Co-ordination measures in relation to arrival of visitors to Hong Kong during Labour Day Holiday (with photos)
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Following the first meeting held on April 3 to co-ordinate the preparation work for the arrival of visitors to Hong Kong during the Labour Day Holiday, the Tourism Commission convened another meeting on Monday (April 24) to follow up on the preparation work carried out by various departments. The meeting was hosted by the Commissioner for Tourism, Ms Vivian Sum, with representatives from government departments including the Customs and Excise Department, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Immigration Department (ImmD), the Transport Department, various District Offices, etc, and various tourism-related organisations including the Travel Industry Authority (TIA), the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB), the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority, major tourist attractions, hotel industry, etc, also attended. Relevant parties will continue to maintain close communication on the people flow during the Labour Day Holiday and co-ordinate different links for receiving visitors’ arrival to Hong Kong, a Government spokesman said today (April 26).
During the Labour Day Holiday, relevant government departments will strengthen manpower and co-ordination of transport and cross-boundary services at various control points, including making arrangements for crowd management, increasing coach parking provision and transport frequency, etc. Ms Vivian Sum, joined by relevant government departments and the TIA, inspected the Heung Yuen Wai Control Point on April 18 to understand the current crowd management for Mainland inbound visitors and proposed enhancement measures to better utilise the space inside the station to disperse the crowd. The Inter-departmental Joint Command Centre set up by Customs, the Police Force, ImmD and other relevant departments will be activated during the Labour Day Holiday to monitor the situation at each land control point, as well as to maintain close liaison with Mainland counterparts and take contingency actions where necessary.
Various District Offices will closely monitor the flow of visitors within their corresponding districts during the Labour Day Holiday and strengthen management of the relevant spots having regard to the actual circumstances. Various major tourist attractions will also put in place crowd control measures during the Labour Day Holiday.
The TIA has been reminding travel agents receiving relevant Mainland inbound tour groups to stagger arrival times as far as possible and urge travel agents, shops, restaurants, etc, receiving Mainland inbound tour groups to implement appropriate measures for the orderly management of visitors and coaches. To protect inbound tour group visitors’ rights, the TIA will deploy additional manpower during the Labour Day Holiday to conduct inspections in districts where relatively more registered shops for inbound tour groups are located, offer assistance to visitors and tourist guides, and step up enforcement. In addition, Customs will step up inspection of shops serving visitors so as to combat unfair trade practices such as coerced shopping. The TIA carried out inspection with Customs on registered shops for inbound tour groups on April 24.
The Tourism Commission has been maintaining liaison with the tourism authorities in Guangdong and Shenzhen and has been communicating with them on the arrival of Mainland visitors, and has provided the hotlines of the relevant local organisations to Mainland inbound group visitors via the tourism authorities in Guangdong and Shenzhen.
To assist visitors in planning their trips, ImmD will upload the daily arrival figures (April 29 to May 4) of each control point to its website (www.immd.gov.hk) from April 30 to May 5. Information about figures of arrival and the flow of people of major tourist attractions will also be hyperlinked to the HKTB’s website (www.discoverhongkong.com) for visitors’ reference. In addition, visitors may check the estimated waiting time at each land boundary control point via the Immigration Mobile Application.
During the Labour Day Holiday, in case of any emergency, Mainland inbound tour group visitors, tour escorts accompanying the tour groups and local tourist guides may seek assistance from the TIA by calling its service hotline 3698 5900 (operating from 9am to 11pm). For enquiries or complaints, visitors may call the HKTB’s hotline 2508 1234 (operating from 9am to 6pm) or the Consumer Council’s hotline 2929 2222 (operating from 9am to 5.30pm).
“It is expected that cross-boundary passenger traffic from April 29 to May 3 will be much heavier than usual. To avoid congestion during the morning and evening peak hours at each land boundary control point, we appeal to Mainland visitors and local residents to cross the boundary during non-peak hours,” the spokesman said.