Total visitors to HK exceeds 44.5 million in 2024, up 31 pc

More than 44.5 million visitors to Hong Kong were recorded in 2024, up 31 percent year on year, the Hong Kong Tourism Board announced on Wednesday, with overnight visitors accounting for half of all visitors. 

The mainland remained the largest visitor source market, contributing to about 34 million visitor arrivals, up 27 percent from 2023 and accounting for about three-quarters of all visitors in 2024.

A total of 10.5 million non-Mainland visitors were recorded in 2024, seeing a year-on-year increase of 44 percent.

The Tourism Board highlighted that as flight capacity continued to increase, non-mainland visitor arrivals exceeded a million for two consecutive months in November and December.

Among short-haul arrivals, Southeast Asian markets performed impressively, especially the Philippines, with a record-breaking annual total of 1.2 million visitors from the country.

Arrivals from Indonesia and Malaysia rose by 43 percent and 50 percent respectively, whereas the number of Indian visitors climbed by more than 70 percent from 2023. 

On the other hand, those from long-haul markets, including the US, Canada, Australia and Europe, also grew by more than 50 percent. 

HKTB’s departing visitor survey indicated that the satisfaction rate of overnight visitors reached 8.8 on a 10-point scale, and their intention to revisit and recommend Hong Kong to friends and families reached 94 percent. 

The Board made great efforts to organize and promote mega events in Hong Kong last year, as well as to drive Hong Kong’s development as a Muslim-friendly destination, said its executive director, Dane Cheng Ting-yat. 

“HKTB will do its best to step up promotions in target markets and visitor segments to attract visitors with a wide range of tourism products and experiences,” Cheng said.