Hong Kong reopening: Tourism officials to offer 500,000 free flights to woo tourists back

Tourism officials in Hong Kong have announced they are going to give away 500,000 free flights to help woo visitors back.

The scheme, which will cost $HK2 billion ($A400 million), is expected to launch in early 2023.

Hong Kong has recently started to relax some of the toughest COVID border restrictions in the world.

Travellers no longer have to quarantine in a hotel but face a three-day surveillance period. They must also take COVID tests every week and can use public transport from hotels, but they are barred from venues which require vaccine checks like nightclubs and restaurants.

Dane Cheng Ting-yat, executive director of the Tourism Board, told the South China Morning Post the free flight scheme will start once all the COVID restrictions are ended.

"The Airport Authority will finalise the arrangement with airline companies. The free plane tickets are not all for inbound tourists. Some of them will be given to outbound travellers, while some will be distributed via travel agent."

Prudence Lai, senior analyst at market research firm Euromonitor International, welcomed the scheme, but warned Hong Kong also needed China to reopen its borders.

"The pre-Covid status of Hong Kong represents the market potential of a full recovery," she told the BBC.

"However, this is highly dependent on when mainland Chinese tourists will return, as mainland China contributes to more than half of Hong Kong's inbound arrivals and travel receipts."