Cathay Pacific

Chinese territory welcomed just 500000 visitors in January, compared to 6.8 million arrivals in 2019.

Meanwhile, the film festival – one of the oldest in Asia – and its related programmes are expected to draw filmmakers and film-industry executives from across Asia and around the world. The Rugby Sevens, which normally takes place in the spring, held its first tournament since the pandemic began this past November when social-distancing and other rules were still in effect. In 2019, Art Basel Hong Kong had a record attendance of 88,000 visitors. It canceled its program in 2020 as COVID began spreading across the globe. It does not expect to be at pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2024. On one day in March last year, it carried just 58 passengers – a low point for an airline with a once-thriving global network that flew tens of thousands of people a day. Hong Kong remains a popular tourist spot and pent-up demand could see an influx of visitors. In April, it will have a full lineup when it hosts nine events, including shows focusing on innovation, electronics and fashion. Foreign visitors, meanwhile, were mostly barred from entering Hong Kong during the pandemic. Still, arrivals are a fraction of pre-pandemic levels. As well as frustration over pandemic measures, many residents were driven to leave by a sweeping national security law that was implemented after Hong Kong was in the throes of the pandemic’s “fifth wave” and sending patients who tested positive to a quarantine centre for up to 21 days.