The Year of the Snake got off to a flying start at Sha Tin Racecourse in Hong Kong on Friday, with punters piling in as betting reached numbers not seen in more than 18 months.

The HK$1.94 billion (US$248.7 million) wagered was the second biggest turnover for a Lunar New Year race day since the city’s return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.

While turnover was down on the HK$2.06 billion bet in 2023, it was up 10.4 per cent on last year’s figure of HK$1.74 billion. It also represented Hong Kong’s biggest betting day since the 2022-23 season finale in July 2023.

Sha Tin was abuzz as 78,921 clicked through the turnstiles – including a record 9,645 tourists – while 6,970 descended on the Happy Valley racecourse to ensure a final crowd number of 85,891 – 2.1 per cent down on the Lunar New Year meeting in 2024.

“I think it was one of the most amazing [Lunar New Year] days. The atmosphere was sensational,” Jockey Club chief executive Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

“We had over 9,600 tourists here and 90 per cent were from the mainland. Turnover was absolutely amazing.