Travel to Hong Kong

Hong Kong is absolutely one of the world's excellent towns. Regardless of whether on your first visit or your tenth, you'll undoubtedly be surprised and astounded through the city's pulsing existence, hurried pace and frenzy of several lifestyles. Hong Kong is one of the world's true global metropolises – a kind of Gotham City for Asia where just about anything you wish – be it American donuts or even Australian Shiraz – will be available.

When describing Hong Kong to acquaintances who have not been there, I usually say that it is similar to London plonked down in the middle of Asia. Or London with plenty and lots and lots of Chinese individuals. While a fair enough statement, that still does not do Hong Kong justice, with its variety of several cultures and lifestyles and cuisines.

Getting Around

There are 2 uncomplicated transport possibilities in Hong Kong: the Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway (MTR) and your own 2 feet. With these 2 tools at your disposal, you can see literally all of Hong Kong. When you first arrive, you will definitely want to pick up an Octopus Card, the city's mass transit refill card which permits you to swipe onto any of the public transport alternatives in Hong Kong, which includes buses and trains. This is much like the Oyster Card in London.

Getting to the town is effortless, too, with a lot of cheap flights to Hong Kong from most major world cities, including Europe and North America.

What to discover

What to discover in Hong Kong would depend largely on your own likes and dislikes. The very first stop for most guests is a journey up Victoria Peak Tram, a historical funicular railway that carries people on a near-vertical ascent up to Victoria Peak, the highest point in the city overlooking Hong Kong's amazing skyline. You might also want to test Hong Kong's stunning horse racing culture. Your best bet is to catch one of the city's old street trolleys to Happy Valley

Racecourse, where you could enjoy young horses race on grass under the dim sparkle of tall skyscrapers. In Hong Kong's fashionable Soho area, a series of small streets stacked upon each other bursting with attractive shops, small eateries as well as fascinating buildings, you also can desire to have a ride on the world's longest escalator, Central-Mid-Levels-Escalator.

Hong Kong also offers various attractive galleries, or if you are looking for something a bit more spiritual, you could take the intensive travel up to the 10,000 Buddhas Monastery in Sha Tin, in which hundreds of stairs lead you past hundreds of golden buddha statues to a hilltop monastery. Hong Kong is also a shopper's paradise. From the shops in Soho to the upmarket global business stores and multi-level malls in Causeway Bay or perhaps the funky local markets on the Kowloon side of the city, you may more or less discover anything you're after – in most cases at a great price!

Where to stay

Most of Hong Kong's budget accommodation choices are situated along Nathan Road, where a few high-raised structures house youth hostels and guesthouses run by nearby families. When making your reservation for these types of lodging, make sure that you receive confirmation of your bed and be sure to check out the features before you pay, mainly because some are fairly grotty.


Upscale choices vary from major international hotel brands to local boutique hotels. Most of the time, it's possible to pay for just about any cost for a hotel room or hostel bed in Hong Kong, based on your funds.

What exactly to eat

There is only one thing better than shopping in Hong Kong, and that's eating. From small noodle joints to upscale French restaurant, you will locate all sorts of restaurant, eating hall and snack stall on earth in Hong Kong. The Kowloon peninsula, specifically the Mong Kok neighborhood, is really a haven for local Hong Kong restaurants and snack stalls peddling a variety of unusual and crazy bites to eat. On Hong Kong Island, especially in Soho and Central, there are several elegant international dining places for discerning food enthusiasts.

When to go and exactly what to pack

Hong Kong's weather conditions are virtually always mild, and can easily get quite warm and humid throughout the summer. The very best time of year to go to Hong Kong is during the autumn, winter and spring while the temperatures are most liveable. Summers can be really humid and hot in Hong Kong.

It's ideal to pack light and portable garments which breathes and is relaxing for a day of strolling. When you want to travel during the winter, ensure that you bring at least a lightweight jacket or coat in case of a cold spell.

Hong Kong, one of the most densely populated places in the world, is famous for its charm and diverse culture. The residents here lead different way of life and the society is contemporary and capitalistic. Even though the people still follow the Chinese tradition. It is considered as one of the world's vibrant cities since the olden days.

The history of the place has some connection with the Opium War. In the middle of nineteenth century, Great Britain colonized the island. In 1898, an agreement was signed and the city was handed over to British for 99 years. But by 1984, British agreed to give back Hong Kong to China.

Hong Kong is considered as one of the most popular tourist attraction around the world. The city is small but lively with a fantastic night life which is akin to the Caribbean. The city is situated near India and Philippines and is one of the best English speaking areas in Asia.

You can enjoy several mouth-watering cuisines in the region including Chinese, Indian, Mughalai, and international cuisines. Unique Chinese dishes like special dim sum are very tasty. You can also taste other Chinese specialties like chicken lo mein, fried whole trout, Peking duck, stuffed scallops, tofu dishes, mouth-watering Tong Cho oysters, and exotic seafood plates of soft-shell crab topped with crawfish tails.

There are several McDonald's outlets and Western-style restaurants for American and European food. When compared to other tourist locations around the world, this destination is a bit expensive. If you want to reduce your cost of living in Hong Kong, you have to choose dormitories for stay and eat budget meals, usually Chinese dishes, instead of going to other big fancy restaurants. As it is a shopping paradise, it is difficult to resist your desire to buy. So it is better to embrace your money, if you do not need to overspend.

Hong Kong is well known for its thriving service industry and most of the residents are working in either banking, telecommunications, insurance or tourism. It is also popular for its entertainment industry and is considered as the Movie capital of Asia.

As it is both a modern and ancient city, you can find places to stay with out any problem when visiting Hong Kong. Accommodation facilities come in all types of excellence, shapes and prices. Cheap youth hostels with standard amenities and five star luxury hotels with luxurious facilities are offered.

Most of the luxurious facilities are available in Hong Kong Island, the central area of the city. For people looking for cheap accommodation, Kowloon and the New territories offer diverse sources. You can also find hostels in Hong Kong Island. As Hong Kong is a major transportation hub of Asia, it can cater to all budgets.

Hong Kong has a varied mix of characters as a result of lengthy British occupation and a great Chinese influence. The place has a lot to offer tourists around the world; this is the reason why more and more people visit this place year round. Situated in Kowloon, Hong Kong Museum of Art is the best place for history buffs. The Museum houses more than 14,000 items including paintings, calligraphy Hong Kong treasure, art objects, antiques and lithographs.

Hong Kong Disneyland, the fist Disneyland in Asia, offers an enchanting experience to the travelers and natives alike. The park features four main attractions, Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, and Main Street, USA. You can have a view of the entire city from Victoria Peak which is situated around 1810 feet above sea level. Take a cruise around the water of Lantau Island and watch pink dolphins that only live in this water.

Have great fun in Ocean Park which is one of the great attractions in the city. The park houses Lowlands Gardens, Marine Land and Headlands amusement park where you can go and have a ride with cable cars and roller coasters. Have fun with your kids in Water World's wave pools, play area, and water slides.

Hong Kong Space Museum is another major attraction in the city. It features several displays including robotics, telecommunications, energy, computers, and physics. Middle Kingdom, The Central district, Lamma Island, Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery and Wet Market are also worth a visit. Plan your next vacation to this vibrant city now itself.