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HK Tourism Board to roll out second "Free Tour” program along with "Staycation Delights”
In order to boost local consumption, the Hong Kong Tourism Board will launch a new round of “Free Tour” program, along with a new Spend-to-Redeem program called “Staycation Delights”.
The new round of the “Free Tour” program, which also encourages the people of Hong Kong to explore the city, will double its quota to offer up to 20,000 free local tour spots, according to the board.
As for the new Spend-to-Redeem program - “Staycation Delights”, members of the public will be able to redeem themselves a HK$500 discount on staycation packages for hotels around the city.
The board’s Executive Director Dane Cheng said the two programs are all set to go in the coming few weeks if the city’s epidemic is furthered contained.
Meanwhile, he stressed that the board would maintain a flexible approach and be prudent in its use of resources while the pandemic continued.
“Most of our additional funding of more than HK$700 million for the year 2020 to 2021 has not been used because of the pandemic, and the remainder will be returned in full to the Government,” he said.
“For the year 2021 to 2022, the board will receive additional funding of HK$765 million, similar to the amount allocated in last financial year.”
He pointed out that around 35 percent of the funding will be used on short-term strategies to bringing back visitors to Hong Kong as soon as possible, while 40 percent will be used to conduct a holistic review of Hong Kong’s tourism brand and positioning and to join hands with other cities in the Greater Bay Area to globally promote and build the GBA tourism brand.
The board will also strengthen support for the MICE tourism and cruise sectors and their promotions, provide support for the gradual resumption of such tourism activities when the global pandemic situation has stabilized, he added.
As for the new Spend-to-Redeem program - “Staycation Delights”, members of the public will be able to redeem themselves a HK$500 discount on staycation packages for hotels around the city.
The board’s Executive Director Dane Cheng said the two programs are all set to go in the coming few weeks if the city’s epidemic is furthered contained.
Meanwhile, he stressed that the board would maintain a flexible approach and be prudent in its use of resources while the pandemic continued.
“Most of our additional funding of more than HK$700 million for the year 2020 to 2021 has not been used because of the pandemic, and the remainder will be returned in full to the Government,” he said.
“For the year 2021 to 2022, the board will receive additional funding of HK$765 million, similar to the amount allocated in last financial year.”
He pointed out that around 35 percent of the funding will be used on short-term strategies to bringing back visitors to Hong Kong as soon as possible, while 40 percent will be used to conduct a holistic review of Hong Kong’s tourism brand and positioning and to join hands with other cities in the Greater Bay Area to globally promote and build the GBA tourism brand.
The board will also strengthen support for the MICE tourism and cruise sectors and their promotions, provide support for the gradual resumption of such tourism activities when the global pandemic situation has stabilized, he added.
