275,000 queue for free tickets from Japan to Hong Kong given out as part of tourism push

Queue for round-trip tickets from Narita, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka or Sapporo airports drew more than 9,000 hopefuls just two minutes into online lucky draw

Previous Korea giveaway drew 130,000 participants and complaints competition was so fierce it was ‘more difficult than buying tickets for a K-pop idol concert’

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Cathay Pacific says people can join the latest race for tickets until July 2. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Published: 3:00pm, 26 Jun 2023Updated: 10:01pm, 26 Jun 2023

More than 275,000 people joined an online queue on Monday for 12,000 free Cathay Pacific Airways air tickets from Japan to Hong Kong, despite the carrier using a lucky draw for its giveaway that will remain open for days.

The competition for round-trip economy-class tickets from Narita, Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka or Sapporo airports drew more than 9,000 hopefuls just two minutes into an online lucky draw opening at 11am (Hong Kong time), with Cathay’s website showing 275,000 users in the queue at 6.40pm.

The last lucky draw was for a giveaway of nearly 11,000 free flights for residents in South Korea, which drew 130,000 participants and complaints that the competition was so fierce it was “more difficult than buying tickets for a K-pop idol concert”.

Those using Cathay’s free air tickets to visit Hong Kong could stay between two and seven days, with the voucher valid from July 12 to April 11, 2024.

The offerings are part of a 700,000-ticket giveaway handled by local airlines under the government’s “Hello Hong Kong” campaign. The city is aiming to attract more than 1.5 million visitors and revive post-pandemic tourism.

For the latest ticket giveaway involving Japan, Cathay said interested parties could join the race until July 2, with winners to be selected at random and the results announced on July 12.