Obituary: Memory Tours Hong Kong - A Sudden End, Finally
A stark reminder for travellers booking cheap tours in HK
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Me Jamie, your host, I am English and I have lived in Hong Kong since January 2nd 1972 - I know the place.
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Memory Tours Hong Kong | 2+ years of cheap tours, gone overnight | Hong Kong
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Memory Tours Hong Kong | Website is GONE | Hong Kong
Memory Tours Hong Kong: Gone in a Flash - A sad but predictable end and a wake-up call for the industry. I have been writing about them and their shady business practices for 2+ years so it is no surprise, it was simply a matter of time.
It started with a simple social media post that ended up in a friends in box in early February 2026 which simply said that the owner of Memory Tours, Matt, had vanished and left behind a team of guides who had not been paid and hundreds of visitors who had booked with them, on the days that followed anywhere from 50 - 100 guests who had paid left stranded in a subway station, the company had multiple tours on offer
As a Hong Kong resident since January 2nd 1972 and a private tour guide since 2010, I've now completed over 2,360 tours through J3 Consultants Hong Kong and J3 Private Tours Hong Kong. Like many in our close-knit community of private tour operators—our group includes about a dozen very solid and trustworthy companies
Before I get started on this sorry tale, a special mention for the guide Grace of Memory Tours, I have mentioned her many times in previous posts. Talk about a polarizing character, I did 2 tours with her as the guide because I wanted to see for myself what she was all about (and I was with another Private Tour Guide for one of the tours) I can sum it up very easily, she is exactly like the persona mentioned in all the negative reviews and the total opposite to the persona mentioned in the 5 star reviews. Grace was the go to guide for Memory Tours but was also behind the pushing guests for her to write reviews prior to the tour., I believe (and it is ironic) that Grace was partially responsible for the collapse of Memory Tours with her horrible personality and behaviour.
Memory Tours where known for their budget-friendly day trips to Hong Kong landmarks like the Big Buddha on Lantau Island and city highlights tours, built a reputation on affordability and convenience. However, over the past year or so, a pattern of concerning feedback emerged across platforms like TripAdvisor, Viator, and GetYourGuide.
We're not gloating over the sudden disappearance of Memory Tours. Far from it. We feel real sympathy for the visitors who turned up at meeting points in the past couple of weeks, only to find no guide, no transport, and no answers. Standing around for an hour or more, often in a group of a 50+ or so disappointed people, with phones going unanswered and WhatsApp silent- that's a horrible way to start (or waste) a precious day in Hong Kong.
At the same time, there's a quiet sense of satisfaction among us that the warning signs, which we've been highlighting for over a year, finally caught up with them. Their closure came fast: In just the last two weeks (as of mid-February 2026), their website vanished, bookings were pulled entirely from TripAdvisor Experiences and Viator, and on GetYourGuide where they once had a massive presence - over 60 one-star reviews poured in during the final 10 days alone. (and as of 20th February they where still listed )Many described exactly those no-shows, stranded groups, ignored refund requests, and total radio silence from the company.
Memory Tours Hong Kong
There is no coming back from so many negative Tripadvisor and Get Your Guide reviews
This wasn't a slow wind-down; it was a collapse. The patterns had been building for months: suspiciously low prices that screamed "too good to be true," large groups herded through rushed itineraries, subpar inclusions (skipped snacks, poor lunches, or surprise shopping detours), communication failures, and guides who sometimes struggled with English or crowd control. Then there were the shadier tactics - like pushing guests to post glowing reviews right at the start of the tour, even handling their phones to do it before the tour even began. The five-star reviews often felt generic and short, while the one-star ones told the consistent, troubling story and it seems that most people simply ignored the terrible reviews.
We've discussed this company at length in my blog posts over the past two years, calling out these red flags without mincing words. The truth is, companies like this drag the entire Hong Kong tour industry into disrepute. When visitors get burned - left waiting, out of pocket, or with ruined plans - they don't just blame one operator; they lose trust in tours altogether. In the short term, that hesitation hits all of us: fewer bookings, more cautious travellers double-checking every detail, and a tougher environment even for those of us who prioritize quality, transparency, and real guest care.
People are asking me why so many ignored the obvious signals. If the price is way below market rate for a full-day tour with entries, lunch, and transport - warning. If one-star reviews keep piling up with the same complaints - no-show guides, disorganization, poor value - warning. If the positives sound scripted and vague, while the negatives are detailed and repetitive - warning. If there are reports of pressuring for instant reviews or other dodgy practices - big warning. Yet time and again, folks skim the stars, book the cheap option, and hope for the best. The 1-star reviews are where the real experiences live; skipping them is like ignoring storm clouds because the forecast says "mostly sunny."
Our industry thrives on trust. Ethical operators -with quality offerings, responsive teams, personalized service, and a genuine commitment to making memories - build loyalty and endure. The ones that cut corners eventually implode, but not before causing real harm and collateral damage to everyone else.
To travellers planning Hong Kong: Please, read everything - especially the critical reviews. Trust your gut. Choose operators who value your time and satisfaction over volume. There are plenty of us here who deliver reliable, enriching private tour experiences without the shortcuts.
Memory Tours is gone now, and while we feel sorry for those caught in the fallout, their exit removes a source of ongoing problems. Let's hope it leads to a cleaner, more trustworthy landscape for Hong Kong tourism. We've been warning about this company for a while,maybe now more people will listen.
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Memory Tours Hong Kong | Get Your Guide Negative Reviews | Hong Kong
One of the disconcerting things that has come out of this sorry affair is how the large OTA’s (online travel agencies) have handled this, it basically took 10 days for Tripadvisor and Viator to remove Memory Tour offerings from their website (but the listing remains, you just can’t book with them anymore) but Get Your Guide, well it baffles me that despite 60+ negative 1 star reviews in 10 days they are still offering tours from Memory Tours and you can still make a booking.
Yes, Get Your Guide will refund your money, eventually bit you cannot take back the time and hassle involved in going to the pick up site and waiting for a tour guide that will never show.
I simply do not understand that
Finally, Memory Tours is we believe the same company as Hong Kong Free Walks - https://www.hkfreewalk.org/ and they seemingly closed some time ago with exactly the same problems as Memory Tours, yet the HK Free Walk website is still active, if you read the Memory Tours reviews on Tripadvisor, you will not the Hong Kong Free Walks logo in the Mangement response to reviews, be careful and be warned!
I do not do food tours in Hong Kong but I know people that do!
I am pleased to say a lot of Food Tour Companies will have egg tarts on their tasting menu
I have very specific reasons and part of it is that I do not speak Cantonese or write Chinese, I am from Yorkshire in England and I lack the language gene and it is not through lack of trying and yes a lot of restaurants do not have English menu’s or staff who speak conversational English.
.. and yet I have eaten at close to 1,400 restaurants in Hong Kong since January 2nd 1972, my wife was born in Hong Kong and we have been together over 40 years and her first language is Cantonese and a lot of her family are Chinese or half Chinese so I have never had much of an issue!
This does not translate to doing food tours though, yes, I could do them, no problem there but they would never ever be as good as the food tours done by my friends (see the 3 links above) most of their awesome guides are locally born Hong Kong Chinese and obviously food culture is part of their DNA, it is impossible for me to compete with that!
So please feel free to contact them for food tours
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