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Hong Kong leader John Lee eyes ‘joint tour’ market with Macau, hopes to boost multi-city tourism in Greater Bay Area

  • Chief Executive John Lee visits Macau’s leader Ho Iat-seng on Thursday to talk collaboration, how both cities can benefit from multi-destination travellers
  • Official visit is Lee’s second to Greater Bay Area as chief executive, after trip to Shenzhen and Guangzhou last month

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Tourists go mask-free in Macau in February. Photo: Edmond So

Hong Kong’s leader John Lee Ka-chiu hopes to strengthen ties with Macau in a bid to expand the “joint tour” market and boost multi-destination tourism in the Greater Bay Area, outlining his plans for further cooperation during a meeting with the casino hub’s chief executive on Thursday.

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Lee spearheaded a government delegation to meet Macau’s Chief Executive Ho Iat-seng for an “in-depth discussion” on collaboration efforts and the advancement of “high-quality development” of the Greater Bay Area, a government statement said.

He travelled to the gaming destination in the morning over the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

The trip marked Lee’s second official visit as chief executive to the Greater Bay Area He led a delegation to Guangzhou and Shenzhen last month in a bid to enhance regional collaboration across several areas, especially the flow of talent, innovation and technology, tertiary education and financial services.

Hong Kong-Macau ferry terminal in Sheung Wan. Photo: Jelly Tse
Hong Kong-Macau ferry terminal in Sheung Wan. Photo: Jelly Tse

The Greater Bay Area is Beijing’s plan to link Hong Kong, Macau and nine mainland Chinese cities in Guangdong province into an economic powerhouse by 2035, to rival the United States’ Silicon Valley.

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Lee said during his meeting with Ho that resumption of normal travel between Hong Kong and Macau was the perfect time to deepen tourism cooperation and promote multi-destination travel.

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