Yue Chuanjiang, the deputy director of Shenzhen Tourism Bureau, says that Shenzhen and Hong Kong have their own advantages in tourism and they can attract more tourists if they can work together to promote their products.
Of all the mainland tourists visiting Hong Kong each year, about 60% pass through Shenzhen. Yue says that the Shenzhen Tourism Bureau had suggested to the central government setting up an office in Shenzhen to handle temporary permits to Hong Kong for exhibition and business guests to attract more tourists travel to Hong Kong via Shenzhen.
According to Hong Kong's Wen Wei Po newspaper, Chinese mainland tourists currently account for more than half of Hong Kong's inbound tourists. Though influenza A (H1N1) has affected inbound tourism in recent months, the new multi-stop trip developed by Hong Kong and its neighboring cities and areas are expected to ease the situation.
(China Hospitality News August 17, 2009)
