HONG KONG RECORDS 1.78 MILLION ARRIVALS IN SEPTEMBER

Hong Kong welcomed 1,787,728 visitors in September this year, a significant 5.9% increase over the same month in 2004, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has just announced.  This figure raises the cumulative arrivals for the first nine months of 2005 to 16,953,651, a year-on-year increase of 7.6%.

Canada played a significant part in this increase, with a 2005 September arrivals figure of 20,031, a 9.1% increase over last year’s September figure of 18,363. Looking at the nine-month period for 2005, arrivals from Canada totalled 213,013, a 14.7% increase over last year’s nine-month figure of 185,674. When Canada’s figures are combined with those of the United States, the percentage growth for September 2005 over the same month in 2004 is 5.4% and the increase in the nine-month period under review shows a growth of 11.9% over the same period last year. When considered as a whole, the Americas (North, Central and South) showed a month-over- month increase of 10.5% and a nine-month period growth of 13.7%.

Overall, the greatest increases in arrivals continued to come from long-haul markets, with Europe, Africa & the Middle East growing by 35.0% and Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific by 32.4%. Individual markets registering double-digit growth were France (+37.9%), Australia (+33.2%), Germany (+24.5%), Thailand (+22.7%), India (+19.3%), the United Kingdom (+18%) and South Korea (+16.5%). Mainland China’s percentage increase for September was a relatively modest 1.4%. However, this figure translates into 925,000 visitors; an extraordinarily high base of consumers.

“The excellent results from long-haul markets once again reflect the HKTB’s efforts to attract visitors from all our major volume providers around the world,” said HKTB Executive Director Clara Chong. Further increases are hoped for in the coming months, when there will be heavy promotion of Hong Kong in all key overseas markets as the HKTB progressively unveils its 2006 Discover Hong Kong Year campaign; an integrated global promotion that has already been launched in Canada.

More statistics from the HKTB reveal that 61.1% of all visitors to Hong Kong in September 2005 stayed in the city for at least one night, compared with 60.6% in the same month last year. Looking at the nine-month period, 63.1% of this year’s visitors stayed for one night or more, slightly higher than the nine-month figure in 2004 which was 62.9%. Figures for overnight stays naturally lead to hotel occupancy figures. Across all categories of hotels and tourist guest houses, occupancy in September 2005 actually experienced a two-percentage-point fall to 82.0% compared with the 2004 figure. When the nine-month periods are reviewed, the figures reveal at average occupancy rate of 84% for 2005, again a two-percentage-point drop when compared with 2004. These slight falls must, however, be viewed in the light of the region’s 6.0% increase in room supply during the past 12 months. Visitors’ most favoured geographic locations in September were Tsim Sha Tsui and Yau Ma Tei/Mong Kok, where hotels recorded an occupancy rate of 85%. 

In September this year, the average achieved hotel room rate across all accommodation categories and districts was HK$802 (approximately Cdn.$123), a 15% higher figure than that recorded in September 2004. And over this year’s nine-month period, the average room rate was HK$733 (about Cdn.$112), 14.8% higher that the figure for the first nine months of 2004.

November 24, 2005   Posted in: Hong Kong