Mainland Chinese arrivals to Hong Kong surged at start of ‘golden week’ holiday - South China Morning Post
Wynna WongPublished: 8:35pm, 5 Oct 2026Updated: 9:51pm, 5 Oct 2026Mainland Chinese arrivals to Hong Kong surged at the start of the National Day “golden week” holiday before easing towards last year’s levels, with a lawmaker attributing the early rush partly to the city’s fireworks display and tourists making the most of a shorter break.
Immigration Department figures showed that 277,304 mainland visitors arrived on October 1, up 19.1 per cent from 232,751 on the first day of last year’s holiday and 25.1 per cent from the 221,644 recorded in 2024.
“The fireworks were certainly a major factor,” lawmaker and China Travel Service chairman Perry Yiu Pak-leung said, noting that this year’s seven-day holiday was one day shorter than last year’s, prompting some visitors to start their trips earlier.
However, growth moderated sharply after the first day, with mainland arrivals rising by 5.4 per cent year on year to 234,007 on the second day, remaining basically unchanged at 221,566 on the third day and edging up by 2.3 per cent to 206,180 on the fourth day.
