Almost 250,000 Mainland visitors came to Hong Kong during the May 1 to 3 Labor Day holiday, up 40 percent compare with the same period last year, Hong Kong's Tourism Board said on Tuesday.

The arrival figure on May 1 alone hit 105,834, setting a new single-day record. Those who came under the Individual Visit Scheme reached 179,756, rising 45.5 percent on last year.

Noting Hong Kong's confirmation of the first influenza A/H1N1 case on May 1 last year affected the number of the Mainland arrivals, board chairman James Tien said that this year visitors' desire to travel greatly improved as the economy recovers.

"Indeed, capitalizing on this trend, our local industry partners have launched various special promotions and attractive offers during the Labor Day holidays, which helped instill even greater interest in visiting Hong Kong, especially among those from Guangdong. This, along with visitors' strong consumption sentiments, has driven sustained robust growth in the Mainland arrivals," he said.