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Golden week

Golden week
The Chinese "golden week" refers either of the two week-long holidays around National Day on October 1, and the lunar calendar Spring Festival which usually falls in January or February of each year. Tens of millions of Chinese travel by air, train and road to family reunions, vacations or shopping centres during these holidays.
Sharp Island in Sai Kung on May 1. On the first day of the Labour Day golden week, around 3,000 people flocked to the island. Photo: Dickson Lee
Hong Kong environmental issues

Letters | Manage tourist flow to Sharp Island for a better travel experience

Readers discuss why Sharp Island visitor data must be monitored, the Wang Fuk Court fire inquiry, how to remember those who died in the fire, and executive-led governance.

China economy

Opinion | How domestic tourism is driving Chinese consumption and growth

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Hong Kong tourism

Can Hong Kong cash in on ecotourism without trashing its natural treasures?

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Hong Kong environmental issues

Proposed Sai Kung marine park to cover most coral reefs: Hong Kong authorities

Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department also says underwater mapping technology used to assess coral coverage.

Authorities have noted that improper behaviour by tourists have threatened the island’s extensive coral communities. Photo: Handout
Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong tour guide stripped of licence over coercing visitors into shopping

Disciplinary action by Travel Industry Authority is second of its kind in less than two months.

Hong Kong economy

Booking system considered to protect popular Hong Kong hiking trail from crowds

More people than expected visited scenic Po Pin Chau during recent holiday peaks.

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Chinese culture

How China’s ‘Excalibur of the East’ souvenir swords sparked airport warning

Tourists with replicas of the ancient Sword of Goujian, from the Hubei Provincial Museum, were told not to hand-carry them onto planes.

Visitors take photos of the ancient Sword of Goujian at the Hubei Provincial Museum in Wuhan, in central China’s Hubei Province, on May 17, 2026. An airport notice at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport warning not to hand-carry replicas of the sword on board planes has gone viral on Chinese social media. Photo: Xinhua
Hong Kong tourism

Opinion | Hong Kong’s tourism rebound needs new measures of success

Rather than count footfall and events, the city should focus on spending and impact, plan district tourism seriously and work on new assumptions.

Hong Kong environmental issues

Visitor quotas needed to protect country parks, 4 trails challenge founder says

Andre Blumberg, who created 298km ultra-marathon, says recent scenes of overcrowding in country parks left him feeling ‘quite disturbed’.

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China travel

Fuel shocks, thin margins: why China’s airlines should ‘heed Spirit’s mistakes’

Demise of US budget carrier seen as a warning sign of how turbulent it could get for China’s airlines with fragile bottom lines.

Spirit Airlines jets sit on a tarmac in the US state of Florida on Sunday after the company ceased operations. Photo: EPA
Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong draws over 1 million mainland ‘golden week’ visitors but spending lags

Authorities say shopping centres and catering sector reported growth, but industry leaders flag inconsistent spending.

Shoppers at a jewellery shop on Canton Road in Tsim Sha Tsui on the first day of mainland China’s “golden week” Labour Day holiday. Photo: Jelly Tse
China travel

China’s record travel volume meets cautious spending in May Day holiday surge

Thousands of domestic train services added on last day of ‘golden week’ to meet record demand, and high energy costs affect consumer spending.

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Hong Kong environmental issues

Editorial | Hong Kong needs to better protect its natural assets from tourists

Without stronger measures that address risks all year round, the city could lose the natural heritage it seeks to showcase.

Hong Kong economy

‘Golden week’: Hong Kong draws more mainland Chinese visitors but spending uneven

Total visitor arrivals, including overseas travellers, reached 854,929 over first three days of Labour Day holiday, also slightly up from last year’s 803,612.

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Mainland Chinese tourists pack Sai Kung’s renowned seafood restaurants. Photo: Dickson Lee
Hong Kong society

Green group warns of disturbance to uninhabited island known for breeding seabirds

Green Hope Hong Kong says several people landed on island near Po Toi Island and warns birds may abandon nests if disturbed.

Green Hope Hong Kong says visitors landed on an island in southern Hong Kong waters known as a breeding ground for a bird species. Photo: Handout
Accidents and personal safety

Driver arrested after wife killed in crash at Hong Kong border checkpoint

Vehicle rammed into cones and kiosk before turning sideways on Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, police say.

Foreign domestic workers in Hong Kong

‘Nowhere to go’: helpers pushed out of parks spend day off in tents at bus terminus

Helpers in Hong Kong describe difficulty of finding places they can gather after some online posts suggested visitors were setting up tents.

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Hong Kong environmental issues

Opinion | It’s not ecotourism if it risks damaging Hong Kong’s natural assets

Authorities need to shift ecotourism management strategies to avoid it becoming part of the problem it was meant to solve.

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A man crosses a hazard warning boundary after taking pictures near the edge of a cliff on the way to the Po Pin Chau Viewing Platform at High Island Reservoir’s East Dam on January 3. Photo: Elson Li
Hong Kong tourism

How unlicensed mainland Chinese tour groups cash in on Hong Kong campsites

Unlicensed guide admits to regularly crossing border as tourist for illegal work, while another insists 30-member group ‘just friends’.

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Hong Kong environmental issues

300 verbal warnings issued to Sharp Island visitors on Labour Day

Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department also says number of visitors to island on Saturday had ‘exceeded expectations’.

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Hong Kong tourism

‘Golden week’ begins with bang in Hong Kong, but restaurants’ gains ‘limited’

City records 13 per cent increase in mainland Chinese visitors on first day of holiday, but more prudent spending is affecting restaurants.

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Tourists visit the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront on the first day of mainland China’s “golden week” Labour Day holiday. Photo: Jelly Tse
Crime in Hong Kong

Hong Kong taxi driver arrested for dangerous driving, hitting speeds of 160km/h

Undercover officers intercept driver, 31, after he completed 42km trip from Sai Kung Country Park to border checkpoint in about 30 mins.

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Taxi vehicles seized by police. Photo: Handout
Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong’s East Dam draws thousands for ‘golden week’ as entry fee floated

Tourists opt for ecotourism over traditional shopping after Unesco geopark receives widespread publicity on mainland Chinese social media.

Hong Kong tourism

Labour Day: Hong Kong records 242,000 trips by mainland Chinese visitors so far

Many visitors head to countryside for scenic views, while others opt for ‘city walks’ to explore picturesque locales.

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Banking & finance

Gold, cruises and Dior: Hong Kong lenders aim to entice mainland China visitors

With 980,000 visitors from the mainland expected during golden week, Hong Kong lenders line up incentives to capture wealthy customers.

Mainland tourists flock to Tsim Sha Tsui during the Golden Week holiday on May 3, 2025. Photo: Nora Tam
Hong Kong economy

Yacht tourists, hikers drive ‘golden week’ optimism for Hong Kong eateries

Industry leader says 5 per cent year-on-year increase in business expected, adding that operators have ramped up manpower to cope with influx.

Industry leaders say they hope the growing trend of mainland Chinese visitors hiking and sailing yachts will bring a windfall to seafood restaurants. Photo: Elson Li
Hong Kong environmental issues

Video | Sharp Island patrols boosted for China’s “golden week”

Authorities will step up security as 1,000 visitors are expected in the area each day during the holiday.

Hong Kong economy

Editorial | Ahead of Labour Day, a sensible tweak to Hong Kong’s tourism strategy

While mainland arrivals are still down from their heyday, the tourism strategy is pivoting from pursuing numbers to seeking higher value.

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