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China Cities ~ Hong Kong China Pictures & Info

New Territories, Hong Kong Islands, Markets, great food!

china cities hong  kong duk ling chinese junkOf all the China Cities, Hong Kong is my favorite!

Actually, Hong Kong is probably my favorite city anywhere in the world! I love Hong Kong shopping (see Stanley market)! I even love the Hong Kong Airport (official site)!

I love the natural beauty of the Hong Kong Islands, like Lantau, the harbour views from Victoria Peak and from the deck of the Duk Ling (photo).

The Duk Ling, a refurbished Chinese junk, takes visitors on short  trips around Victoria Harbour several days each week for a small fee. Contact the Hong Kong Tourism Bureau (HKTB) in either TST (Tsim Sha Tsui) at the Star Ferry Pier for booking information or check for. private tours operators.  HKTB is a great spot to pick up free Hong Kong area maps, tours and other travel information, for Hong Kong/TST as well as attractions such Wetlands Park in the New Territories.

Getting Around by OCTOPUS in Hong Kong and New Territories Transit: To make it easy to pay for train, bus, ferry transit around Hong Kong, pick up an OCTOPUS card at any MTR (subway train) OCTOPUS terminal machine. Pre-load the card then simply swipe it to pay your fare on area transit. OCTOPUS cards are also honoured at other outlets, such as McDonalds and convenience stores. Start with $20 USD/CAD and see how you go; each time you use it, it shows on the scanner the amount remaining on the card. See the official site for details.

From Hong Kong, I've flown to Sabah Borneo Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, and China cities Beijing, Haikou Hainan. TIP to get the hotel you want, or indeed ANY hotel: Check hotel availability, check flight availability and book at the same time. Hong Kong is a very busy and popular destination for business, tourism and family visits.

Take along a good Hong Kong travel guide, like Frommer's Hong Kong (Amazon) or the Insight Guide to Hong Kong, and a companion map like the Insight Guide City Map for Hong Kong (includes Macau and Guangzhou (Canton).

Check to see if you need a visa (most tourists do not, for up to 90 days) as long as you stay in Hong Kong SAR.

Day Tours to Macau/ Shenzhen/ Guangzhou: Official tour operators can arrange for a one-day visa for China. Some terms and conditions may apply. Check with your tour operator.

What to Pack for Hong Kong : see Packing tips China page. I traveled most recently in January (winter) and needed a light jacket most days, as well as a rain jacket. Temperatures for a few weeks in January and early February were between 12C-18C (54F-66F), which is very cold to Hong Kong residents, many of whom wore down jackets with fur trim hoods, as well as winter boots with fur or shearling trim. To a Canadian, these temperatures mean "Spring" or "Summer".

Weather Hong Kong: See HK Government weather info for current week conditions.

Note: it may be several degrees colder inland, in Shenzhen and Guangzhou, or at altitude, such as at Victoria Peak or in the Cable Car. Hong Kong is humid year round. Travel in Spring, Summer, Fall most often means heat and humidity.

Come Back to Hong Kong! Though I've travelled to Hong Kong many times, I never tire of this China city, and still haven't seen all that Hong Kong has to offer, such as the Ngong Ping cable car that runs from near the HKG airport to Lantau Island. Just my luck: Mechanical problems forced its closure for 10 days.



Did you know that Hong Kong . . . Facts About Hong Kong

  • Population lives in about 25 percent of the land area; fully 75 percent of Hong Kong is green space.

  • Has hundreds of outlying islands, with 23 country parks and 4 major hiking trails as well as dozens of shorter routes.

  • Has a cable car from Hong Kong Airport to the Giant Buddha on Lantau Island? See my blog post about the Ngong Ping 360.

  • Tourism Board at Star Ferry Pier terminal in Kowloon (Tsim Sha Tsui) has free Hong Kong maps, tour information and Cities Guides. Reserve a seat on the Duk Ling (photo) for a free tour of the harbour here.

  • is the hub city for Cathay Pacific; All-Asia pass includes travel to other cities in Asia and Australia.

  • has about 7 million residents and more than 46 million visitors in 2011.

  • has a Disney World near the airport.

  • lets you play golf at the airport and shop at the Terminal 2 mall.
  • new cruise terminal planned for Kai Tak (the site of the old Hong Kong Airport)