Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals for April 2007

Total visitor arrivals to Hong Kong reached 2,176,854 in April 2007, a year-on-year increase of 2.3%. The increase took the cumulative total for January to April 2007 to  8,792,671, 5.3% higher than in the first four months of 2006.

Almost all regional markets showed growth over April 2006 arrivals, with double-digit increases seen from Europe, Africa and the Middle East (221,551, 12.6%), while the Americas (166,246, 8.3%), and Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific (65,564, 7.8%) also recorded robust performance. As for the short-haul markets, Taiwan (191,523, 5.4%); South and Southeast Asia (242,192, 3.2%); and North Asia (152,301, 4.4%) all performed encouragingly.

Arrivals from Mainland China fell slightly by 1.8% to 1,089,240 in April. Nevertheless, overall visitor numbers from this market in the first four months of 2007 remained ahead of last year, increasing by 3.5% to more than 4.86 million. Of the visitors from the Mainland, who represented 50.0% of the April total, 530,568 travelled under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS). This was 48.7% of the Mainland arrivals for the month, and 11.3% more than in April 2006.

Commenting on the Mainland market performance, Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) Chairman The Hon James Tien emphasised that it would be important to look at the overall arrival trends rather than focusing on the monthly fluctuations. “Despite the slight drop in April, our provisional figures show that there was encouraging growth of arrivals from Mainland China in May so far,” he said. “As the year progresses, we’ll continue to work very hard to maintain steady growth of the Mainland market. As well as encouraging repeat visits by Mainland travellers, we’ll continue to develop the high-potential secondary cities. We’ll also co-operate with the travel trade to ensure that visitors can enjoy a quality and memorable experience in Hong Kong.”

In April 2007, some 1.28 million arrivals (59% of the total) stayed in the city for at least one night, while the remaining 892,000 (41%) were classified as same-day in-town visitors. In January-April 2007, over 5.33 million (60.7%) visitors stayed overnight, with some 3.45 million (39.3%) leaving on the day of arrival.

Arrivals by Markets

Although the 1,089,240 arrivals from the Mainland in April represented a slight fall of 1.8% compared with the same month in 2006, the cumulative January-April arrivals represented a year-on-year increase of 3.5%, rising above 4.86 million. The number of arrivals travelling under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) reached 530,568 in April, 48.7% of the total, representing 11.3% growth over the same month in 2006. This took cumulative January-April IVS arrivals to more than 2.65 million, 54.5% of visitors from the Mainland and 17.1% more than the same period last year.

Arrivals from Taiwan rose by 5.4% to 191,523, compared with the same month in 2006. Cumulative arrivals for January-April numbered 717,265, a slight increase of 1.2% over the same period in 2006.

The 242,192 arrivals from South snd Southeast Asia represented a rise of 3.2% compared with April 2006, bringing the cumulative arrivals for the first four months to 808,531, 3.9% more than in 2006. The Philippines showed the highest growth at 16%, while Malaysia (12%) also performed strongly in April 2007.

There were 152,301 visitors from North Asia in April, comprising 59,216 visitors from South Korea, a rise of 7.5%, and 93,085 from Japan, an increase of 2.5%. Cumulative arrivals for January-April numbered 697,569, 9% more than in 2006, with South Korean arrivals up by 16.8% and those from Japan by 4.6%.

The 221,551 arrivals (12.6%) from Europe, Africa and the Middle East – the best-performing long-haul market region in April – took the cumulative arrivals for January-April to 721,611, a 16% increase. The Americas’ 166,246 (8.3%) visitors took cumulative arrivals from the region to 561,642, up 7.3%, while Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific’s 65,564 (7.8%) visitors brought the January-April total to 228,915, up 8.8%.

Same-Day In-Town Visitors

Some 59% of all visitors to Hong Kong in April stayed in the city for at least one night, which is 0.7 percentage point lower than for the same month last year. The remaining 41% same-day in-town visitors either returned home or left for another destination on the same day as arrival.

Hotel Occupancy

Hotel occupancy across all categories of hotels in April 2007 was 82%, which is four percentage points lower than in April 2006. The geographic location with the highest occupancy in April was as normal, Yau Ma Tei/Mong Kok, where hotels recorded a rate of 87%. The average achieved hotel room rate across all hotel categories was HK$1,410, 11.5% higher than in April 2006. The average hotel occupancy for January-April 2007 is 84%, three percentage points lower than in 2006. The average achieved hotel room rate is HK$1,232, 13.4% higher than in the same period of 2006.

See also: Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals for March 2007  and other recent news regarding: Hong Kong, Visitor Arrivals