Cathay Pacific to give away 10,000 tickets and restore all flight to help rebuild Hong Kong tourism

Cathay Pacific Airways today announced that it will give away more than 10,000 free tickets to support the Hong Kong Tourism Board's effort to rebuild the local tourism industry following Hong Kong's removal from the World Health Organisation's list of SARS-affected areas.

The airline also confirmed that it will soon operate a full pre-SARS flight schedule.

The 10,000 tickets will be used to support HKTB promotion campaigns all over the world. They will be distributed as competition prizes worldwide, used to support the launch of the board's Welcome Day event in August and help bring international visitors to Hong Kong.

This contribution is in addition to early initiatives already launched by the airline to rebuild confidence and draw business and leisure travellers back  to Hong Kong. More than 80,000 passengers have already snapped up discounted "Early Bird" promotion tickets and will arrive in coming weeks.

Cathay Pacific's "Visit Hong Kong Now" promotion, which has already been launched overseas, offers up to 50 percent off flight and hotel packages, some of which include top Hong Kong hotels such as the Conrad and  Peninsula. A three-day-two-night package is priced as low as HK$1,300 from Bangkok, HK$1,400 from Manila and HK$2,000 from Seoul.

Special offers that have been made available in Hong Kong included the multiple-ticket "Take Off With Hong Kong - Cathay Pacific World Pass". 

Cathay Pacific today also announced that it will soon resume a full flight schedule. The airline will restore 170 weekly flights in July, operate 90 percent of regular services in August and resume a full schedule by the end of September.

Cathay Pacific Director and Chief Operating Officer Philip Chen said: "Hong Kong getting a clean bill of heath is great news and heralds life in Hong Kong fully returning to normal. We will of course remain vigilant and continue to protect the health of all our passengers and staff."

Mr Chen continued: "SARS in many ways showed just how important air travel is to the flow of business and Hong Kong's economy. With the help of initiatives launched by Cathay Pacific and the travel industry we will do our part to rebuild the tourism industry and enhance Hong Kong as Asia's leading aviation hub."

Cathay Pacific was instrumental in the creation of the "We Love Hong Kong" campaign in May to lift Hong Kong over the impact of SARS by encouraging people to get out, spend money and help get life back to normal. It has also played a key role in supporting Government and industry initiatives, such as the Operation Unite Campaign, to draw back travellers back to Hong Kong.

A series of visits sponsored by Cathay Pacific to bring people, including international media representatives, to Hong Kong from all over the world is to take place during the coming weeks.