Art Basel Hong Kong, other events drive 14% year-on-year rise in March tourist arrivals Events such as Art Basel Hong Kong and ComplexCon helped drive a 14 per cent year-on-year growth in visitor arrivals in March, but the US-Israel war with Iran could bring volatility to the travel market, the Tourism Board has said. The increase contributed to a 17 per cent year-on-year rise in visitor numbers in the first quarter of the year, hitting a total of 14.31 million. “In the coming months, developments in the Middle East may lead to volatility in the tourism market. We will closely monitor the latest situation and flexibly deploy resources to maximise promotional effectiveness,” the board said on Wednesday. Hong Kong welcomed a total of 4.35 million visitors in March. In the first quarter of the year, there were close to 11.1 million mainland Chinese visitors to the city, a 20 per cent year-on-year increase, driven by several mega-events in the city and promotional campaigns targeted at the extended Lunar New Year holiday on the mainland, the board said. It also noted that international visitors and those from Macau saw an 8 per cent year-on-year rise to 3.2 million, saying the increase was driven by “the strong line-up of world-class art and cultural events” such as Art Basel Hong Kong, Art Central and ComplexCon, among others. “Meanwhile, Hong Kong saw steady growth in [flight] capacity in the first quarter and also welcomed a number of international cruise liners, contributing to a 19 per cent year-on-year increase in long-haul visitor arrivals, totalling 990,000 during the period,” the board added. Ryan Ip Man-ki, vice-president of think tank Our Hong Kong Foundation, said the increase in tourist arrivals, of which 27 per cent were non-mainland visitors for that month, reflected the global appeal of the city’s diverse and high-quality tourism development. He noted that the 25 per cent year-on-year rise in visitors from emerging markets during the first quarter further showed the city’s strength in developing potential new markets while consolidating its core ones. “But the war in the Middle East could bring a negative impact on visitor numbers to Hong Kong, especially those not from the mainland, as the uncertainty affects oil and air fuel costs, driving up flight prices, lowering tourists’ desire to travel,” he said. He added that reductions in aviation routes to Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia by some carriers could make Hong Kong less attractive as an aviation hub, and urged the government to step up promotion in new markets to spread risk. Ip also suggested that the industry should develop new products, such as study tours, high-end yacht tourism and medical tourism. He said carriers could also offset the effects of the war by negotiating stable prices and offering transit discounts in cooperation with the Airport Authority. https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3350172/art-basel-hong-kong-other-events-drive-14-year-year-rise-march-tourist-arrivals?pgtype=live (ICE HONG KONG)

Fonte notizia: South China Morning Post