ENG-2005 — Page 368

318 Travel and Tourism

The HKTB also announced its most ambitious global promotion ever, the 2006 Discover Hong Kong Year campaign, which builds on the opening of the major new tourism attractions in late 2005 and 2006. This two-year campaign, which was introduced to the travel trade in May and progressively rolled out in long-haul markets towards the end of 2005, combines Hong Kong's new and existing attractions to position the city as one of the world's must-visit destinations.

Convention and Exhibition Travel

Hong Kong is widely recognised as the conventions and exhibitions capital of Asia and continues to attract leading international events. The HKTB provides comprehensive support services to organisations planning to stage major events in the city.

This sector continued to perform strongly in 2005 with some 237 conventions and 55 exhibitions attracting more than 630 000 international visitors, surpassing the levels of 2004. Notable events during the year included the World Trade Organisation's Hong Kong Ministerial Conference and the 88th Lions Clubs International Convention, which respectively brought some 11 000 and 20 000 visitors to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's ability to host major world events was significantly enhanced by the opening of AsiaWorld-Expo in December, while the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre also announced in 2005 that it would embark on a major expansion programme.

The HKTB continues to promote Hong Kong worldwide as an ideal corporate meetings and incentives destination, working closely with the city's overseas business community. Some 726 000 international visitors attended such events in 2005.

Cruise Travel

Cruise travel is another important, high-yield sector of the tourism industry. Hong Kong is a popular calling point for international cruise liners, and the city was voted one of the world's top 10 overnight ports in a 2005 survey of leading North American and European cruise executives.

The international cruise passenger throughput in 2005 was more than 52 000, a 61 per cent increase over 2004. Thirty international ship called at Hong Kong, a 7.1 per cent increase over the previous year. They included four mega cruise liners. which each carried more than 5 000 passengers.

Protection for Travellers

Travel agents providing outbound travel services departing from Hong Kong and inbound travel services for visitors coming to Hong Kong are regulated under the Travel Agents Ordinance. The aim of the ordinance is to minimise the occurrence of fraud and loss to travellers in the event of defaults by outbound travel agents, and to protect the interests of visitors by enhancing the service standards of inbound travel agents. The present regulatory system is made up of two components: a licensing system and a self-regulatory mechanism by the trade.