Hong Kong will double down on efforts to promote premium travel experiences, personalized itineraries and concierge services targeting visitors from the Middle East and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations markets in a bid to supercharge the city’s growth as a leading Muslim-friendly and luxury tourism destination, the city’s tourism chief said on Sunday.

During a press conference on the recent Policy Address, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui said the special administrative region government will continue working with various sectors to draw in big spenders.  

Middle East visitor arrivals to Hong Kong skyrocketed year-on-year by 40 percent in the first eight months of 2025, reaching around 54,000, with each spending an average of HK$10,400 ($1,338) — nearly twice the average expenditure of visitors to the city at HK$5,400.

Southeast Asia emerged as Hong Kong’s second-largest source of tourists in 2024, following the Chinese mainland, mainly driven by visitors from Muslim-majority countries, according to the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB).

According to the HKTB, last year saw a significant surge in arrivals from Malaysia, which jumped year-on-year by 50 percent to 405,508. Meanwhile, Indonesian visitors increased by 43 percent, totaling 366,973. The city too logged 16,498 arrivals from the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Law said Hong Kong has now reached third place among Muslim-friendly destinations in the Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2025 and has been crowned, “Most Promising Muslim-friendly Destination of the Year”.

She added that the number of certified halal restaurants in the city has almost doubled since early 2024, rising from 100 to 190 by August of this year.

Law said high-value-added tourists are often looking for “private, tailor-made experiences”, including their method of travel, which could be by private jet or yacht.

“We are coordinating with the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Airport Authority, and other operators to ensure seamless facilitation,” she said.

The latest Policy Address plans will see approximately 600 new yacht berths developed across the city’s key waterfront locations and the development of over 500 additional berths as part of the Hong Kong Airport Authority’s Skytopia project, with specific facilities for superyachts.

Emerging markets have also been raised as a key policy focus for transportation initiatives. At a separate press conference on Sunday afternoon, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan Mei-bo unveiled a civil aviation agreement with Poland and said that the government will prioritize new routes to high-potential markets like South Asia, the Middle East, and South America.

On Sunday afternoon, Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan told reporters he will outline plans for a postponed municipal waste-charging scheme at a LegCo meeting later this month.

As for restaurants itching to apply for permits to admit dogs into their outdoor areas under a new initiative announced in the Policy Address, Tse said that the first approvals are expected by mid-2026.

Contact the writer at wanqing@chinadailyhk.com