Mainland China has emerged as a popular travel destination among Hong Kong consumers recently, as they are increasingly opting for overnight trips, with a focus on dining and cuisine-related activities during their visits, a report finds.
Conducted by Omnicom Media Group (OMG), the “HK people travelling to mainland China” study is based on a self-complete online survey among 1615 Hong Kong residents aged between 18 and 59.
The survey was carried out from March to April and targeted individuals who had watched video content on free TV, pay TV, or digital platforms within the seven days before completing the survey. The study aims to uncover the travel trends and behaviours of Hong Kong consumers visiting Mainland China.
The study found a growing popularity of mainland China as a travel destination among Hong Kong residents. Compared to the third quarter of 2023, the proportion of respondents who had travelled to mainland China within the past six months rose from 53% to 61%. Similarly, the percentage who had done so within the past week climbed from 10% to 16%.
Among local residents who had travelled to mainland China in the past six months, the largest group was 35 to 44 years old (66%), followed by 18 to 34 (62%) and 45 to 59 (57%). In terms of marital status, 65% were married, while 54% were single.
The study also revealed that Shenzhen remains the most popular destination by far, with 83% of participants indicating their visit in the past six months. This is followed by Guangzhou (29%), Zhuhai (23%) and Dongguan (11%).
In terms of activities in Mainland China, the study found that dining and shopping for food and beverages were one of the most popular 73% engaged in dining, up from 66% in Q3 2023, while shopping and F&B purchases also increased notably.
Interestingly, the study found that while the awareness of retail stores Sam’s Club and Costco are very high, their subscription of membership is substantial. Despite 47% and 48% of respondents being aware of Sam’s Club and Costco memberships respectively, they had not yet planned to subscribe to them.
In terms of the number of nights stayed in Mainland China in the last travel, the study found while more than half of respondents (54%) went for day-trip, 23% of the participants stayed in Mainland China during their last trip, compared to 18% in 2023 third quarter compared to 18% in 2023 third quarter.
The report suggested the potential for increased spending, as 80% of consumers in Q1 expressed a strong intention to revisit Mainland China, although most day-trip travellers (63%) spent less than HK$1,000 on their last day trip.
When it comes to the information sources for visiting Mainland China, the survey found that YouTube remained the primary information source for Hong Kong travellers visiting mainland China, with 50% of respondents using this platform this quarter. This was followed by Facebook (37%), search engines (36%), and Instagram (26%).
Interestingly, the age group between 35 and 44 was more likely to use Facebook compared to other age groups, while the age group between 18 and 34 tended to rely more heavily on social media such as Instagram and Xiaohongshu for their China travel information.
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