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Fiona Sun

Harvey Kong

Mainland Chinese early birds have flocked to Hong Kong ahead of the National Day “golden week” holiday to avoid crowds expected during the break next week.
Many tourists were seen crossing the city’s land checkpoints on Saturday morning, while some descended to selfie hotspots, such as the University of Hong Kong (HKU).
The country celebrates National Day on October 1, which is a public holiday in Hong Kong. The golden week break, however, runs from October 1 to 7 on the mainland.
“Everywhere will be crowded during the National Day holiday so we decided to come earlier to avoid the peak,” Alin Lin said.
The 30-year-old beauty shop owner from Zhongshan city in Guangdong province came to Hong Kong with her husband on a one-day trip.
At the Lo Wu border crossing, Lin said she had planned her trip ahead of the week-long holiday to avoid huge crowds and have a better experience in the city.
Lin, who has been to Hong Kong several times, said she would visit Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok and go shopping for luxury and skincare products without setting a budget.
HKU in Pok Fu Lam implemented a fresh round of measures to manage crowds ahead of the holiday, requiring tourists visiting the campus from Monday to Saturday between 8am and 8.30pm to register in advance on a limited basis.
The university has also extended the duration of its paid guided campus tours to 90 minutes, which it explained would give tourists ample time to learn more about the institution.
Among the tourists who headed to the campus on Saturday was 22-year-old Linda Wu from Guangdong and who was visiting her friend in the city.
“I plan to visit Disneyland during my visit, last night we visited The Peak, and we are planning to eat some good food in the afternoon,” she said.
Having visited the city before, Wu said she did not expect to spend more than HK$6,000 (US$772) during her three-night stay in the city.
Apart from mainlanders crossing the border into Hong Kong, residents have begun their northbound tours before the National Day break.
Retired jewellery designer Cheuk Hing-chuen crossed the border into Shenzhen with three friends on Saturday morning via the Lo Wu checkpoint, embarking on a three-day journey to Dongguan city in Guangdong.

Cheuk, 70, said he often visited the city during holidays as he could stay with a friend. He said he found most activities, such as the fireworks and drone displays, planned by Hong Kong authorities lacked novelty.
“I have already watched such shows and they could be watched on television as well,” he said.
Cheuk called for more local shopping and dining discounts, which he said could encourage him to stay and spend money locally.
On Friday, more than 3,600 food and catering outlets, convenience stores and supermarket chains joined forces to offer discounts of up to 30 per cent on various items to celebrate National Day.
Housewife Liah Yung also left Hong Kong on Saturday for a two-day trip to Shenzhen with her friends ahead of the break.
“I’m not planning to go to the mainland during the holiday because of the huge crowds,” she said, adding that she would stay home over the break.
Liah, in her 40s, said she liked spending time and money in Shenzhen for better services and lower prices across the border.
“So we planned to have a good time there before the National Day break,” she said.
While visitors opted for short trips ahead of the holiday, industry insiders also voiced concerns about the strong Hong Kong dollar and the lack of long-haul tourists.
Caspar Tsui Ying-wai, executive director of the Federation of Hong Kong Hotel Owners, told a radio programme that high-end and budget hotels still had vacant rooms.
But he said it was not yet final as tourists tended to book hotels just before they visited the city. He added that some hotels would charge 20 per cent more on the day customers booked and checked in.
He said the hotel sector already told the government that it had sufficient manpower to ensure service quality during the break.
He said he hoped tourists would stay in Hong Kong overnight to benefit his sector given the city’s numerous offers during the holiday.
The Travel Industry Council earlier said that it expected as many as 1.2 million mainland tourists would visit the city during the seven-day holiday. The figure is similar to 1.1 million mainland visitors during the eight-day break last year.
The Immigration Department also said earlier that about 10 million people, including residents and tourists, would pass through the city’s sea, land and air crossings from Saturday to October 7.
Authorities said numbers were set to peak on October 1, with about 523,000 outbound and 632,000 inbound trips.
Additional reporting by William Yiu


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Many tourists are seen crossing the city’s land checkpoints on Saturday morning. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Tourists take pictures at the University of Hong Kong. Photo: Edmond So

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Hong Kong singer Cally Kwong Mei-wan. Photo: RTHK

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Hongkongers watch last year’s National Day fireworks. Photo: Elson LI

Discounts will be on offer for select goods and services, including Hong Kong’s iconic Peak Tram. Photo: Felix Wong

Star Ferry voyages between Tsim Sha Tsui and Wan Chai, as well as Central, will be free of charge on National Day. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

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Hong Kong

Tourists seen crossing land checkpoints in morning, with some heading to selfie hotspots such as HKU


Tourists seen crossing land checkpoints in morning, with some heading to selfie hotspots such as HKU.
