If you look out into the harbour, you might see a barge decorated to look like a tropical island paradise complete with sand, fake coconut trees and mannequins in bathing suits. The barge and a new online and offline advertising campaign is internet travel website Zuji's attempt at becoming a household name in Hong Kong.
After a number of false starts and delays, Zuji's chief executive Scott Blume said the internet travel services company, backed by 16 regional airlines and the United States travel site Travelocity, is finally on the path to expansion. Set up in 2000, Zuji has launched its Singapore, Australia, Taiwan and Hong Kong sites only in the past year.
'It took us longer than expected to get the technology right but I think what we have now as a result is a very good, very secure and easy-to-use site,' said Mr Blume.
Online travel is seen by many as one of the few internet sectors with a pulse. Travel websites offer not just cheaper fares and accommodation, but also convenience and control of your own itinerary. In the US, Europe and Australia, where booking for travel online caught on much earlier, the internet travel industry is already an established and lucrative one. But in Asia, more than 90 per cent of travellers still book through travel agents.
Mr Blume said: 'Sure, we aren't expecting a huge percentage to start booking with us. Customer behaviour takes time to change. But that group of tech-savvy, internet-savvy, affluent travellers will grow. We are looking to the long term.'
Zuji will compete directly with Hutchison-Priceline's travel services website. Hutchison-Priceline came to the market about a year ahead of Zuji but, despite a successful advertising campaign, found that its unique name-your-price model did not catch on.
Earlier this year, it introduced a flight and fare search method similar to Zuji's.