Two Giant Pandas Land In Hong Kong – Will They Help Boost Tourism?

Hong Kong is hoping to boost its tourism and two cute giant pandas have arrived in the city to draw more tourists. The two pandas were gifted by Beijing on Thursday during a lavish ceremony with the hope of boosting Hong Kong’s tourism.

Two giant pandas head to Hong Kong

Named An An and Ke Ke, the two giant pandas are the third pair to be sent to Hong Kong from mainland China since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. The arrival of the pair comes after their new neighbor, Ying Ying, gave birth to twins in August and became the world’s oldest panda to give birth for the first time in history.

With the arrival of An An and Ke Ke, the mentioned twins, and their father, Le Le, the city now hosts six giant pandas. On Tuesday, Chief Executive John Lee said An An is a five-year-old male panda. He is reportedly very agile, active and intelligent, while Ke Ke, a five-year-old female panda is good at climbing and has a gentle temperament.

Hong Kong hopes the new arrivals will boost tourism

The two, new giant pandas must undergo quarantine for two months to adapt to their new home. Ocean Park is a zoo and aquarium that is a favorite of tourists and residents alike. Lee said he hopes the public will be able to meet the two new pandas in mid-December. In the meantime, the government will invite residents to propose new names for the pair in October to showcase their characteristics.

Moreover, representatives of the tourism industry are optimistic about hosting six pandas while hoping this will boost visitor numbers in Hong Kong. Towards that effort, officials have encouraged local businesses to capitalize on the popularity of the bear and the newborn cubs in order to seize opportunities in what they have dubbed the “panda economy.”

China’s Panda Loan Program

Giant pandas are considered to be the unofficial national mascot of China. Meanwhile, the country’s giant panda loan program to overseas zoos is considered to be a soft-power diplomacy move by Beijing.

As for giant pandas in the wild, currently, they are only found in the southwest of China. However, their population is being threatened by human development. This makes caring for pandas in captivity a good option to prevent the lovable bears from becoming extinct.

However, caring for the giant pandas in captivity is expensive. Due to this, a Finnish zoo has agreed with Chinese officials to return two loaned giant pandas to China some eight years ahead of schedule, because they are too costly for the facility to maintain while suffering declining visitors.

Ocean Park and giant pandas

Meanwhile, Ocean Park in Hong Kong has hosted pandas since 1999, when the first pair, Jia Jia and An An arrived in the city shortly after it was given back to China. Since then, Jia Jia died at the age of 38 in 2016 and was the world’s oldest panda to live in captivity.

Reportedly, a panda’s average lifespan in the wild is 18 to 20 years. Meanwhile, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, pandas in captivity live until 30 years.

Once the two new giant pandas end their quarantine, make sure to visit them at Ocean Park in Hong Kong.