Category: Hong Kong

Travelling to Hong Kong

We travelled to Hong Kong in the month October flying from Heathrow. This was our first destination as we were on our way to Bali. We had booked a private transfer from the airport which was quick and easy. The journey took around 25 minutes from the Airport to the hotel Bishop Lei International house.

Accommodation

Bishop Lei International House is 20-30 minute walk from the centre of Hong Kong and tourist attractions. The hotel was quite basic but met our needs for the time we were in Hong Kong. When we arrived at the hotel the bedding had something unpleasant on it. When we informed reception they upgraded us to a superior room free of charge. The room was still basic but had an amazing view with window from floor to ceiling. We booked a room that included breakfast which was worth booking as there was always something nice to eat. The staff at the hotel were very pleasant and spoke excellent English.

The hotel is up a lot of Hills. Although you can get escalators some of the way there is still a lot of hills to climb. Hong Kong is not a place to visit should you have any difficulties walking as it is very hilly and involves a lot of walking to see the sites and explore the city. There are escalators taking you from one level to another level in the streets though.

Close by to the hotel there are some restaurants and bars. There is also a couple of supermarkets where you can buy most things from.

Places to visit

We queued for 40 minutes to take the tram up to the peak where views of Hong Kong were spectacular. At the top of the peak there are shops and eating places where you can spend as much time as you like. There are also many places to walk to to gain different views of Hong Kong.

We also visited the Big Budda. To get to the Big Budda you need to take a train and a cable car. Although the cable car was still working when we got to the Big Budda we were informed it was closed but a very kind security guard allowed us to go up to the Big Budda. We had had a very heavy drinking night the night before the trip which was not a good idea as we did not get out of bed until mid afternoon.

Nightlife

We were advised that Lan Kwai Fong is the busiest nightlife area. Nightlife in Hong Kong is very good but drinks are very expensive costing around £20 for two pints of beer. Although we did notice a lot of younger people drinking bottles of drinks Cider, Beer, Wicked etc. Consequently we questioned how they could afford to do this when they were so expensive. Then we noticed then that they were going to the 7 Elleven store at the end of the street purchasing the drinks then standing outside bars to drink them. The drinks at the 7 Elleven were a fraction of the cost. On our last night in Hong Kong we decided to do the same and saved a lot of money.

Also we went to Nathan Road which is also known as the Golden Mile. The streets were so busy well in to the night. There were lots of street artists which gained a lot of crowd following. There are many restaurants and shops lining the road to suite all tastes of cuisines.

Places to eat

There is a near by night market which is full of interesting things for sale that you would not find anywhere else. There are lots of street food eating places at the night market. We eat at a very small eating place on the outside skirts of the night market. The food was good and exceptionally cheap compared to other places to eat in Hong Kong.

We went to 188 degrees restaurant which is a lovely restaurant over looking Victoria harbor. The restaurant is on the 41st floor of the Grand Harbour hotel in North Point. The restaurant served modern European food. The views are spectacular therefore the prices reflected the stunning surroundings and good quality food.

Summary

There are so many things to see in do in Hong Kong which we didn’t get chance as we were only there 3 nights on our way to Bali. 5 nights here would have been ideal as we would have been able to see a lot more. We will definitely return to Hongkong if things are safe enough to do so. Should we visit again it would probably be another stop other on our way to another destiantion.

Images

Things to do

• Visit the Big Buddha
• Go up the Peak
• Visit Lan Kwai Fong for nightlife
• Visit a market
• Visit Thousand Buddhas Monastery
• Visit Nathan Road

Top Tips

• Visit the Big Buddha it is a must when in Hong Kong.
• The Peak is also worth a visit as you get amazing views of Hong Kong.
• Hong Kong is very hilly therefore if you have mobility issues be aware of this.
• Drinks are very expensive in the main area’s of Hong Kong but not has expensive away from popular area’s.
• Public transport is good in Hong Kong therefore you can get most places easy and at a low cost.
• Check out the government website before visiting Hong Kong https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/hong-kong/safety-and-security
• Check out weather below for best time to travel to Hong Kong.

Weather

Temp – Celsius Rain – mm	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
High Temp	18	20	22	26	29	30	31	31	29	28	24	20
Low Temp	13	15	17	21	23	26	26	26	25	24	19	14
Rainfall	21	33	45	112	158	237	252	281	166	41	22	21
Number of days	6	9	10	11	115	19	17	17	14	8	6	4