Hong Kong will step up law enforcement against coerced shopping, unlicensed tour guides and unfair sales practices targeting visitors during mainland China’s Labour Day “golden week”, the city’s tourism minister has said.

Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Rosanna Law Shuk-pui said on Saturday that hotel occupancy rates in Hong Kong were expected to exceed 90 per cent during the period, with the government estimating 980,000 mainland visitors, up 7 per cent from the same holiday last year.

Law said authorities would step up enforcement to protect visitors’ rights during the period and called on the public to “cherish our travel reputation”.

“The travel industry is a vital part of Hong Kong’s economy. It is a reliable source of income and provides many employment opportunities. We cannot allow anyone to exploit the strong recovery to commit illicit acts,” she said.

According to Law, the Travel Industry Authority will step up patrols to enforce against illicit business practices, forced shopping and unlicensed tour guides during the holiday, which runs from May 1 to 5 this year.

She added that the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department would also conduct patrols at countryside tourism hotspots for crowd management and to mitigate environmental impact.