“One good thing about the Asia market is its peak times spread out thoroughly throughout the year,” he said in an exclusive interview with the Post. “This is important not just to the company, but to Hong Kong’s tourism.”
The 6km (3.7 mile) cable car system connects Tung Chung with Ngong Ping on Lantau Island, the site of the Big Buddha, which also has stunning views over the South China Sea, the massive Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, the airport and North Lantau Country Park.
The attraction had 1.38 million visitors in 2023, 95 per cent of the 2019 level. The record was set in 2018 when visitor numbers hit the heights with 1.83 million users.
The MTR Corp’s annual reports showed the cable car service’s revenue hit a record HK$476 million (US$60.8 million) in 2018, but fell to HK$83 million in 2022, the latest figure available.
The core groups of visitors to the cable car destination last year were short-haul markets in Asia, which accounted for a third of the total. A third also came from mainland China and Macau.
Lau said Hong Kong’s lockdown during the pandemic built “a strong base” of resident visitors, who accounted for almost 25 per cent of the total number of visitors last year.
“This had to do with our marketing strategies during Covid, even though we had our budget halved, but we had to keep our profile in the market,” he explained.
The budget was slashed by half over the pandemic, but the cable car company pooled its resources by teaming up with other brands such as Fila sportswear and Pocari soft drinks.
“At that time, there was no way to chase after profit because we had to shut down for months during the pandemic – what we could offer were options for activities other than the cable car,” Lau said.
Hong Kong cracks on with ‘Art March’ as colourful ‘eggs’ set to light up harbour
Hong Kong cracks on with ‘Art March’ as colourful ‘eggs’ set to light up harbour
Lau, who joined the company’s sales team in 2005, climbed the corporate ladder to managing director of the cable car company in 2019.
“At the time when I joined, the attraction was still a construction site in a forest and helicopters were shuttling building materials to the Ngong Ping highlands,” he said.
The cable car business has gone through ups and downs since its debut in 2006.
A cabin fell from the overhead cable in 2007 during a repair and maintenance period before the MTR Corp regained operation of the service from Australia’s Skyrail-ITM and got it back on track.
The news came as it was predicted Hong Kong’s tourism recovery will take another year.
The tourist board said the visitor arrivals were expected to jump 35 per cent in 2024 year on year – about 70 per cent of the 2018 record number.
Cathay Pacific Airways, the city’s flag carrier, earlier this week put back its target of passenger capacity restored to pre-coronavirus levels by three months to the first quarter of 2025.
The airline said the change was mostly down to staff shortages, especially flight crew.
Lau said Ngong Ping 360 also had a shortfall of more than 10 per cent in its almost 300-strong workforce.
Hong Kong’s Cathay ‘learns lesson’, pushes back capacity target by 3 months
Hong Kong’s Cathay ‘learns lesson’, pushes back capacity target by 3 months
He added the bulk of the shortages were in frontline positions, which management planned to get round by increased use of electronic solutions in areas such as ticketing.
Lau said the company had made some bold moves over the pandemic, including a decision not to lay off staff.
It also ruled out any unpaid leave and added 14 days paid sick leave over the crisis to retain staff.
The firm in addition approved a pay rise of at least 3 per cent for staff in 2023, given three months early in September the year before.
“If we did not take these measures, we could have lost even more experienced staff and it was more expensive to hire and train newcomers,” Lau explained.
“[Ngong Ping 360 chairwoman] Jeny [Yeung] was supportive over these measures and made them happen. As people know, there were companies forced to cut headcount and put staff on no-pay leave.”
Lau said the Ngong Ping 360 will add 10 crystal cabins, with transparent tempered glass bottoms and walls, by the fourth quarter of this year to take the number up to 20 in a bid to raise more revenue.
Tickets for the new cabins, which involved an investment of about HK$10 million, will cost HK$350 for a return trip for an adult, about 30 per cent more than for standard ones.
Lau’s successor has yet to be announced.
