HK hopes brighten up as mid-autumn visitors arrive

Wallis Wang

Around 880,000 travelers were expected to cross the border yesterday as the mainland's three-day Mid-Autumn Festival holiday began.

The tourism sector is hoping short-haul visitors from the north will be attracted to festive activities in Hong Kong, including the traditional Tai Hang fire dragon dance and a drone show over Victoria Harbour.

More than 340,000 Hongkongers traveled to the mainland on Saturday, up 10 percent on the previous Saturday.

Hong Kong has only one public holiday for mid-autumn - on Wednesday, the day after the festival.

Many mainlanders arrived at the West Kowloon high-speed rail station for their holiday from yesterday to tomorrow.

Mainlander Liu said she will participate in activities, adding: "We saw online that there will be mid-autumn lantern carnivals at night and we want to enjoy the local atmosphere."

Visitor Zhou said she will go to Hong Kong Disneyland first before wandering around the city.

A traveler from Beijing, here to visit her relatives, noticed that the West Kowloon station was more crowded than expected.

Shenzhen border authorities estimated that the average traffic at the checkpoints will reach 760,000 daily during the holiday. Yesterday was expected to be the peak.

Hong Kong Tourism Association executive director Timothy Chui Ting-pong said Hong Kong has laid out celebrations that are expected to attract short-haul tourists.

"We have set up lantern carnivals, the drone show, an upgraded fire dragon dance as well as the Bright Ring Tram and other photo-taking spots," he said.

"We have promoted the activities in the mainland in advance and I believe mainland visitors will choose Hong Kong as a travel destination for the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday."

Chui expects Hong Kong to record more tourists compared to last year, thanks to the Hong Kong Tourism Board and travel agencies' online promotions of events.

Some mainlanders, however, said the activities were "not quite attractive" while some were unaware of the events.

Mooncake sellers are also experience a lukewarm market as many residents opt to buy cheaper treats in the mainland.

Theresa Mak, founder of Cantonese gourmet food brand Dashijie, said the retail market is not as strong as last year and the brand mainly relies on business customers.

Some customers have also switched to other products, such as gift boxes or abalone, instead of mooncakes, she added.

Bakery chain Taipan Bread and Cakes said its mooncake sales are reaching a peak, though business customers are putting in orders later than in the past.

The observatory said there will be a bright and round "super moon" - weather permitting - tomorrow and on Wednesday.

"The moon will be near the perigee - the closest point to the Earth - at a distance of around 357,400 kilometers on festival day and the following day," the observatory said.

"The moon as observed through the naked eye will appear around seven percent larger than [usual]."

wallis.wang@singtaonewscorp.com