TRAVEL: Hong Kong Finds Its Rhythm Again
- Jamie Gonzales
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
After several years of stop-start recovery, Hong Kong is once again stepping confidently back onto the world travel stage. In 2025, the city didn’t just welcome visitors, it rediscovered its sense of momentum.
According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board, nearly 45 million travelers arrived in the first 11 months of 2025 alone, already surpassing the total for all of 2024. That figure represents a 12 per cent year-on-year rise, signaling that Hong Kong’s comeback is no longer tentative, it’s real.
While mainland China continued to anchor the city’s visitor numbers with around 34 million arrivals, growth was strongest across overseas markets. Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia and Australia all recorded double-digit increases as airline capacity and regional connectivity returned to near-normal levels. The festive season proved especially buoyant, with 1.7 million people flocking to Hong Kong over the 10-day Christmas and New Year period.
A more balanced mix of travelers
Hoteliers across the city report that 2025 brought a healthier and more diverse visitor base. At Regent Hong Kong, managing director Michel Chertouh says the year delivered meaningful progress across multiple markets.
“There was encouraging momentum from mainland China, alongside renewed strength from short-haul Asian destinations and a welcome return of long-haul travelers, particularly from the US and Australia,” he says.
Not all parts of the year were equally strong. Some properties experienced a slow start before demand built steadily through the second half. Eaton HK’s managing director Shane Pateman describes a clear turning point mid-year, with the hotel finishing around five per cent above 2024 levels.
Interestingly, it wasn’t leisure travel doing most of the heavy lifting. Group bookings, corporate travel and MICE business consistently outperformed expectations, driven largely by Southeast Asian markets, as well as Japan and Korea.
Tailoring the Hong Kong experience
As competition intensifies across Asia, hotels have become more creative in appealing to specific markets. At Mondrian Hong Kong, which opened in late 2023, a growing influx of Thai travellers inspired a new approach.
After researching how Thai visitors explore the city, the hotel discovered that temple-hopping ranked high on their must-do list. The response was immediate: Mondrian launched a custom temple guide alongside its monthly publication, highlighting not only famous shrines but also Instagram-worthy spots, underground art spaces and neighborhood eateries curated by its own staff.
It’s a small but telling example of how Hong Kong’s tourism industry is shifting from volume to personalized, experience-driven travel.
Events take center stage
One of the biggest drivers of this renewed energy has been Hong Kong’s expanding calendar of large-scale events. The opening of Kai Tak Sports Park, now the city’s largest multi-purpose sports and entertainment complex, has already started to reshape travel patterns.
Sporting fixtures, international concerts and exhibitions are bringing waves of visitors, particularly in the lucrative groups and entertainment segments. With more major events scheduled for the years ahead, the city is doubling down on its ambition to become Asia’s leading “Mega-Event Hub.”
A more thoughtful kind of travel
At the airport end of the city, The Silveri Hong Kong – MGallery in Tung Chung saw a different kind of growth. Long-haul arrivals rose by about 30 per cent, while MICE and “bleisure” travel surged as AsiaWorld-Expo returned to full capacity.
But perhaps more telling was the change in traveler mindset. “2025 marked a shift away from post-pandemic ‘revenge travel’ towards more intentional, experiential stays,” says Accor’s regional vice president John Webb. Visitors weren’t just coming, they were staying longer and seeking deeper experiences.
The challenge ahead
Despite rising arrivals, Hong Kong still faces a familiar hurdle: turning footfall into spending. Retail sales linked to tourism remained uneven throughout 2025, reflecting changing consumer habits and fierce competition from regional favourites like Tokyo and Bangkok.
With the reintroduction of the Hotel Accommodation Tax and continued pricing pressure, hotels are working harder to justify Hong Kong’s premium positioning.
In response, tourism authorities are broadening the city’s appeal beyond shopping and dining. Throughout 2025, visitors were encouraged to explore hiking trails, country parks, beaches and outlying islands, revealing a greener, more relaxed side of Hong Kong that many travelers had never seen before.
Looking to 2026
The outlook is quietly optimistic. With Kai Tak Sports Park fully operational and Hong Kong International Airport’s three-runway system coming online, the city’s capacity to host visitors and mega-events, will only grow.
For a destination that once defined Asia’s travel boom, 2025 was less about fireworks and more about finding its balance again. And as Hong Kong moves into 2026, it feels ready not just to welcome the world back but to show it something new.
