Canadian flies nonstop daily

Fram page 3D

supposedly waiting for a
property boom after the han-
dover.

Meanwhile as Hong Kong
waits for good times to
return, there is concern over
cutbacks in the teaching of
English.

Some in Hong Kong may
not mind as a reaction to 155
years of colonial rule. But
visit Beijing, and people rush
up wanting to speak English.
Even the French, recognizing
the supremacy of the new lin-
gua franca, are learning
English as fast as they can.

A language barrier would
surely hamper Hong Kong’s
dealings with the rest of the
world, the very thing that
made it rich, famous and in
the end a mecca for tourists.

Mind you Disneyland is
coming to Hong Kong, and
as it will be looking for busi-
ness beyond Kowloon it’s
unlikely that the Magic
Kingdom will operate in
Cantonese. Maybe Mickey
Mouse will save Hong Kong.

Canadian Airlines flies
nonstop daily from
Vancouver to Hong Kong.

Qoa0

Check with a travel agent
for best fares to Hong Kong
and hotel packages.

Tourism
atrivais
increase

HONG Kong could be
witnessing the first evi-
dence of a tourism
turnaround.

Despite total visitor arrivals
for 1998 registering a down-
turn from the previous year,
the month of December reg-
istered an 11.1% increase
over December 1997.. That
brought the total number of
arrivals for 1998 to 9.6 mil-
lion, 8% less than the number
of visitors for 1997 but, when
comparing the —_ post-
Handover period, there was a
growth of 7.5% between July
and December.

Canadian visitor arrivals
for December 1998 rose 17.7
%. The total number of
Canadian visitors in 1998 was
194,351, an increase of 9.2%.

Don’t be afraid to ask
about prices of upmarker
hotels as many are discounting
heavily because of the down-
turn in the economy and
tourism.

Now is a good time to
check rates at the elegant
Mandarin Oriental, for exam-
ple. The hotel, which has the
best location in Central, is
part of the same group as the
famed Oriental of Bangkok.

Whatever you do don’t
miss lunch at Vong’s restau-
rant at the Mandarin Oriental.
Epic harbour views accompa-
ny French cuisine with an
Asian flair.

north shore news

7 3

=a

Beware tourist hotels with
tiny rooms and paper-thin
walls. | had the misfortune
also to bunk at the Kimberley
in Kowloon, where the morn-
ing noise from the corridor
sounded like the Long March
getting under way. Check that
your travel agent has stayed at
the hotet they are recom-
mending.

Ifnot, consider the
Excelsior, where British
Airways crews stay, a name-
brand hotel such as Sheraton,
or give yourself'a real treat
just for once and cry the pam-
pering at the Mandarin
Oriental.

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