Encompassing Victoria Harbour and much of the surrounding city skyline, Hong Kong Harbour Fiesta was a sophisticated light and music spectacular that made a powerful international and local impression. Conceived by the HKTB and running from 1-31 July 2022, the event leveraged on the 25th anniversary of the HKSAR to prime overseas audiences for future visits by conveying both the ‘normalcy’ and the striking uniqueness of the city. For Hong Kong residents, it opened up a new perspective on the city and was a uniquely memorable source of summertime excitement.
Iconic on their own, Victoria Harbour and Hong Kong’s famous skyline formed an ideal canvas for a show which was designed to associate the anniversary and the city with inspirational themes and messages such as ‘A New Era: Stability, Prosperity and Opportunity’ and ‘Discovering Tomorrow’. These were expressed through general design themes of rhythm, symbolism and connection, as exemplified by a Symphony of Lights (SOL) soundtrack synchronised with lighting effects which visually accentuated the harbour, the skyline and other iconic landmarks.
Audiences outside the range of broadcast could listen to SOL using a mobile app developed by the Tourism Commission. Notably, the light show was also designed to immerse audiences in its own ‘visual rhythm’ absent of musical accompaniment. It comprised the following elements:
– Symphony of Lights (SOL) interactive lights installed at 40+ prominent buildings and attractions around the harbour.
– 19 synchronised LED screens for celebratory messages and animations. Screens at the Immigration and Revenue Towers displayed continuous synchronised animations.
– Dancing lights at Avenue of Stars, Central Pier No 4-6, Wan Chai Temporary Promenade, Water Sports and Recreation Precinct at Wan Chai Harbourfront, Ocean Terminal, Hong Kong Palace Museum.
– Wash lights at Central Government Offices and Legislative Council Complex.
– Moving lights on Star Ferry.
Beam light and façade wash lighting colours – predominantly purple, blue and green – were selected for maximum visibility in all conditions. LED screen display colours – red, orange, yellow and others – were meanwhile chosen for high contrast and to harmonise with the 25th anniversary logo.
The HKTB recommended viewing the spectacle from five locations on both sides of the harbour or from sightseeing harbour cruises, reducing crowd density and aiding with traffic control. With 31 show nights to choose from, an excessive number of spectators was unlikely to concentrate at any one time – a factor which also enhanced COVID-19 safety.
The production timeline – including securing the cooperation of 40+ properties – was tight. On-site technical teams proved indispensable when a typhoon required equipment to be removed and reassembled on the first scheduled day of the show.
Ultimately the event exceeded all planned KPIs, including:
– 600+ pieces of press coverage, including publicity from local and mainland television channels such as TVB and CCTV, plus overseas online media coverage with a total publicity value of over HK$16 million.
– Maximised international reach of over 14.5 million through special creative and diversified channels.
– Overall satisfaction score of 7.6 out of a possible 10.
– 89% local residents perceived Hong Kong as Asia’s events capital.
– 93% of respondents likely to attend event again.
– High level of local and global awareness: over 720,000 page views on campaign site, overachieving KPIs by 80%.
