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As regards the second part of the question, the Urban Council at present charges $10 for normal admission and $5 for admission by the disabled, students and senior citizens aged 60 or over. To attract more visitors to the Museum, the Urban Council has implemented a number of incentive schemes. These are:
(a) A 30% group discount for groups of 20 visitors or more, for both normal and concessionary admission.
(b) An annual museum pass for unlimited admission to Council's four main museums (Art, History, Space and Science) at $100 for normal admission and $50 for concessionary admission. A 50% discount is offered for museum pass purchased after 1 October as they are only valid for six months.
(c) A group pass which admits four visitors but is valid for one visit only. The pass is calculated at the normal rate for the admission of two and is $20 each.
(d) A monthly pass, mainly targeted at tourists, at $50 each and is valid for one month from the date of issue. A 10% discount is offered to holders of the pass at all museums' shops and the Council's publication centres.
(e) For pre-booked group visits of 20 people or more, the group leader is admitted free and a free guided tour is given by docents trained by the Museum.
The Urban Council is currently examining ways and means to further popularise museum facilities, particularly those of the Hong Kong Museum of Art.
Regarding the third part of the question, publicity for museum activities is an ongoing effort of the Urban Council's Public Information Unit and a variety of methods are used. These include issuing press releases and feature articles to the electronic and print media, placing advertisements for major exhibitions in newspapers and magazines, advertising packages at MTR stations, Star Ferry Approaches, on TV stations and radios, arranging press conferences and previews of exhibitions for the media and inviting the mass media to attend opening ceremonies of exhibitions. In addition, the Museum produces posters, handouts, exhibition catalogues, and souvenirs to help publicise special events. As part of the Urban Council's current exercise to formulate a 5 Year Plan for the museum services, the need for additiona! publicity will certainly be examined.