Fares for Hong Kong’s Ngong Ping 360 cable car set to rise at start of ‘golden week’ break
The price for a round-trip in a standard cabin will jump from HK$210 to HK$235 from October 1
Visitors to the Ngong Ping 360 cable cars on Lantau Island will be hit with an average 10.4 per cent rise in fares from October 1, the first day of China’s National Day holiday.
The company running the tourist attraction announced the new fares on Wednesday due to maintenance costs, following a fare rise for its annual pass in January this year.
Starting from the first day of the seven-day “golden week” break, an adult round-trip in a standard cabin will cost HK$235, up from HK$210.
For a return trip in the premium “crystal cabin” cable cars, which have transparent glass floors, the adult fare will rise from HK$290 to HK$315.
Tickets for children on either of the cable cars for a round-trip will cost HK$10 more than the current price.
“It is necessary to invest many resources in cable car maintenance, including procurement of components from the European factories and inviting European ropeway experts to assist in large-scale maintenance work,” its managing director Stella Kwan Mun-yee said.
Kwan added the firm planned to improve some of the facilities at its Tung Chung Terminal and Ngong Ping Village.
But the company did announce some sweeteners for Hong Kong residents.
From October 1 this year to September 30 next year, local residents who visit the tourist spot on their birthdays can enjoy a free round trip in one of the standard cabin cable cars.
They can also buy the tickets at the current price at the Tung Chung or Ngong Ping Cable Car Terminals until December 31 this year.
The price of the annual pass meanwhile remains unchanged at HK$550.
Ngong Ping 360, a subsidiary of the MTR Corporation that opened in 2006, drew 1.04 million visitors in 2017, down from 1.71 million in 2016. Last year, the attraction was closed for almost five months as the cable car’s wire ropes were replaced.
The 5.7km cable car journey takes about 25 minutes, with panoramic views of North Lantau Country Park, Tung Chung Bay, Hong Kong International Airport and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.
