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| Disneyland is a favorite destination |
Hong Kong recorded last Saturday, Nov.30, the arrival of its millionth visitor from the Philippines, marking an all-time high.
The number far surpassed the previous record of
930,000 Filipino visitors set for the entire 2018, just before the Covid-19
pandemic.
The millionth Filipino visitor was identified as
Miguel Linao, who arrived in Hong Kong last Friday with his wife and children.
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| Basahin ang detalye! |
Linao said in an interview that their milestone visit was unexpected although it was not their first time to visit Hong Kong, which is just 2.5 hours away by plane.
They came this time to accompany their daughter to a gymnastics competition and do some sightseeing.
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| The Linao family being welcomed by HKTB officials |
Leading the welcome for the Linao family was the the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) which announced yesterday that it recorded a remarkable 36.67 million visitor arrivals in the first 10 ten months of 20214, a 37% increase compared to the previous year.
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| Avenue of the Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui is also a favorite among Filipino tourists |
The Board is targeting a total arrival of some 46 million tourists by the end of the year.
Travellers from Southeast Asia made up a big chunk
of this number, with their numbers exceeding 2.3 million, about 95% of
pre-pandemic levels.
And around half of these were Filipinos.
By the end of October, a total of 920,000 Filipino tourists had
come, marking a 127 per cent increase compared to pre-Covid levels.
“The increase in international visitor arrivals in
the first 10 months of 2024 has been encouraging, especially from Southeast
Asia,” HKTB executive director Dane Cheng Ting-yat said.
“We are thrilled that Hong Kong has become the top
travel destination for Filipino travelers.”
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| A typical Southeast Asian tourist spends about $7k when in HK |
Tourists from the region said their preferred
destinations include the theme parks, the
Ladies’ Market in Mong Kok, Avenue of the Stars and the vicinity of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui.
According to HKTB’s Departing Visitor Survey, the typical visitors from Southeast Asia stayed for 3.4 night, spending about $7,100 per person.
