The Hong Kong Tourism Board has reported a strong rebound for Meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) tourism in the first half of 2024. Over 60 world-class MICE events were secured, spanning key sectors, including aviation, education and architecture, medical sciences, I&T, and financial services.
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has reported a strong rebound in tourism for meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE) in the first half of 2024. Hong Kong received about 21 million visitors between January and June this year, with around half of them choosing an overnight stay.
Among overnight visitors, MICE arrivals accounted for 700,000 visitors, which has recovered to about 80% of the level recorded in the same period of 2018, making MICE the fastest-recovering visitor segment in Hong Kong.
The MICE sector attracts high-yield visitors to the city and helps to solidify Hong Kong’s international image as the world’s meeting place. Each overnight MICE visitor spent an average of HK$8,000, which was about 20–30% higher than the average per-capita spending of all inbound travellers.
In 2023, MICE visitors were longer stayers, staying an average of 3.7 nights, compared to the average of 3.2 nights for all overnight visitors. MICE tourism helped attract more international tourists, too, evident by the fact that half of the overnight MICE visitors came from international markets, compared to 25% of all overnight visitors.
Over 60 world congresses, the region’s first trade shows and mega meetings brought in more than 180,000 inbound visitors.
The impetus to grow the MICE sector is sustained. The HKTB has facilitated public and private sector bids for regional and international events and helped secure over 60 large-scale international MICE events for Hong Kong slated for between 2024 and 2026. Many of these events will be hosted for the first time in Hong Kong. The line-up of events is expected to attract more than 180,000 Mainland and international visitors.
The events span a wide range of themes and industries. Sectors where Hong Kong boasts unique strengths include innovation and technology (I&T), medical sciences, and financial services. New themes from other sectors, such as aviation, architecture, and education, are also trending among the latest event wins.
Notable wins include the triumphant return of ACM SIGGRAPH Asia 2025 after the last conference held in Hong Kong in 2013 and a number of the region’s first conventions and exhibitions across different sectors, including SmartCon 2024 and Consensus Hong Kong 2025 in the I&T sector and Super Terminal Expo 2024, Routes World 2025, and Airspace Asia Pacific 2025 & 2027 in the aviation sector.
Other prominent congresses that will make their global debut in Hong Kong include the World Cancer Congress 2026 and the International Federation of Landscape Architects World Congress 2026.
By drawing these events, Hong Kong is solidifying its status as the world’s meeting place, strengthening the city’s leading status across these industry sectors.