Need a break? This city is giving 500,000 free flights tickets

If you’re wondering which your next holiday destination should be, here’s a reason why Hong Kong should be on your list. Hong Kong is giving away air tickets and vouchers to woo tourists back to the international financial hub.

John Lee, Chief Executive of Hong Kong launched a tourism campaign “Hello Hong Kong,” saying the city will offer 500,000 free air tickets to welcome tourists from around the world in what he called “probably the world's biggest welcome ever”.

Hong Kong received 56 million visitors in 2019 — over seven times its population — before the pandemic began. But its strict COVID-19 restrictions have been keeping visitors away over the past three years, devastating the tourism sector and its economy. The city's GDP last year fell 3.5 per cent from 2021, according to the government's provisional data.