(Hong Kong) Pay to sleep on a bus? In Hong Kong, this is the bet made by a new tourist bus company that offers trips without destination, an offer presented as a solution to fight against insomnia problems.
On this sunny Sunday afternoon, some 70 passengers, excited children, but also silver-haired retirees, board two large double-decker buses. Final destination: “nowhere”.
One is a “silent bus”, in which people can sleep, the other is a classic tourist bus.
The 85-kilometer journey begins in a bustling part of the city, before skirting coastal highways and reaching Hong Kong Airport, which has been virtually deserted since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
While some take advantage of the view, others equip themselves with noise-canceling balls and night masks, quickly diving into the arms of Morpheus for five hours, the time of a trip serving several tourist sites.
“I think everyone has had the experience of not being able to sleep at home, while in a bus, you can sleep very soundly, because it swings and vibrates,” Ho Wai told AFP, a recent follower of these silent buses.
“All Hong Kong people are stressed by work, by apartment prices, by life, and now we can no longer travel”, he laments during this singular journey, referring to the strict quarantine rules intended to fight against COVID-19 and which have virtually cut Hong Kong off from the rest of the world.
“With all this accumulated stress, I think a lot of Hong Kong people don’t sleep well.”
“Too good to sleep”
Matthew Chick, another passenger, also decided to be on the trip hoping to resolve the sleep problems encountered in recent weeks.
But it is difficult for him to take his eyes off the sight.
“It’s too good today to sleep,” said the 29-year-old.
Ticket prices range from 99 to 399 HKD ($ 16 to $ 65), with seats on the top floor being more expensive.
According to Frankie Chow, president of Ulu Travel and entrepreneur behind the concept, the routes chosen have as few traffic lights as possible in order to reduce the stops likely to wake up passengers.
For him, the objective of these trips is twofold: to take a nap for people having trouble falling asleep, but also to offer a moment of escape to Hong Kongers wanting to do some sightseeing after 20 months of border closures.
The government’s zero COVID-19 strategy kept the infection rate low, but isolated the international business center.
“Before, I went to the airport every month (to travel) every month,” recalls one of the passengers who requested anonymity. “Besides sleeping, this tour also gives us the feeling of traveling”.