Mainland Chinese arrivals to Hong Kong surged at the start of the National Day “golden week” holiday before easing towards last year’s levels, with tourism sector representatives attributing the early rush partly to the city’s fireworks display and tourists making the most of a shorter break.
Immigration Department figures showed that 277,304 mainland visitors arrived on October 1, up 19.1 per cent from 232,751 on the first day of last year’s holiday and 25.1 per cent from 221,644 in 2024.
“The fireworks were certainly a major factor,” lawmaker Perry Yiu Pak-leung said, adding that this year’s seven-day holiday was one day shorter than last year’s, prompting some visitors to start their trips earlier.
The increase moderated sharply after the first day. Mainland arrivals rose 5.4 per cent year on year to 234,007 on the second day, were virtually unchanged at 221,566 on the third, and increased 2.3 per cent to 206,180 on the fourth.