Fast track to Bay Area integration

Moreover, for businesspeople, it will make trips to the mainland much faster and more convenient.

Eddy Li Sau-hung, president of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Association, said the XRL enables the city's businessmen who run factories in the Bay Area to extend their reach to neighboring provinces, such as Hunan, and also Guangxi, which are within four hours away on the new line.

Li, managing director of Hong Kong watch manufacturer the Campell Group, said that with the rising cost of manpower and rents in Guangdong, more profit can be made by transferring some manufacturing to neighboring provinces.

One advantage of the new link over air travel is that its punctuality means some trips can be completed within a day, Li added. Another is that the main stations are usually located in a city center.

Take West Kowloon Station, one of the world's largest underground high-speed rail stations that covers more than 400,000 square meters, as an example.

It is located in one of Hong Kong's busiest commercial centers, with two subway stations nearby - one of them on the Airport Express, by which passengers can reach the airport in 25 minutes.

After the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge opens later this year, Hong Kong, which has the world's eighth-busiest passenger airport, will be connected to the west bank of the Pearl River Estuary, making Guangdong cities such as Zhuhai and Zhongshan, along with Macao, just a two-hour drive away.

Timothy Chui Ting-pong, executive director of the Hong Kong Tourism Association, said some travel agencies in the city plan to introduce Bay Area packages.

"More tourism infrastructure will diversify people's options ... and the time saved for travelers can provide them with a better experience," Chui said.

More transportation options can also trigger competition among cross-boundary coaches, ferries and airlines, leading to fare reductions, which will result in reduced operating costs for travel agencies, he added.

Chui said the industry expects a surge in the number of tourists from the Bay Area to Hong Kong.

According to the latest figures from the Hong Kong Tourism Board, more than 3.63 million people visited the city from the mainland by June this year, accounting for about 77 percent of all visitors.

As West Kowloon Station is surrounded by shopping malls and is next to Victoria Harbour, Chui said a surge in tourist numbers will also lead to a retail industry boom.