Initial flights under the Hong Kong-Singapore air travel bubble  due to start on May 26  are fully booked because of strong demand from “business travelers” and those making trips to visit relatives, said Jason Wong Chun-tat, chairman of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong.

Singapore is home to two casino resorts: Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands, the latter is run by a unit of Las Vegas Sands Corp and also the parent of Macau operator Sands China. Investment analysts have suggested that Singapore’s casinos need to see a return of inbound foreign tourism in order to thrive.

Starting from May 26,  and for the “first two weeks” of the program, flights between Hong Kong and Singapore “were fully booked,’ with seats having sold out “quickly,” said Mr Wong.

He said a factor was that a limited number of seats was being sold per flight, relative to normal aircraft carrying capacity.

On April 26, Singapore’s Ministry of Transport announced that the the government had agreed with Hong Kong to start a travel bubble between the two on May 26, with one flight per day in each direction, capped at 200 passengers per flight, for at least the first two weeks.

According to Mr Wong, Singapore-bound tour group business from Hong Kong might happen only in “summer” this year, depending on whether a greater number of flights could be arranged under the air travel bubble.

Macau’s Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng, reiterated on April 30 that in order for people to be able to enter Macau quarantine free, after traveling from Hong Kong, the latter city would need to have “zero” Covid-19 cases for 14 days.

The chairman of the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong said that he believed it was “most likely” that were mainland China and Macau to relax travel restrictions facing people traveling from Hong Kong, the mainland and Macau would act correspond.

Editing by Rachel Hu