Kai Tak Cruise Terminal is the envy of rivals and helping Hong Kong to power ahead
As per our website, government announcements, and other open sources, there were 190 cruise ship calls at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in 2017. This was 78 per cent of the total in Hong Kong. There were 216 ship days.
Per the government, over 780,000 cruise passengers used the Kai Tak terminal in 2017, or 85 per cent of the Hong Kong total. Total Hong Kong cruise throughput in 2017 was already at the high end of the government’s projections for the year 2023, and has more than quadrupled since 2013, when Kai Tak opened. Throughput at Kai Tak has grown much faster than the global industry or the rest of Asia in this time.
The Kai Tak Cruise Terminal’s usage rate well exceeds many other dedicated leisure facilities
Retail space at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal, representing 4 per cent of the terminal area, was fully leased in 2017. One of the seven shops ceased operation, and we are in legal proceedings to recover vacant possession so it can be re-let.
Mr Lo states that Kai Tak is a popular residential district. However, all the land in the Kai Tak area sold to date has been at the far north end of the district, over 2km away from the cruise terminal. There is still no direct road linking north and south Kai Tak.
Cruise home ports are leisure travel facilities, and usage is concentrated on weekends and holidays; there is no weekday business travel by cruise ship.
The Kai Tak Cruise Terminal’s usage rate well exceeds many other dedicated leisure facilities. It is year-round traffic, on average every other day, which is rare and enviable. No cruise terminal in the world hosts as many or as high-profile events as the Kai Tak terminal, despite its busy berthing schedule.