ENG-1992 — Page 338

TRAVEL AND TOURISM

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International Convention, the largest meeting to be hosted by Hong Kong, brought 25 000 Lions Clubs members and their spouses to the territory.

To broaden the appeal of Hong Kong, the association continued to operate a number of special interest tours for visitors. HKTA's The Land Between Tour, the Come Horseracing Tour, and the Housing Tour and Home Visit were among the top five nominated by eight journalists from overseas travel trade publications in the 1992 Best Hong Kong Tour Awards programme. To promote a greater interest in Hong Kong's heritage, new full-day and revised half-day versions of the Heritage Tour were launched. In addition, a new Sai Kung Explorer's Guide was published to introduce visitors to this lesser-known area of Hong Kong.

To encourage visitors to stay longer in the territory, the association continued to develop the Hong Kong - Stay an Extra Day campaign to increase visitors' awareness of Hong Kong's varied attractions. The Hong Kong a la Carte promotion, which rewards visitors booking a longer than average holiday in Hong Kong with a booklet of bonuses, was expanded to include more special offers from retail, dining, sightseeing and entertainment establishments.

In co-operation with the Agriculture and Fisheries Department, a 'Green Tourism' project was launched in February. A site near the Tai Mo Shan Country Park Visitor Centre was designated 'Green Dragon Garden' where visitors can plant a tree to com- memorate their visit to Hong Kong.

Locally, to highlight the tourism industry's contribution to Hong Kong during the past 35 years and to enhance the community's recognition of and support for the industry the HKTA organised a Tourism Day in December. The programme's activities included a dinner to salute tourism industry veterans, a charity 'walkathon', a tree-planting ceremony, hotel visits for secondary school students and a tourism investment seminar. A new television commercial with the theme Tourism Works for Hong Kong was broadcast on all four local channels to highlight the contribution of the industry to the territory's economic well-being.

To maintain Hong Kong's position as a top travel destination, the importance of training in the tourism industry to maintain Hong Kong's high reputation for service remained a priority of the association. Its Industry Training Department runs various programmes for staff in the retail trade, as well as courses designed specifically for tour co-ordinators and restaurant personnel. For school-leavers interested in joining the industry, the association organises the Tourism Employees Preparatory Programme. The complementary Job Bazaar enables prospective employers to meet participants in this programme. There is also a free Tourism Employees Recruitment Service.

The HKTA continued to encourage higher levels of courtesy through the on-going Hong Kong Cares courtesy campaign. During the year the association organised a Hong Kong Cares Courtesy Awards scheme for retail assistants which received 2 500 nominations from visitors from 30 countries.

For the 25th year, the HKTA organised the Student Ambassador Programme whereby 100 students heading overseas for their tertiary education took part in a month-long briefing programme to increase their awareness of various aspects of Hong Kong which would enable them to talk more knowledgeably about their home. With the co-operation of the Scout Association of Hong Kong, a Tourism Ambassador Badge has been introduced. To earn it, scouts have to attend a workshop which introduces them to the