July 1 | West Kowloon’s Two Museums Are Free to Enter; Palace Museum Requires Advance Booking—Many People Hit a Dead End

Today is July 1st, and the West Kowloon Cultural District is offering free admission to specific exhibitions at the Hong Kong Palace Museum and M+ for the public. Entry to M+ exhibitions is on a first-come, first-served basis, while the Hong Kong Palace Museum requires advance booking. However, many visitors were unaware of this and showed up at the venue only to be turned away. Some hope that next time, the information will be "made clearer."

Citizen: "Originally planned to come and take a look since it's free."

Citizen Mr. Tan originally intended to visit the Hong Kong Palace Museum in the afternoon, thinking, "I'd come over to see it for free." But upon arrival, he learned that advance booking was required. He hopes next time it can be made clearer. "I only saw that Halls 1 to 7 are free. A lot of people are like me, they don't know. It's unclear." As for his day off today, Mr. Tan said he had no special plans. "I just woke up, had a meal, and had nowhere to go, so I came for a stroll. Turns out I couldn't get in—all for nothing." He plans to check out M+, which doesn't require a reservation, or take a walk around the West Kowloon Cultural District.

Mr. Cheng also brought his 7-year-old daughter today, planning to visit the Palace Museum on their day off. He admitted he had originally planned to buy tickets on-site anyway. "I figured there definitely wouldn't be free tickets. The quota is so small." In the end, not only were there no free tickets, but the crowd was also larger than expected, so he decided to come back on a weekday. "Since I'd have to buy tickets anyway, I might as well come next Monday, when there will definitely be fewer people." Mr. Cheng added that they would head to M+ next and then take his daughter to see the Minions movie at the cinema.

Some visitors still bought tickets to see the Egyptian special exhibition.

Mr. Yeung and his family visited the Palace Museum today to see the Egyptian special exhibition. He said they had bought tickets well in advance, treating it as a family activity for the holiday. "It's about learning about different cultures." His son, who is about to enter fifth grade, said he studied Egyptian culture in third grade and has a strong interest in it. However, Mr. Yeung admitted he didn't expect the museum to be so crowded today due to the free admission, but he understood. He also mentioned that his work is usually busy, so only on a holiday like this can he go out with his kids. "Running into such a big crowd today—there's nothing to be done about it." He believes that while the permanent exhibitions are free today, special exhibitions like the Egyptian one still require tickets, so the crowds inside should be smaller.

M+ free entry: visitors say exhibitions are very different from traditional ones.

The other museum, M+, does not require reservations for entry, attracting many visitors who lined up, with queues forming outside. Mr. Chow, who occasionally visits art galleries, came to M+ for the first time today. He said the exhibits at M+ are "very different" from those at traditional museums. He noted that traditional history and modern art each have their own fans, and joked that compared to the artifacts at the Palace Museum, he actually prefers the Palace Museum's exhibits. He admitted, "Modern art is not that easy to understand or appreciate," so today he came with the mindset of "observing and learning." As for the free admission today, Mr. Chow said there were fewer people than expected, and the queuing situation was better than he had imagined.

Primary school third-grader Quan also visited M+ today with his mother. The exhibits inside were profound, and Quan admitted, "I don't understand them, but I like them." Since today is a free admission day, Quan felt there were "a lot of people" inside, but thankfully the space was spacious, so it didn't feel too crowded. He said this wasn't his first visit to M+, but it still felt fresh.

Meanwhile, this afternoon on the Eastern Coast Boardwalk, some visitors also "gathered" to wave national flags to celebrate the July 1st handover anniversary, attracting many onlookers.