A Hong Kong Disneyland committee has come up with three suggestions to avoid serious overcrowding problems, and the park is "actively considering" which of them to implement, a spokeswoman said.
Doug Crets
A Hong Kong Disneyland committee has come up with three suggestions to avoid serious overcrowding problems, and the park is "actively considering" which of them to implement, a spokeswoman said.
The solutions include creating a "fast pass" system that will encourage visitors to enter the park at staggered times.
The park may also "dispatch" guests to its Inspiration Lake so they can take pictures. It is also considering hiring more staff to entertain guests while they wait in the humidity and heat.
"We are enhancing our in-park procedures just in case crowds gather outside the park or overcrowding situations happen," said Glendy Chu, media relations manager for Disney.
Chu said that the instructions to modify the park's logistical operations on busy days did not come from the government.
"It's our initiative. We have to proactively deal with measures," she said Friday.
During last year's Labor Day weekend, Disney committed a logistical error when it failed to mark its tickets as "date-specific." It did not anticipate the overwhelming crowds during a very popular mainland holiday.
To prevent a repeat of the anger and discontent experienced by many mainland tourists, Disney changed the way it marks the tickets, so far setting aside 15 days as "special."
Visitors will have to buy those tickets in advance before they can be guaranteed entry, Chu said.
"We have already marked some of the Easter holiday and `Golden Week' holidays as special days," she said.
The park's public affairs offices and park operations management met recently to review the park's other new crowd control options, she said.
"When [the park] is going to reach capacity we might hand out something like a pass, [which] will advise the visitors to come at a designated time," Chu said.
She said it would not be called a "fast pass," but it works like one, allowing entry only during specific hours.
"We are also considering finding additional manpower and additional cast members to help the guests to answer any of their inquiries and to help explain the situation to them," she said.
But Disney has lost on average about 10 percent of its workforce since the park opened on September 12.
"I would say our current staff turnover rate is in peak drop/change season," Chu said.
"We are maintaining a 90 percent staff retention rate. We have a quite stable workforce."
Chu could not say whether the "gross average" of 90 percent came from the past six months or whether sudden changes in turnover occurred in the past few weeks or months.
"A lot of our staff have been with the park for two or three years, we have to bear in mind," she said.
Many people from the United States arrived in Hong Kong during the three years leading up to park's opening in 2005. These contracts are expiring and the staff are headed back to the United States.
Chu said that she did not know how many people will be hired to instruct visitors outside the park on busy days. She stressed it is only an alternative and no final decision has been made. _________________ *~deb~*
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
Utilidors Audio Broadcasting / Utilidors.com / uabmagic.com are in no way affiliated with, endorsed or promoted by the Walt Disney Company or any of its subsidiaries.
All Music and requestable media Copyright the Walt Disney Company or their respective artists / Composers.
