HK Disneyland To Revise Ticket After Crowds Turned Back
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
February 4, 2006 5:03 a.m.
--
HONG KONG (AP)--Hong Kong Disneyland will adjust its admission system after hundreds of ticket holders from mainland China were turned away and tried to storm the park, a Disney executive said Saturday.
The problem stemmed from a system in which most tickets sold are valid for six months, but do not guarantee entry on any given day. Hundreds of Chinese New Year holiday-makers who held such tickets, many from the mainland or Taiwan, were barred from the park Wednesday and Thursday because it was full.
Hong Kong Disneyland Managing Director Bill Ernest said the park will not scrap flexible-time tickets, which the tourism industry had demanded.
But the park may set aside peak days for date-specific ticket holders only, Ernest told a news conference.
Turned-away holders of flexible tickets can ask for refunds, he said.
"I personally apologize to the people of Hong Kong, as well as the people of mainland China, for the experience," Ernest said. "We are still learning in this market. This our very first Chinese New Year, frankly."
Ernest said visitor numbers during the holidays have been "unprecedented", but declined to provide an attendance figure.
Television footage showed crowds rebuffed in the recent incident trying to push through the entrance gate, while others clambered over the gate.
Hong Kong Disneyland, a joint venture between The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and the Hong Kong government, opened in September to lukewarm demand. Officials have said the lower-than-expected initial attendance was because many tourists wrongly believed the park would be too crowded in the first few months.
Ernest said keeping crowding under control in the park is important for public safety.
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
February 4, 2006 5:03 a.m.
--
HONG KONG (AP)--Hong Kong Disneyland will adjust its admission system after hundreds of ticket holders from mainland China were turned away and tried to storm the park, a Disney executive said Saturday.
The problem stemmed from a system in which most tickets sold are valid for six months, but do not guarantee entry on any given day. Hundreds of Chinese New Year holiday-makers who held such tickets, many from the mainland or Taiwan, were barred from the park Wednesday and Thursday because it was full.
Hong Kong Disneyland Managing Director Bill Ernest said the park will not scrap flexible-time tickets, which the tourism industry had demanded.
But the park may set aside peak days for date-specific ticket holders only, Ernest told a news conference.
Turned-away holders of flexible tickets can ask for refunds, he said.
"I personally apologize to the people of Hong Kong, as well as the people of mainland China, for the experience," Ernest said. "We are still learning in this market. This our very first Chinese New Year, frankly."
Ernest said visitor numbers during the holidays have been "unprecedented", but declined to provide an attendance figure.
Television footage showed crowds rebuffed in the recent incident trying to push through the entrance gate, while others clambered over the gate.
Hong Kong Disneyland, a joint venture between The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) and the Hong Kong government, opened in September to lukewarm demand. Officials have said the lower-than-expected initial attendance was because many tourists wrongly believed the park would be too crowded in the first few months.
Ernest said keeping crowding under control in the park is important for public safety.
