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SCMP Reporter

Visitors wanting an even better view when they take the Lantau cable car can, from today, start booking rides in its new 'crystal cabins', which provide a view below as well as all around.
The glass-bottomed cabins will open to the public next Saturday but bookings can be made from today, online and  at booking offices.
The 12 new cabins on the Ngong Ping 360 cable car are dispersed among the 97 other cabins at regular intervals.
Ngong Ping 360 head of commercial and business development Wilson Shao Shing-ming  said the cabins  met European safety standards. 
'Even though the material is glass, when it was imported from France we did fatigue tests on it ... there  was no problem,' he said. 
Visitors could 'even jump on the glass' without breaking it. But he urged those with vertigo to  think carefully before taking the new ride.
The transparent, green-tinged bottom consists of three layers of tempered glass 4.84cm thick.
The crystal cabins, which can accommodate 10 passengers each, are based on the cable car's original cabins. A pole in the middle of the cars was removed to offer extra space and a more unobstructed view.
Mr Shao said he would not make projections on the cabins' impact on visitor traffic. But he said he expected to recover the 'seven-digit' cost 'within a short period of time'.
Tourist Thomas Peterson, from Dubai, said: 'I don't think I'll pay more [for the crystal cabins]. It's already quite easy to see out.'
But Australian tourist David Fleming disagreed, saying the ride should be 'thrilling' and the extra cost 'worth the experience'. 
A round trip in a crystal cabin costs HK$157 per adult, and a single journeys is HK$109. 
Bookings can be made at  ticket offices and online at www.np360.com.hk.



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Thrill seekers can book cable car's 'crystal cabins' from today