The chief executive of the Consumer Council said on Saturday that holidaymakers need to stay alert to changes in border control measures in countries they plan to visit.

Gilly Wong made the comment after the watchdog received dozens of complaints from people who had had their plans to travel to Japan thrown into chaos by changes in regulations.

As part of measures implemented when the mainland relaxed its anti-Covid policies in December, Tokyo capped the number of flights from Hong Kong and restricted them to certain airports. While the measures have since been eased, they have led to hundreds of flight cancellations.

Wong gave this advice to tourists: “Think about the destination first… whether that destination has frequent changes in the policy for tourists. If there are frequent changes in the policy for tourists, obviously there may have create some uncertainties for your trip about whether you can enter the country or any change in flight or even cancellation in flight.”

“Secondly, please allow more time in your itinerary. In case of any change, you still can have some flexibility in your own schedule instead of creating a big disruption to your plan.”

She advised holidaymakers to better understand the terms and conditions of different travel insurance plans so they could choose the most suitable products to protect themselves.