HK tours for next to nothing

Mainland travelers who take free showers in public toilets and sleep at McDonald's have spread to Hong Kong, with a youngster sharing his two-day journey that started with him wearing a pair of flip-flops.

Dubbed "military-style" traveling, it is trendy among mainland university students and other youngsters who have limited time and budget but yearn for revenge travel after three years of Covid.

The essence of the new budget travel is to squeeze in as many itineraries as possible to fully use the trips over the weekend, without having to take leave from school or work.

Some have gone on single-day trips with back-to-back visits to hot spots and tourist attractions domestically and in Hong Kong.

Others do two days and sleep at 24/7 restaurants without spending a cent or in cheap bathhouses and internet cafes.

Some shower for free in public sports facilities, where hot water is available.

Sharing his journey, 21-year-old blogger Xiaoyang,from Guangdong, said he arrived in Hong Kong on April 2 with a friend in flip flops and roamed around for two days.

When his feet hurt from all the walking he bought a pair of Crocs for better shock absorption.

The two had cha chaan teng for lunch and went to Lan Kwai Fong for a taste of the nightlife, but were deterred by the costs - HK$200 for two shots.

So they wandered around Central streets for hours and were even stopped and checked by police officers.

"My friend was carrying two fine leather bags - one for travel documents and one for a camera. Maybe the officers thought we stole the bags," he said.

"We were taken to a corner where the officers searched our bags with flashlights. I was so scared and didn't know what would happen."

Xiaoyang said they settled in a 24-hour McDonald's branch on Queen's Road Central.

The joint was still busy at 4am. He added: "Some people were sleeping. Some people were screaming."

He said he recognized at least five languages, including Chinese dialects, being spoken.

He and his friend took turns sleeping but were soon woken up by an old lady who asked them for HK$10.

"But I only had HK$6 in cash to take the tram," he added.

The pair also took a nap on the tram and went to a public sports center in Central to take a free shower. They visited a coffee shop and the Hong Kong Palace Museum before returning home.

Xiaoyang said young mainlanders value "living in the moment" more by enriching their travel experience instead of saving money, adding that he also went to restaurants named by the Michelin Guide and expensive coffee shops.

Another military-style traveler managed to visit seven tourist sites in 12 hours on a day trip.

The woman arrived in Hong Kong on express rail at 10am on April 9 and collected the HK$100 coupon for tourists issued by the Tourism Board, before visiting Tsim Sha Tsui, Central, Causeway Bay, Kennedy Town, Sai Wan and Mong Kok. She left at 10pm.

There were mixed reactions from online users. Some were worried that the homeless will be the most affected.

"This traveling style will affect the homeless population who have to spend the night at McDonald's," one commented. "If all travelers behave like this and force restaurants to cease operation at night, those homeless people will lose their last indoor place to stay overnight."

Another said: "Those travelers can bring no economic benefit to Hong Kong. If many travelers choose to do the same after such traveling style becomes popular, the city's tourism, hotel, catering and retail sectors as well as the local economy will suffer a lot."

Some were also not happy that mainland tourists could enjoy free showers at public sports centers.

But others said it is normal for many people to travel on the cheap.

"In fact, a lot of Hongkongers also travel to Japan or Taiwan on a budget. There is no need to be surprised," another commented.

The executive director of the Travel Industry Council, Fanny Yeung Shuk-fan, expects that about 600,000 visitors will come to the city during the May 1 Golden Week from April 29 to May 3 and 80 percent of them will be individual travelers.

While the number of tourists is at 60 percent of the prepandemic level, the tourism sector is still suffering from manpower shortage.

wallis.wang@singtaonewscorp.com