Tourism

The encouraging growth in visitor arrivals continued in 2007， topping the 28.17 million mark， 11.6 per cent up on 2006. Total spending by inbound tourists exceeded $130 billion. The Mainland was still the largest source of visitors. A record of 15.49 million visited Hong Kong， an increase of 13.9 per cent year on year.

Hong Kong is a unique meeting place for East and West， blending Chinese heritage， British colonial influences， high-tech modernity and Cantonese gusto. It offers a diversity of travel experiences， from shopping to gourmet dining，countryside pursuits and unique cultural heritage， including a great variety of religious institutions and preserved buildings like temples， monasteries，walled villages， clan halls and colonial structures.

Tourism Development

The Government attaches great importance to enhancing Hong Kong‘s attractiveness as a tourist destination. Ocean Park， Hong Kong Disneyland and the Hong Kong Wetland Park are among the most popular tourist attractions. These facilities enrich the experience of our visitors and enhance the position of Hong Kong as a premier holiday destination. The Government is also working with the Ocean Park to implement its redevelopment plans， which aim to turn the park into a world-class marine-themed attraction.

‘A Symphony of Lights’has been recognised as the world‘s’Largest Permanent Light and Sound Show‘by Guinness World Records. This nightly spectacle combines interactive lights of 44 key buildings on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon with musical effects to showcase the vibrancy and glamourous night vista of Victoria Harbour. Hong Kong Disneyland has been well received by local visitors and tourists since its opening in September 2005. The park is an important part of Hong Kong’s tourism infrastructure. Together with other tourism attractions in Hong Kong， it helps promote Hong Kong as the premier destination for family tourism in the region.

Immigration

Since reunification， the HKSAR has maintained autonomy over its immigration control. It has a very liberal visa policy for visitors. People from more than 170 countries and territories may come to Hong Kong visa-free for visits lasting from seven to 180 days.

Professionals and business people are welcome to work and invest in Hong Kong. Persons applying for permission to reside， work or study in the HKSAR are required to obtain visas or entry permits before arrival.

Cross-boundary Traffic

Cross-boundary vehicular traffic increased year on year by 2 per cent in 2006. The Lo Wu land crossing which is open from 6.30 am to midnight for rail passengers travelling to and from the Mainland handled an average of 260 000 passengers on weekdays and 380 000 during festive days. To meet the continuous growth in crossboundary traffic， the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line， which is the second rail boundary crossing into the Mainland， was opened in August 2007.

In addition，12 pairs of through trains operate daily between Kowloon and Guangdong cities.

Through-train services to and from Beijing and Shanghai operate on alternate days.

In 2006，the three road crossing points， namely Lok Ma Chau， Sha Tau Kok and Man Kam To between Hong Kong and the Mainland handled an average of 41 000 vehicles per day. More than 100 companies operated coach services across the boundary， and the daily traveller flow at the three crossings was 150 000. About 84 500 passengers took the cross-boundary coaches while 50 300 took the shuttle buses each day.

The fourth road crossing point， the Shenzhen Bay Port was opened in July 2007 connecting the northwestern part of Hong Kong with Shekou in Shenzhen.

Ferry services to 18 Mainland ports and Macau run from the China Ferry Terminal in Kowloon and the Macau Ferry Terminal on Hong Kong Island. In 2006，passenger throughput for the Mainland and Macau was about 6.5 million and 14.3 million respectively. These passengers commuted on the world‘s largest fleet of high-speed ferries， which include jetfoils and jet catamarans.

Inward and Outward Traffic 

Hong Kong is one of the world's busiest ports in terms of vessel arrivals and departures. In 2007， some 455 800 vessels arrived in and departed from Hong Kong， carrying about 26.5 million passengers.

Hong Kong International Airport is also one of the busiest in the world. In 2007， 47.8 million passengers passed through the airport. Aircraft movements totalled 295 600.

Leisure and Culture

Leisure and culture provide opportunities for people in Hong Kong to enrich their quality of life. The Government nurtures an environment in which freedom of creativity，pluralistic development of the arts， sporting excellence and recreation for the community can thrive.

Cultural and Leisure Events

Hong Kong hosts a variety of cultural and leisure events，including the Hong Kong Arts Festival， Hong Kong International Film Festival， International Arts Carnival，thematic arts festival， Hong Kong Flower Show and traditional festival celebration programmes.

Sporting Events

Major sporting events held in Hong Kong include the annual Rugby Sevens， Cricket Sixes， international horse races， lion dance and volleyball competitions； as well as tennis， squash， golf， cycling，badminton， tenpin bowling，athletics， football and lawn bowls tournaments. These events are organised in a sustained way to promote Hong Kong as the‘Events Capital of Asia’.

Performing Venues

Hong Kong has a number of performing venues ranging in size from that of the 12 500-seat Hong Kong Coliseum to the 2 000-seat Hong Kong Cultural Centre Concert Hall and 450-seat community arts centres.

Museums

Hong Kong‘s mix of traditions： Chinese and Western，historical and modern，can best be seen in its museums and galleries. Blessed by Hong Kong’s cultural connections， they showcase some magnificent collections of Chinese antiquities as well as more modern objects of interest. There are stimulating interactive exhibits at the Hong Kong Science Museum and wide-screen Omnimax films and sky shows at the Hong Kong Space Museum. The Hong Kong Museum of Art houses some fine examples of ancient Chinese art. For those with a taste for beverages， exhibits recount the history and importance of tea in Chinese culture at the Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware.

Country Parks

Country parks provide a valuable‘green belt’and are popular with hikers and nature lovers. There are 23 country parks and 15 special areas. Covering a total area of 41 644 hectares， they comprise scenic hills， woodlands，reservoirs， islands， indented coastlines， marshes and uplands. They are protected for the purposes of nature conservation， outdoor recreation， countryside education，tourism and scientific studies. There are four marine parks and one marine reserve occupying a total area of 2 430 hectares. They comprise scenic coastal areas， seascapes and important biological habitats.

International Wetland Park

The Mai Po Marshes， listed as a‘Wetland of International Importance Especially as a Waterfowl Habitat’under the Ramsar Convention， form one of the most important wildlife conservation sites in Hong Kong.

About 1 500 hectares of mudflats， fish ponds， marshes and dwarf mangroves provide a rich habitat， particularly for migratory and resident birds. Some 300 species of birds have been observed in this area， and about 120 of them are rarely seen elsewhere in Hong Kong.

Traditional Festivals

There are five major festivals in the Chinese calendar， with the Lunar New Year being the most important. Gifts and visits are exchanged among friends and relatives， and children receive‘lucky money’in red paper packets. During the Ching Ming Festival in spring， ancestral graves are visited. In early summer（fifth day of the fifth lunar month）， the Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated with dragon boat races and by eating cooked glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo leaves. The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. Gifts of mooncakes， wine and fruit are exchanged， and adults and children visit parks and the countryside at night carrying colourful lanterns. Chung Yeung occurs on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month， when many people visit their ancestors‘graves or hike up mountains to commemorate an ancient Chinese family’s escape from plague and death by fleeing to a mountain top.