Hong Kong will be giving away hundreds of thousands of free tickets just so that foreigners and even residents who flew out of the city will be enticed to come to the once tourist-friendly destination.
The Chinese government-controlled city of Hong Kong recently dropped its hotel quarantine requirements, making it a bit easier for travelers to come as compared to when stricter COVID restrictions were still in place.
Despite that, the city that was once known for being a popular tourist destination and business hub is still struggling to get people-foreigners and residents alike-to come. Now, it will be launching a massive program to that end: it will be giving away 500,000 free tickets for global visitors and residents, CNN reported.
According to a spokesperson from the Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK), the city will be giving away these tickets, worth around $254.8 million, for its "market recovery campaign." This move was first announced in 2020, during the height of the COVID pandemic.
"Back in 2020, Airport Authority Hong Kong purchased around 500,000 air tickets in advance from the territory's home-based airlines as part of a relief package to support the aviation industry," the spokesperson said.
"The purchase serves the purpose of injecting liquidity into the airlines upfront, while the tickets will be given away to global visitors and Hong Kong residents in the market recovery campaign."
This move is but one of the things the Hong Kong government is doing to revitalize the once-booming city and make it attractive for outsiders.
"We hope to give the maximum room to reconnect Hong Kong, and to revitalize our economy," Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee, in a press conference on Friday, said.
Travel Requirements
While Hong Kong has decided to stop requiring travelers to quarantine themselves in hotels once they arrive, it still retains some rules and restrictions that travelers to the city might find cumbersome.
Before traveling to Hong Kong, travelers must negative on a self-administered antigen test and report the result in an online health discussion. They will then need to acquire a health declaration QR code for use before departure and upon arrival in Hong Kong. All travelers to the city must be vaccinated, or at least have a medical exemption certificate
Upon arrival in Hong Kong, travelers are required to take a PCR test at the airport upon arrival, followed by succeeding tests on days 2, 4, and 6. They are also required to take daily antigen tests from day 1 to 7 of their stay.
Travelers are to avoid places like restaurants, nightclubs, and salons for the first three days of their stay as part of medical surveillance. They also need to monitor themselves for four days after the first three for signs of COVID.
