TRAVEL AND TOURISM
future projections of tourism in Hong Kong. The results of the study will be available in early 1995.
In October, the association moved to its new headquarters in North Point.
The HKTA maintains two information and gift centres, located in the basement of Jardine House in Central and on the Star Ferry concourse in Kowloon. In addition, it operates two information counters at the Hong Kong International Airport at Kai Tak. Together, these centres assisted 2.4 million visitors during the year.
The association runs a general information telephone service in 13 languages for visitors in Hong Kong and a special shopping information service. Together, these lines handled enquiries from 60 888 visitors in 1994. In addition, the association's Infofax service provided information to 6 384 members of the local and overseas travel trade and con- sumers. It covered topics such as sightseeing, shopping, dining, special interest activities and a calendar of events. Measures have also been taken to assist visitors coming to Hong Kong from China. These include the distribution of a bilingual leaflet to visitors arriving by train, advising them of the various modes of transport available; and announcements on each train prior to arrival giving details of HKTA information services.
During the year, the association provided visitors with some 10.1 million pieces of literature in 13 languages, while continuing to revise and extend its diverse range of multilingual marketing and visitor information. Special emphasis was placed on the production of support material which focussed on the requirements of particular market segments such as brochures for families, senior citizens and seekers of cultural heritage. A new promotional video produced by the HKTA, entitled Hong Kong Portraits, received three international marketing awards.
The association also continued to advertise, both as a single entity and in co-operation with airlines, tour operators and travel agents, to promote the territory worldwide, in the print media and on television.
The HKTA has 17 overseas offices whose primary function is to market Hong Kong as a travel destination. It also has an agreement with Cathay Pacific Airways for the airline to act as the association's information agent in an additional 42 cities around the world.
The year 1994 was an active one for the HKTA. It headed Hong Kong delegations to 14 major travel trade events overseas, including the World Travel Market in London and the International Tourism Exchange in Berlin. Under the leadership of the Secretary for Economic Services, the HKTA also participated in the World Tourism Forum in Osaka, in November.
In conjunction with travel industry partners such as hotels and airlines, the HKTA carried out various promotions overseas. These included a Southeast Asia Roadshow to Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Manila; update seminars on Hong Kong and Macau in five Japanese cities; a Hong Kong travel mission to Taiwan; and, for the first time, a travel trade mission to South America.
In co-operation with Cathay Pacific Airways, the HKTA continued the Friends of Hong Kong Super City programme, which aims to develop a corps of Hong Kong supporters within Southeast Asia travel agencies that have a track record of promoting Hong Kong. The programme enables travel agency staff to provide more informed advice about the territory when suggesting holiday plans to their clients.
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