Hong Kong wants to pay for your plane ticket to visit this year

I’ve been positively dying to go to Hong Kong for quite some time. But the tickets are never in my budget. Now just might be my chance with the city’s latest enticing offer.

Late last year, Hong Kong announced plans to give away half a million airplane tickets. Now, that hope has become a reality. The city’s airport website has already begun allowing travelers from certain countries access to the deal. 

How and when to score free tickets 

Travelers simply need to select their departure location, and they can be entered to win a roundtrip ticket. The giveaway for the 500,000 free airline tickets will be staggered over the next few months and spread throughout different parts of the world beginning March 1 with Cathay Pacific offering 80,000 free tickets to residents of southeast Asian countries. Travelers from mainland China can apply beginning April 1.

If you’re like me, and you’re busy refreshing the page to see if tickets are available in your part of the world, take a break and pick back up on May 1, when the rest of the world (including us Americans!) will be eligible to enter the giveaway. 

Why is Hong Kong hosting the giveaway? 

Following Hong Kong’s devastating collapse in its tourism industry as a result of civil unrest in 2019 and the pandemic, the tourism board purchased tickets from carriers in 2020 to aid in its government support package for the aviation sector.

And there are more deals 

In addition to Cathay Pacific, HK Express, Hong Kong Airlines, and Greater Bay Airlines giving away free tickets over the next few months, visitors to Hong Kong will also be offered discounts to experience the city in all its glory. Expect deals on restaurants, shops, museums, and more.