New Landmark for Hong Kong Tourism as it welcomes 20 Millionth Visitor

Hong Kong’s tourism industry passed a significant milestone Sunday morning with the arrival of the 20 millionth visitor in a single year for the first time. The previous record number of arrivals in one year was 16.57 million in 2002.

Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) Chairman, The Hon Mrs Selina Chow, GBS, OBE, JP, was at Hong Kong International Airport to congratulate and welcome the lucky visitor, Ms Barbara Wallerbosch from the Netherlands. Mrs Chow was joined at the welcome ceremony by the Commander, Airport Division of Immigration Department, Mr Choy Tak-po.

As well as receiving a surprise celebrity welcome on arrival, Ms Wallerbosch was showered with special gifts to enhance her experience in Hong Kong and make the stay even more memorable. These included a complementary hotel upgrade and transfer, a 12-minute night tour by helicopter, two other guided tours, a museum pass and a special dinner.

Ms Wallerbosch, a personnel manager from Amsterdam, was travelling to Hong Kong on holiday with her British partner, Mr Stefan Blackett. It is the first visit to the city for both of them and they plan to stay for a week before flying on to Australia, where they first met. “We know Hong Kong is a very popular and exciting destination and we’ve heard so much about it, so we wanted to see it for ourselves,” Ms Wallerbosch said. “Being the 20 millionth visitor of the year has made it a very special day for us.”

Mrs Chow described the 20 million landmark as a “truly remarkable achievement” in the light of the huge challenges faced by the tourism industry in 2003. “The recovery has been so strong that we had already passed the previous record of 16.57 million by mid-October,” she said. “By the end of December, we expect to surpass it by nearly five million, or 29%, with a forecast of 21.36 million arrivals.”

Back in 1957 when the Hong Kong Tourist Association (now the HKTB) was established, Mrs Chow noted, the city welcomed around 50,000 visitors in the full year. “This year, so far, the average has been nearly 59,000 every day – that’s a 400-fold increase.

“This speaks volumes for the resilience of the tourism industry and in particular, for Hong Kong’s enduring appeal as a business and leisure destination, despite ever-growing competition,” she said.

“With exciting new family attractions like Hong Kong Disneyland, the Tung Chung Cable Car and Hong Kong Wetland Park coming on stream next year, the Hong Kong experience will offer more diversity and sophistication than ever.”

See also: Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals in October 2004 pass 2 Million mark