Clear skies as Hong Kong’s first Ferris wheel finally opens for business
Tourists and locals line up to take in view from long-awaited attraction
Around 40 tourists and local residents queued at 5pm on Friday to be among the first to ride on Hong Kong's long-awaited harbourfront Ferris wheel.
Operator Swiss AEX originally said the Hong Kong Observation Wheel would open in September, more than one year into their three-year tenancy to run the wheel next to the Central Ferry Piers.
“Safety is the number one priority of the Hong Kong Observation Wheel, and the best things in life are always worth waiting for. We are proud to say we have now received every necessary licence and permit required,” said Timothy J. Peirson-Smith, spokesman for Swiss AEX.
Passengers will ride the 60-metre high wheel in 42 gondolas each holding eight people, with tickets costing HK$100 for adults and HK$70 for concessions. Each ride lasts up to 20 minutes and operators expect to carry one million passengers a year.
Swiss AEX had previously been criticised for leaving the site vacant for a long period without signs of construction and rival bidders questioned why the government had turned down their higher offers.
The company was awarded a three-year lease by the Lands Department at a monthly rent of HK$850,000.
Student Eunice Yu, 18, was keen to share her snaps from the observation wheel with friends on Instagram after her ride.
“It’s beautiful, there may be bigger wheels overseas but the Hong Kong view is better than in other countries,” Yu said.
Chrissy Zhang, a tourist from Shanghai took her five-year-old son to the attraction after a friend told her it had opened.
“I promised to take him to Ocean Park for the Ferris wheel, but when we went yesterday it was under maintenance, so this made up for it.”
Zhang said her son had made friends with another young boy in the shared gondola and spent the ride bouncing around, which had scared her.
A Post reporter who rode on the wheel thought the ride offered a good close-up view of Victoria Harbour, but the traditional panorama from The Peak was difficult to beat.
Free Wi-Fi supplied by HK Telecom is available in each gondola.
The wheel is open from 11am to 11pm.