Hong Kong has announced a major expansion of its Southbound Travel for Guangdong Vehicles scheme, extending cross-border self-driving access from the Greater Bay Area to eventually cover all 21 cities in Guangdong Province by early 2027.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government said on June 8 that the scheme, launched in late 2025, has been operating smoothly with growing demand. As of end-May 2026, approximately 8,400 applications have been approved with around 6,700 travel bookings made. During the mainland Labour Day Golden Week, bookings were oversubscribed two to three times.
The expansion will take place in phases. Starting mid-2026, the scheme extends to all nine mainland cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, adding Shenzhen, Foshan, Dongguan, Huizhou and Zhaoqing to the existing five cities. The daily travel booking quota will double from 100 to 200 vehicles, with each vehicle permitted to stay in Hong Kong for up to three days.
Guangdong vehicles from the five new cities will be able to use the Park and Fly service at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port carpark from June 15, while full travel access via the bridge begins July 25. A new Park and Visit service, allowing mainland drivers to park and take public transport into Hong Kong, launches simultaneously for all nine GBA cities.
Hong Kong's Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Mable Chan, thanked the central government and Guangdong provincial government for their support. "The northbound and southbound travel arrangements have opened up a new model for residents to travel between the two places by self-driving, fostering a new ground for the connectivity within the GBA through the HZMB," Chan said.
The scheme aims to attract mainland tourists with higher purchasing power, including individuals and families, to support Hong Kong's economic growth. Application registration for residents of the new cities opens June 9, with balloting from June 29 and travel commencing July 25.
The Park and Visit service represents a new concept, allowing Guangdong visitors to drive to the HZMB Hong Kong Port, park their vehicle, clear immigration, and then use local public transportation to explore Hong Kong without needing a local driving permit.
Hong Kong and Guangdong will continue monitoring implementation and target full expansion to all 21 Guangdong cities by the first quarter of 2027, subject to operational performance and public adaptation.
