Hong Kong’s travel regulatory body has announced new crowd control measures after a recent surge in mainland Chinese tourists on budget tours in To Kwa Wan and Hung Hom sparked complaints from residents.
Under the revised arrangements, which come into place on Thursday, tour agencies will be required to make advance reservations for travellers, guarantee a minimum meal time of 30 minutes for each tour, and communicate with restaurant representatives regarding tour bus arrangements.
Since the full reopening of Hong Kong’s borders with mainland China on February 6, hundreds of mainland visitors have been seen on the streets of To Kwa Wan and Hung Hum – where most of the restaurants and tourist shops targeting low-cost tours are located.
Mainland Chinese visitors, many of whom wear matching caps or T-shirts, have been seen queuing for buses and lining up outside eateries.
Local residents have reported difficulties commuting, while concerns have been raised about general hygiene.
The Travel Industry Authority (TIA) – the city’s official watchdog of travel agents and tour guides – said in a statement on Tuesday that it had met with major representatives of tour agencies and restaurant owners in the affected districts.
It added that things had already significantly improved after several inspections.
The TIA said it would continue to monitor the situation closely, and would have zero tolerance on activities that could harm the reputation of Hong Kong tourism. “[I]f the problems continue to occur, TIA might take further regulatory actions,” the statement read.
Pun Kwok-wah, a member of Kowloon City District Council, said on a radio programme on Wednesday that the issue of overcrowding had existed before the pandemic, but teahouses and restaurants in the districts had refused to accept reservations.
“I’m not sure why, but it could be because of the owners’ reluctance to set a capacity limit for their eateries,” Pun said, adding that the new arrangements would possibly alleviate the issue.
According to figures released by the Hong Kong Tourism Board, there were more than 1.1 million visitor arrivals to Hong Kong from mainland China in February.
That accounted for over 75 per cent of the total number of visitor arrivals last month.
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