Economy
Chinese Opt for Trendy McDonald’s Over Hermes in Blow to Hong Kong Tourism
- New kind of Chinese tourist opting for cheaper activities
- Chinese traveled and spent less than before during Golden Week
Mainland Chinese visitors to Hong Kong used to flaunt Hermes handbags in shopping malls for social media photos. These days, the most popular kind of post is a tourist holding a McDonald’s takeout bag on a quiet street in the city’s Mid-Levels district named MacDonnell Road.
Hong Kong is welcoming a new kind of post-pandemic Chinese tourist, who instead of splurging on luxury items now opts for more low-key activities. Getting their cues from influencers on Xiaohongshu, an Instagram-like app, many take selfies on streets with quirky names or dense residential complexes, while others pose outside a police station that has been prominently featured in classic Hong Kong movies.