Working Group on Developing Tourist Hotspots, said the nine locations underlined “the concept of ‘tourism is everywhere in Hong Kong,’” referencing the notion put forward by Beijing’s top official on Hong Kong affairs, Xia Baolong.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Cheuk said the new tourism offerings showcased Hong Kong’s characteristics and were photogenic.
Sauce makers Lee Kum Kee and Pat Chun, bakery Kee Wah, and yoghurt drink company Yakult will hold tours starting in the third quarter of this year.
Authorities will also develop tourism offerings around the city’s “four peaks”: The Peak, Lantau Peak, Sai Kung Hoi, and Tai Mo Shan. The peaks’ drive will begin late next year.
The government also plans to open the Edwardian-style building of the former Yau Ma Tei Police Station to visitors, organise trips to sites related to the city’s disciplined services, and host regular themed bazaars at Causeway Bay’s Victoria Park.
The disciplined services’ museums, including the Police Museum and the Hong Kong Correctional Services Museum, will launch tourism offerings in the second quarter of this year.
A bazaar at Victoria Park is expected to be launched in the fourth quarter, operating on weekends and public holidays.
Kowloon City and Central have also been designated as “in-depth” tourism destinations.
The government has been promoting ”in-depth” tourism, which focuses on the city’s culture and history, to attract visitors from different markets.
Cheuk said that “new travel patterns and tourists’ preferences increasingly value hotspots with unique features that are part of the flavour of Hong Kong.”
No performance goals
He also said the working group would not set performance goals for arrivals in relation to the new tourism drive, citing the difficulty of quantifying its effect.
“I think common sense will tell you that these nine projects, seven of which will be implemented by the end of this year, will together considerably add to the overall appeal of Hong Kong as a tourist destination [for] overseas visitors and also visitors from the mainland,” he added.
Asked about the phenomenon of low-budget mainland Chinese visitors, Cheuk rubbished the notion that mainland tourists were not spending enough.
“I believe the reports were magnified and exaggerated,” he said. “Don’t be misled by one or two images into thinking that many tourists don’t spend money when visiting Hong Kong.”
Responding to viral photos of people sleeping in a McDonald’s next to their suitcases, Chief Executive John Lee said earlier this month: “Hong Kong has to be a city that welcomes tourists, and tourists include all kinds of tourists.”
