Following is a question by the Hon Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung and an oral reply by the
Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mrs Rita Lau, in the
The Chief Executive announced on April 18 that the mainland authorities will
allow mainland group tour travellers to travel to Taiwan via Hong Kong on Hong
Kong-based cruise liners, and are now studying the pilot implementation of this
arrangement in four ports, namely Shanghai, Tianjin, Qingdao and Dalian. In this
connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether it knows the respective numbers of Hong Kong-based cruise liners, the
respective person-times of cruise travellers boarding and unboarding in Hong Kong
and the number of Mainlanders among them, in 2007, 2008 and the first quarter of
(b) how the authorities will promote cruise travelling on Hong Kong-based cruise
liners, so as to establish Hong Kong's position as a cruise hub; and
(c) how the authorities will co-operate with the municipal governments of the
aforesaid four ports in the promotion plan to attract and facilitate mainland travellers
to travel by cruise; and when the relevant promotion plan is expected to be
(a) Apart from the local cruise vessels stationed in Hong Kong, depending on market
strategies and demand, cruise operators usually deploy cruise vessels to run different
itineraries during different periods of the year. Cruise vessels homeporting in Hong
Kong with itineraries that have destinations included Costa Allegra, Superstar Libra
and Superstar Aquarius for 2007 and Costa Allegra, Rhapsody of the Seas, Superstar
Libra, Superstar Aquarius and Superstar Virgo for 2008. According to the information
provided by the cruise operator, Costa Allegra homeported in Hong Kong in the first
quarter of 2009, and Costa Classica will homeport in Hong Kong in the second and
In 2007 and 2008, the cruise passenger throughput for cruises with destinations
(excluding those on cruise vessels visiting Hong Kong as a port-of-call) was about
100,000 and 340,000 respectively. Among them, Mainland visitors accounted for
about 30,000 and 90,000 respectively. For 2008, including the passengers of cruise
vessels visiting Hong Kong as a port-of-call, the passenger throughput would be over
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is consolidating the statistics for the first
quarter of 2009, and will release them in due course.
(b) With our advantageous geographical location, deep natural harbour and
world-class infrastructure and tourism facilities, Hong Kong is well-positioned to
become a regional cruise hub, attracting cruise vessels to homeport here. We will
continue to enhance our hardware and software so as to develop Hong Kong into a
In terms of hardware, we are pressing ahead with the new cruise terminal. To
ensure that the first berth will commence operation in mid-2013, we will soon apply
for funding approval from the Legislative Council for the site formation works to start
by the end of this year. Given the scale of the works, the current timetable is already
much compressed. Nonetheless, the works departments would continue to review the
progress of construction with a view to expediting the programme.
Apart from the construction of the new cruise terminal, development of software is
equally important. Only with well-developed software can Hong Kong attract cruise
vessels to homeport here and tourists to visit Hong Kong by cruise.
Through the Advisory Committee on Cruise Industry and other channels, Tourism
Commission (TC) would continue to work with HKTB and the industry to jointly
formulate strategies to strengthen Hong Kong's position as a cruise hub in
Asia-Pacific. The major tasks include –
(i) drawing up manpower training plans, increasing on-the-job training opportunities,
and encouraging young people to join the cruise industry. Through the Government's
Skills Upgrading Scheme and Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, training
courses related to cruise tourism, including "Introductory course on cruise travel",
"Practical skills in servicing cruise travellers" and "Cruise selling training course", etc,
will be offered in the course of the year. We will also develop cruise-related courses
under the Employees Retraining Scheme. It is estimated that the above-mentioned
courses will provide no less than 200 training places at the initial stage. Thereafter,
the number of training places can be adjusted to meet the needs of the cruise market;
(ii) formulating and implementing promotion plans for overseas market, including
participation in international cruise fora such as the Seatrade Cruise Shipping
Convention in Miami, the United States, and arranging the local travel trade to visit
major cruise markets to enhance Hong Kong's position as a must-visit port and
develop a platform for industry co-operation;
(iii) strengthening connections with neighbouring coastal provinces and establishing
an information exchange platform to develop a diversified range of unique cruise
itineraries and promote cruise tourism. HKTB launched a cruise tourism website
entitled "Cruise South China" early this year. The website, with information on
berthing facilities as well as tourist attractions in Hong Kong and neighbouring
provinces, facilitates cruise operators in developing cruise itineraries and pre- and
(iv) arranging various hospitality activities for cruise vessels visiting Hong Kong with
the aim of enriching passengers' experience in Hong Kong.
(c) We welcome the measure to allow Mainland tour groups to travel to Taiwan
through Hong Kong by taking cruise vessels homeporting here. This should attract
cruise operators to deploy more vessels to homeport in Hong Kong, and enhance
Hong Kong's position as the cruise hub in Asia-Pacific.
TC has discussed the implementation details of the new measure with the China
National Tourism Administration (CNTA) in the first instance. Our first and foremost
task is to encourage the local travel trade and cruise operators to work with the
Mainland designated agents operating group tours to Taiwan to develop products
including cruises from Hong Kong to Taiwan, and launch such itineraries as soon as
possible. HKTB will also arrange publicity in the Mainland to tie in with the new
As regards cruise services from the Mainland to Taiwan via Hong Kong, CNTA
indicated that Mainland ports would first need to work on the supporting facilities,
such as the Customs, Immigration and Health Quarantine services. In the meantime,
cruise operators can liaise with the Mainland authorities to develop such itineraries.
The Government will also continue to liaise with the relevant authorities to facilitate
the early implementation of the measure.
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