Mr Dane Cheng, the executive director of Tourism Board Hong Kong.
The executive director of the Hong Kong Tourism Board Mr Dane Cheng said in an interview on Saturday that he expected more than 800,000 mainland tourists to visit the city during the Golden Week holiday but uncertain about the numbers returning to the pre-pandemic visitors' height.
In his interview on the HOY television programme, he thought that the major organized events in the city like the Victoria Harbour fireworks and drone displays would still be an immense attraction for mainland visitors during the Golden Week holiday.
Mr Cheng said "I think it's unrealistic for Hong Kong to return to the tourist figures of 2018 and 2019. Hongkongers find it difficult to accommodate so many tourists, no matter where they come from. Even when taking public transport like the bus and train, or going shopping, there are many people," he said.
"It's important to create a good experience for both visitors and locals. Of course, visitors hope to have a good experience when they come, and not encounter crowds everywhere they go," he added.
He said further that he is discussing with the authorities and vendors to figure out if the revamped Temple Street Night market can be made permanent.
In efforts for a smooth experience for the inflow of visitors during that holiday, authorities have announced a series of plans such as the increment of frequency of the cross-border shuttle bus services and prolonging the operating hours of the last East Rail Line train to Lo Wu for a few days.
The MTR Corporation said as well that it would increase train services on seven rail lines, saying a total of 540 train trips would be maintained during Golden Week.
In China, the Golden Week break starts from the 1st of May through the 5th of May.
香港預計5月1日假期內地旅客將超過80萬人次
香港旅遊發展局執行董事週六在接受採訪時表示，他預計黃金周期間將有超過80萬內地遊客到訪香港，但不確定遊客人數是否會恢復到疫情前的水平。
他接受HOY電視節目採訪時表示，在黃金周假期期間，香港舉辦的大型活動，如維多利亞港煙火和無人機表演，仍然對內地遊客具有巨大的吸引力。
他說：「我認為香港要回到2018年和2019年的遊客數字是不現實的。香港人發現很難容納這麼多遊客，無論他們來自哪裡。
即使乘坐巴士和火車等公共交通工具，或去購物，有很多人，」他說。
“為遊客和當地人創造良好的體驗很重要。遊客當然希望來時有良好的體驗，而不是到處都遇到人群。” 他加了。
他進一步表示，他正在與當局和商販討論，看看改造後的廟街夜市是否可以永久化。
為確保假期期間旅客湧入的順暢體驗，當局公佈了一系列計劃，例如增加跨境穿梭巴士服務的班次、延長東鐵線末班車的運營時間至羅湖幾天。
港鐵公司也表示，將增加7條鐵路線的列車服務，黃金周期間將維持共540班列車班次。
在中國，黃金週從5月1日到5月5日開始。
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