Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific on Monday resumed direct flights to Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, after a seven-year hiatus. This has sparked renewed enthusiasm among Hong Kong residents for travel packages, with group tours to the Middle Eastern kingdom expected to start in December at the earliest.
Tourism industry experts said the Middle Eastern market has considerable growth potential for Hong Kong’s tourism business, and called for local travel facilities and services to be upgraded to better cater to Muslim visitors.
However, they warned that geopolitical uncertainties are a key factor affecting the expansion of travel.
Cathay will operate three flights weekly -- on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays -- between the special administrative region and Riyadh. Leveraging the enhanced connectivity, some travel agencies have introduced curated Riyadh tour packages, saying that direct flights could strengthen mutual visits by travelers from both cities.
Hong Kong travel agency EGL Tours has rolled out programs featuring seven-day and 11-day trips, with package prices ranging from HK$20,000 ($2,564) to HK$45,000.
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Steve Huen Kwok-chuen, executive director of the agency, said they have received a considerable of enquiries from customers, with such tours due to begin in December and January next year.
He said Hong Kong residents are interested in traveling to the Middle East, with several Dubai tours departing each month. After arriving in Riyadh, they can take domestic flights to nearby cities, ride all-terrain vehicles in the desert, stargaze or visit sacred cities for Muslim tourists.
However, Huen also mentioned that agencies' plans to launch related products have been affected by the recent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. He added that the registration of some tour groups has been completely stalled in recent weeks. The situation for the upcoming peak seasons of Christmas and Lunar New Year remains to be observed.
Although Saudi Arabia is considered safe, customers are worried about the country’s proximity to Israel, he said. Military conflicts in the region have escalated, with Israel launching a fresh wave of air strikes against Iran over the weekend.
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In 2019, prior to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Middle Eastern tourists accounted for about just 0.25 percent of the total number of travelers arriving in Hong Kong. Despite the gradual return to normalcy last year, while the number of visitors from the Middle East saw a significant increase, their proportion among overall incoming tourists took up only 0.17 percent.
Chairman of the Tourism Industry Council of Hong Kong Gianna Hsu Wong Mei-lun believes there’s significant growth potential in the Middle Eastern tourism market, and direct flights between Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia would bring greater business opportunities.
She notes that Hong Kong lacks sufficient halal-certified restaurants and needs to adjust facilities and services, such as those for Muslim visitors’ daily prayers, to accommodate them.
Hsu emphasized that competition in the tourism sector has intensified after the pandemic, and urged Hong Kong’s tourism and hospitality sectors to enhance their reputation by elevating their standards of service.
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Hamd Aljebreen, consul general of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the HKSAR, believes the launch of the direct flights will deepen collaboration between Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia, and fuel the Arab nation’s “Vision 2030” which aims to accelerate economic diversification.
