Most of the people flying into Hong Kong on Sunday after authorities eased entry restrictions in place for more than two years were either residents or domestic helpers, with many expressing relief over finally being allowed to travel to the city.
“It is good that Hong Kong is opening up to the outside world, although it may be a few months behind other countries and regions,” he said. “As the peak of the pandemic overseas has passed, it is natural for the city to reopen its borders.” While Hong Kong has ended the entry ban on foreigners, non-resident visitors must spend seven days in compulsory quarantine in a government-approved hotel, the same as returning locals.
A local resident surnamed Siu, who lives in Australia and returned to Hong Kong from Singapore to visit his family, said he had waited three years to return to the city. Siu also urged the government to consider waiving the isolation requirement in cases that deserved compassionate consideration, such as people coming to visit gravely ill parents.
While the mall saw more customers over the Easter weekend, business fell drastically after April 21, the day authorities relaxed social-distancing measures and many other choices for leisure activity became available, she said.“People would rather go to theme parks or the films. The Peak is not a place where locals visit more than once within a short period of time,” she said. “Unless we return to the stage where visitors are arriving in groups by tour buses, business is still going to be slow.