Chinese tourists skip Hong Kong for Singapore as city misses out on golden week bonanza
Thousands flooded Hong Kong airport on Monday afternoon, leading to the cancellation of all passenger flights for the rest of the day. Photo: Felix Wong. Sketched by the Pan Pacific Agency.
SINGAPORE, Oct 3, 2019, SCMP. For months, Ye Rongchang and his wife had been planning to travel to Hong Kong for the week-long National Day holiday. When the unrest started in June, he did not expect the protests to last until October, and had to reluctantly shelve his travel plans, reported the South China Morning Post.
“As mainlanders who support the central government there’s no point in going there,” the 72-year-old retired accountant from Shanghai said. “We only want to go to places where we can communicate and engage with the locals.”
He planned to visit Singapore instead.
The retiree is among thousands who have changed their travel plans for the “golden week” holiday. And destinations such as Singapore are benefiting as mainland Chinese tourists skip Hong Kong.
In July, the Southeast Asian city saw an additional 100,000 Chinese travellers: a 46 per cent increase compared to June, when the first protests against the now-shelved extradition bill saw millions of Hongkongers taking to the streets. It also marked a year-on-year jump of 7.8 per cent in the number of mainland Chinese visitors.
Hong Kong, on the other hand, saw a 5.5 per cent year on year drop in tourists in July. In August, it fell further to 42.3 per cent, according to the latest government data.
Analysts expect to see more mainland Chinese tourists visiting Singapore in the next couple of years, not only because of the unrest in Hong Kong, but also planning by the government.
“The growth in Singapore is a reflection of the longer term planning and investment approach that has been seen in Singapore,” said Adam Bury, senior vice-president investment sales for Asia at JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group.
Chinese arrivals have been boosted by the partnership between Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Alibaba Holding Group, which owns the South China Morning Post, and the continued investment in Changi Airport, he said.
In April, STB and Alibaba signed a three year deal to co-market Singapore, enhance visitor experience and increase spending among Chinese tourists.
Changi Terminal 4, which started operation two years ago, has allowed increased flight capacity, and new facilities such as Jewel Changi – a nature-themed entertainment and retail complex has become extremely popular with visitors since it opened earlier this year.
Hong Kong’s tourism industry, on the other hand, is in the doldrums. Last week, Bloomberg reported that Chinese tour groups to Hong Kong were set to drop 86 per cent for golden week, citing Hong Kong’s Travel Industry Council.
Hotels are expected to cut room rates this month by as much as 50 per cent compared to last year.
In August, hotel occupancy rates slumped 30 per cent year on year, while the average daily rate slipped 21 per cent, according to STR, a data and analytics specialist.
“The Hong Kong tourism industry is depressed now,” said Hong Kong tourism lawmaker Yiu Si-wing. “Singapore will directly benefit, immediately during the golden week.”
JLL also expects revenues of Singapore hotels to increase over the next couple of years.
“Continued future investment into Changi, with Terminal 5 already in planning, will help sustain this growth over the longer term,” said Bury.
Lawmaker Yiu said that it would take one to two years for Hong Kong’s tourism industry to return to normal once the social unrest is resolved.
Holly Chik, Martin Choi. Additional reporting by Daniel Ren
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