Travel Industry Council supports charging for booking Po Pin Chau walk

A trial entry reservation system was launched this month for the Po Pin Chau section of High Island Reservoir in Sai Kung. Over the recent Mid-Autumn Festival long weekend, nearly half of those who made reservations were "no-shows." In response to suggestions to introduce a booking fee, the Travel Industry Council expressed that this would help prevent no-shows and recommended allocating a portion of the quota to tour groups.

Fanny Yeung, Executive Director of the Travel Industry Council said, "We all agree that there should be a charging mechanism so that it won't be cost-free for visitors or Hong Kong residents to make reservations. Another suggestion of ours is to set aside a portion of the quota for our tour groups under a 'group-in, group-out' arrangement. Of course, this would be handled through travel agencies, and a booking system could be managed via our Travel Industry Council. We would know which travel agency is involved, and if they fail to show up once or twice, we could implement a penalty mechanism to bar them from making further bookings. Conversely, this would help prevent quota waste while offering tourists a different experience."