Hong Kong is in the midst of pandamania as the city is trying to use the cute animals to lure back tourists.
The panda population in Hong Kong reached six after two new adult giant pandas were gifted to the special administrative region to mark the 27th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland. The pair, An An and Ke Ke, will meet the public for the first time next month.
At Hong Kong’s Ocean Park, the home to the pair of pandas, the excitement to see them is running high.
"We don't have pandas in the Philippines and it's one of the things we really want to see here in Ocean Park and especially here in Hong Kong," said a tourist.
"They are rare animals. You know that all pandas are belonging to China. It is interesting," another tourist said.
Last month, the Ocean Park held a vibrant celebration to mark the 100th day since the birth of the first panda twins in Hong Kong.
The new-born pair, a female and a male, are the offspring of Ying Ying and Le Le, giant pandas gifted by the central government to Hong Kong in 2007.
Officials in Hong Kong are hopeful that the pandas will help to boost tourism in Hong Kong, and have encouraged businesses to capitalize on the popularity of the new pandas to create a "panda economy".
Analysts said the key to driving the economy and bringing in more tourists is to offer something unique and different to other places.
"It might not be a game changer to fully change the challenges that Hong Kong is facing right now. And of course, having pandas can actually give businesses more ideas to cross sell, etc, but at the end of the day, it also depends on the quality of the products that they offer," said Gary Ng, a senior economist of Natixis Hong Kong.
Pandamania sweeps Hong Kong as city hopes to lure back tourists
A former television host from Taiwan, Zhai Xuan, has made a pivotal decision to leave mainstream broadcasting in order to create content that provides a better understanding of the Chinese mainland and cross-strait relations.
Zhai, a seasoned television host with over a decade of experience in Taiwan's media landscape, recently addressed an audience at an event in Beijing, where she revealed her complete transition into independent online media.
In her remarks, she articulated her aspiration to bridge what she perceives as a significant information gap between audiences on both sides of the Strait, highlighting her commitment to fostering a deeper understanding and connection through her new endeavors.
"I was really surprised by all the fake news. There were stories saying people on the mainland can't afford tea eggs or that they live in mud houses and in Taiwan, this was the main information many people received," said Zhai.
Zhai said she initially began producing online videos to challenge such perceptions while continuing her work as a television host.
In April 2025, she travelled to the mainland with her father to fulfill her late grandfather's wish to return to his hometown. The trip, which reunited family members separated since 1949, was recorded in a video series titled "Journey to Find Our Roots", drawing attention from viewers in both Taiwan and the mainland.
"Many people in Taiwan told me that after watching, they wanted to apply for a mainland travel permit immediately and go looking for their relatives. Some had long forgotten these things, but after seeing my story, they began thinking about their hometowns and family members they had never met and decided to search for their roots," Zhai shared her story at the event.
By mid-2025, Zhai said she began to feel increasing pressure amid rising political tensions and a tightening atmosphere around cross-Strait exchanges in Taiwan.
After more than 12 years in the industry, Zhai resigned from her position, believing it was the right thing to do.
"At that moment, I felt this was a major issue，not just for me, but for Chinese people on both sides of the Strait. If I backed down then, I wouldn’t be standing on the right side," said Zhai.
Since leaving television, Zhai has broadened her online programming to encompass a range of daily-life topics, including practical guidance on applying for a mainland travel permit and using commonly employed mobile applications, in addition to content that delves into historical memory and cultural connections across the Strait.
As the debate over cross-Strait relations continues in Taiwan, Zhai said she remains committed to her current path.
Former Taiwan TV host bridges cross-Strait divide via online media
