Crowds swarmed Hong Kong’s Lan Kwai Fong district on October 31, 2026, as Halloween celebrations drew thousands of masked revelers, massive street traffic, and stringent police crowd control measures across multiple districts.
Crowds Pack Lan Kwai Fong as Police Enforce Strict Crowd Control
The narrow slopes of Central’s Lan Kwai Fong filled to capacity on Saturday night, bringing out residents and visitors in elaborate costumes ranging from classic ghosts to anime characters. Police implemented a three-stage road closure and diversion plan starting at 2 p.m. to handle the surging foot traffic. Officers directed pedestrians along single-direction routes, and MTR operations adjusted as Central Station’s D1 exit temporarily closed to help manage the overwhelming crowds.
By evening, the congestion grew so severe that authorities issued public broadcasts urging people to consider alternative destinations, warning that the Lan Kwai Fong area was extremely crowded. Visitors endured wait times of up to 180 minutes just to access the entertainment hub from the International Finance Centre. Other key locations also drew massive attendance figures, including the Tsim Sha Tsui East venue which recorded over 18,000 participants throughout the day, while Mong Kok’s Portland Street hosted a street party featuring a decorated red minibus that created major crowds.
Huanggang Port Opening Boosts Restaurant and Tourist Arrivals
The holiday weekend delivered an economic lift for bars and restaurants. Restaurants saw reservations fully booked weeks in advance.
The opening of the new Huanggang port helped draw visitors from Shenzhen and the wider Greater Bay Area. Immigration Department figures showed that inbound mainland tourist arrivals jumped 35.6% on the preceding Saturday compared to earlier in the month, approaching Golden Week single-day volumes. Visitors such as tourist Ms. Zhou noted that despite waiting roughly an hour for transport, the abundant public transit made returning to Shenzhen manageable.
Sanitation Crews Clean Trash After Holiday Celebrations
By dawn, sanitation crews faced massive cleanup operations along Wyndham Street and surrounding alleyways. Heaps of discarded drink cartons, crushed plastic bottles, and trash bags lined the sidewalks as workers hosed down the pavement, while a small number of late-night celebrants—and isolated instances of intoxicated individuals—remained in the area.