According to the report, mainland China has recently emerged as a popular travel destination among Hong Kong consumers, with an increasing number of them choosing overnight trips that focus on dining and culinary activities during their stay.
The “Hong Kongers Travelling to Mainland China” study, conducted by Omnicom Media Group (OMG), is based on a self-administered online survey of 1,615 Hong Kong residents aged 18-59.
The survey was conducted between March and April and covered individuals who watched video content across free-to-air, pay-TV and digital platforms in the seven days prior to completing the survey. The study aims to uncover the travel trends and behaviors of Hong Kong consumers visiting mainland China.
The survey revealed that mainland China is becoming increasingly popular as a travel destination among Hong Kong residents. Compared to the third quarter of 2023, the percentage of respondents who had traveled to mainland China within the past six months rose from 53% to 61%. Similarly, the percentage of those who had traveled to mainland China within the past week rose from 10% to 16%.
Among locals who had visited mainland China within the past six months, the largest group was aged 35-44 (66%), followed by 18-34 (62%) and 45-59 (57%). In terms of marital status, 65% were married and 54% were single.
The survey also revealed that Shenzhen remains by far the most popular travel destination, with 83% of respondents saying they had visited within the past six months, followed by Guangzhou (29%), Zhuhai (23%) and Dongguan (11%).
In terms of activities in mainland China, the survey found that dining and food and beverage shopping were among the most popular activities, with 73% engaging in dining, up from 66% in Q3 2023, while shopping and F&B purchases also saw a notable increase.
Interestingly, the survey found that awareness of retailers Sam’s Club and Costco was quite high, but membership sign-ups were quite low: 47% and 48% of respondents were aware of Sam’s Club and Costco memberships, respectively, but had no plans to join yet.
In terms of the number of nights spent in mainland China on their last trip, it was found that while over half of respondents (54%) took day trips, 23% of participants stayed in mainland China on their last trip, an increase compared to 18% in Q3 2023.
The report found that 80% of consumers in the first quarter expressed a strong intention to return to mainland China, but most day trippers (63%) spent less than HK$1,000 on their last day trip, suggesting spending may increase.
In terms of information sources when visiting mainland China, the survey found that YouTube remains the leading information source for Hong Kong travellers visiting mainland China, with 50% of respondents using the platform in the current quarter, followed by Facebook (37%), search engines (36%) and Instagram (26%).
Interestingly, the 35-44 age group was more likely to use Facebook than other age groups, while the 18-34 age group tended to rely heavily on social media such as Instagram and Xiaohongshu for China travel information.
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