Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals for September 2008

Hong Kong visitor arrivals in September 2008 reached 2,194,840, 3.5% more than in September 2007. This brings cumulative arrivals for the first nine months of 2008 to 21,768,811, 6.9% ahead of the same period last year.

The growth in September 2008 was mainly driven by the short-haul regions, as positive increases were registered for Mainland China (+10%) and South and South East Asia (+5.3%). In particular, Mainland arrivals during the National Day Golden Week holiday period, which was advanced to end September this year, contributed to the double-digit increase for the market. As for the long-haul market regions, they sustained their downward trend, as the impact of the Mainland visa policy adjustment continued and the global economic conditions worsened.

Below summarises visitor arrivals from different market regions:

• Mainland China: 1,249,545 (+10%)
• South and South East Asia: 212,809 (+5.3%)
• Taiwan: 184,262 (+2.2%)
• North Asia: 176,044 (-4.1%)
• Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific: 69,304 (-5.8%)
• The Americas: 113,862 (-13.1%)
• Europe, Africa and the Middle East: 139,730 (-16.4%)

As for the individual markets, Indonesia achieved strong growth of 62% in September, as the last two days of the month were designated holidays in the advent of Idul Fitri. Arrivals from India and Russia also increased by 8.8% and 7.2% respectively.

Out of the total Mainland arrivals in September 2008, 689,891 or 55.2% arrived under the Individual Visit Scheme, 19% more than in September 2007. Cumulatively, there were 7,144,533 arrivals under the Individual Visit Scheme in the first nine months of 2008, 13.7% more than for the same period in 2007.

Overnight Vs Same-Day In-Town Visitors

Overall, some 56.3% of all visitors to Hong Kong in September stayed in the city for at least one night, two percentage points lower than for the same month last year. The remaining 43.7% same-day in-town visitors either returned home or left for another destination on the same day as arrival.

September 2008 Hotel Occupancy

Hotel occupancy across all categories of hotels in September 2008 was 79%, two percentage points lower than in September 2007. The geographic locations with the highest occupancy were Yau Ma Tei / Mong Kok, where hotels recorded average occupancy rate of 83%. The average achieved hotel room rate across all hotel categories was HK$1,228, 3.1% lower than in September 2007.

See also: Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals for August 2008 and other recent news regarding: Travel News Asia, Promotions, New Hotels, Hong Kong Visitor Arrivals, Hong Kong, Visitor Arrivals, September 2008