The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is a Government-subvented body founded in 2001. The Board replaced the Hong Kong Tourist Association (HKTA) established in 1957. It has 15 branch offices and representative offices in 6 markets around the world, and its primary mission is to maximize the social and economic contribution that tourism makes to the community of Hong Kong, and consolidate the city's position as a desired destination. HKTA works with the Government, travel industry and other partners to market and promote Hong Kong worldwide, improving the range and quality of visitor facilities and tourism service standards, and enhancing the experiences of visitors.
Visitor centres
Hong Kong International Airport – Transfer Area and Buffer Halls A and B, Arrivals Level, Terminal 1 Lo Wu – Arrival Hall, 2/F, Lo Wu Terminal Building, Lo Wu Control Point Hong Kong Island – The Peak Piazza Kowloon – Star Ferry Concourse, Tsim Sha Tsui
HKTB Board
The HKTB Board is appointed by the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR Government and is made up of 20 members from various industries. The Commissioner for Tourism, who is a government official, holds the capacity as Deputy Chairman of the HKTB.
Quality Tourism Services (QTS) scheme
Launched in November 1999, the Quality Tourism Services (QTS) Scheme (Traditional Chinese: 優質旅遊服務) is an accreditation programme which promotes service excellence among local businesses and assists customers with identifying quality service providers. To qualify, a merchant must fulfill a prescribed criteria and undergo annual assessments. Initially, only shops and restaurants were covered by the QTS scheme. The scheme was extended to accommodations and hair salons in November 2006 and March 2010 respectively.
As of March 2010, over 7,200 merchant outlets have been accredited under the QTS scheme. The QTS scheme is one of the most successful consumer protection programmes in Hong Kong. The Intellectual Property Department reported in 2008 that 4,700 outlets had joined its "No Fakes Pledge" – another well-known consumer protection programme in the territory.
All accredited merchants must display the gold and black QTS sign on their shop windows for recognition. After the launch of the QTS scheme, the use of membership badges bearing the iconic red junk logos of the former HKTA was discontinued in 2000. The HKTA membership badge was first introduced in 1965.
TV commercial
Starring famous Hong Kong actor/singer/producer Andy Lau, the 2003 commercial was inspired by Lau's 2002 blockbuster movie Infernal Affairs – a movie about an undercover cop and a bad cop working for the triads. The core message of the commercial is shops selling genuine goods and providing high standard service should set themselves apart from dishonest merchants by getting the QTS accreditation. The commercial is currently still aired from time to time.
The QTS commercial is often confused with another public service announcement (PSA) promoting quality services which was also fronted by Andy Lau. The PSA was filmed in 2002 by the Information Services Department. There were 5 different versions all featuring rude vs. courteous shop assistants and drivers. Titled "Success Starts with Quality Service" (優質服務 致勝之道), the PSA was a huge success as one of Lau's lines, "Service like this just isn't good enough in today's standard" (今時今日咁嘅服務態度未夠架) has become a popular Hong Kong slang term used to describe poor service or a bad tempered person.
VIP offers
Simply by presenting his/her travel document and a copy of QTS promotional leaflet at a participating QTS merchant, visitor can enjoy special privileges ranging from exclusive discount to small gift (e.g. a free silk tee for purchasing a suit at a custom tailor). In addition to displaying the QTS gold and black sign, participating QTS merchants would also display the red VIP Offers sign as recognition. The VIP Offers programme was discontinued on 31 December 2008.
Incidents
3D-GOLD Jewellery () Investigations were launched against one of the 3D-GOLD outlets after 40 customers complained they had been harassed by staff and prevented from leaving the shop. The entire 3D-GOLD chain store was stripped of its QTS status with effect from 1 December 2004. This was the first termination in the scheme's history.
The original 3D-GOLD Jewellery Holdings got into more controversies with the sudden death of its chairman, delisting from the stock exchange and it was on the verge of liquidation by the end of 2008. In July 2009, the jeweller was officially taken over by Hong Kong Resources Holdings ().