ENG-1989 — Page 315

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TRAVEL AND TOURISM

exchange. It furthers the development of the territory as a travel destination, promotes the improvement of facilities for visitors, markets Hong Kong's visitor attractions overseas and advises the government on matters relating to tourism. These aims amount to op- timising the returns on investment in developing the tourism product.

The Chairman of the HKTA and the members of its board of management are appointed by the Governor. The HKTA receives an annual subvention from the govern- ment to assist it in furthering its objectives. It also derives funds from membership dues, the sale of publications and souvenirs, and from tours.

In December 1989, the association had 1 782 members, comprising airlines, hotels, travel agents, tour operators, retail, restaurant and other visitor service establishments.

The HKTA's head office is on the 35th floor of Jardine House in Central District on Hong Kong Island. In 1989, the Information and Gift Centre was relocated from the head office to the basement of the same building. That centre, along with similar centres at the Star Ferry Concourse in Kowloon and on the ground floor of the Royal Garden Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui East, as well as an HKTA information counter at the Hong Kong International Airport, assisted 1.36 million visitors. The association also operates hotline telephone services in both English and Japanese, and set up in 1989 a new Mandarin- speaking hotline in recognition of the growing importance of the Taiwanese market. Together, these hotlines handled 46 700 enquiries from visitors during the year. The association monitors the calls to provide further insight into visitors' interests and spending patterns. The information service operated by the association now offers assistance for visitors in eight languages, including Korean. In 1989, the HKTA distributed 8.01 million pieces of literature in six languages to visitors upon arrival.

The HKTA's marketing strategies are designed to attract higher-yield visitors to Hong Kong and to encourage visitors to stay longer in the territory. The emphasis is on increasing the amount of money spent in the territory and encouraging visitors to return. A major marketing campaign overseas was implemented in the second half of the year, with the theme 'Stay an Extra Day in Hong Kong'.

The HKTA issued regular statements overseas to assure potential visitors to Hong Kong that the territory was a dynamic and attractive tourist destination. In addition, the association worked closely with the Hong Kong Hotels Association and initiated in 1989 a special 'Six Nights for the Price of Four' summer package for 37 of the territory's hotels.

Overseas marketing of Hong Kong as a travel destination is carried out primarily through 15 overseas offices of the HKTA, located in Auckland, Barcelona, Chicago, Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, New York, Osaka, Paris, Rome, San Francisco, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto. The association also has an agreement with Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways whereby the airline acts as its information agent in an additional 42 cities around the world.

The HKTA arranged familiarisation trips for 2 000 travel agents and briefed a further 1 140 visiting travel trade personnel in 1989, with the aim of encouraging them to include Hong Kong in their tour itineraries. It also organised and co-ordinated the Hong Kong tourism industry's participation in 19 major overseas trade promotions, such as the World Travel Market in London in November-December. In addition, it assisted 1 000 overseas media representatives with their reports about Hong Kong.

In 1989, the association continued to promote Hong Kong as a year-round travel destination, marketing its unique blend of East and West and wide variety of attrac- tions. The 'Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival International Races 1989', organised by the HKTA in June for the 14th consecutive year, received wide international cover-

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