Hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers cross border to mainland China for Mid-Autumn Festival long weekend, eyeing deals and diverse attractions
- More than 300,000 Hongkongers travel to mainland on Friday, with others following on Saturday as three-day long weekend gets under way
- Some of those heading north say cities like Shenzhen offer better value for money and greater food options
Hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers have crossed the border to mainland China for the long weekend that covers the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day, with some saying Shenzhen offers more affordable and appealing options.
Immigration figures showed more than 300,000 Hongkongers headed to the mainland on Friday, with others following on Saturday as the three-day long weekend started.
The Lo Wu border crossing was packed with so many travellers on the first day of the break that some were ushered through checks without completing a mandatory health declaration.
Marketing executive Camila Yeung Mei-kuen, 47, was one of them and spent 40 minutes queuing for immigration and customs clearance in the morning.
“The scanning [of the health code] is always the bottleneck when crossing the border to Shenzhen as only a few scanning machines are available. People pulled out their phones and were ready to scan QR codes but we just walked past,” Yeung said.
