Hong Kong sees influx of Chinese visitors as borders reopen fully

MTR

06/02/2023 07:20

HONG KONG, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of
travellers commuted between mainland China and its special
administrative region of Hong Kong on Monday, authorities said,
the first time in three years that all border checkpoints were
reopened fully without COVID-19 restrictions.
    China announced last week that cross border travel between
the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau would fully resume from Feb.
6, dropping existing quotas and scrapping a mandatory COVID test
that was required before travelling.
    Around 22,000 passengers used the Lo Wu station checkpoint
by midday on Monday, Hong Kong's MTR Corp  0066.HK  said in a
statement. Lo Wu was one of three of Hong Kong's border
checkpoints that had not yet reopened. 
    "I was so excited, from the time I got off the train to walk
through the border checkpoint. It was like going back to the old
days," said Christine Li, 35, who was travelling from Hong Kong
to Shenzhen to see her family.
    Outside the Shenzhen checkpoint were hundreds of red
lanterns and large red banners celebrating the resumption of
travel between the two cities.
    Dozens of passengers stuck colourful Post-it notes on a red
wall outside of the Lo Wu checkpoint. 
    "I am so happy that I am back to the motherland," one said,
while another said, "We are free".
     The reopening came after Hong Kong announced a promotion
campaign dubbed "Hello Hong Kong" to lure back visitors,
businesses and investors to the financial hub after more than
three years of tough COVID-19 curbs. Incentives include 500,000
free flights to be distributed to travellers.
    Hong Kong was largely sealed off behind closed borders for
much of the past three years in a bid to ward off COVID, with
mandatory quarantine of up to three weeks for people arriving as
well as intensive testing and screening.
    The former British closely followed China's zero-COVID
policy until the middle of 2022 when it began to gradually
unwind its rules.
     Hong Kong dropped most of its remaining COVID rules in
December, but wearing masks remains mandatory unless exercising
and students must take daily rapid antigen tests.
 (Reporting by Joyce Zhou and Farah Master; Editing by Jamie
Freed)
 ((farah.master@thomsonreuters.com; +852 3462 7709;))