I reserved a room at Harbour Plaza Hotel HK for 3 nights. If any of you has stayed there before, pls provide any comments. I was told it is a 5-Star hotel, but we paid US$85 a night from my travel agency. It seems to be quite low for a 5 star. Conrad and Marriott and Sheraton are all around $120-169.
http://www.harbourplaza.com/hphk/index.shtm

[This message has been edited by sxchan (edited 02-06-2003).]

You'll like it, good hotel and good view. Price is low because the location is a bit inconvenient for business people so they have to drop the rate to attract tourists. In the boom years it would have been more successful, but it really is a 5 star hotel by US standards. Don't expect the Peninsula, but with all the construction at the Sheraton it probably is a better choice than the Sheraton (until the construction finishes).

Agreed with all of that. It is apparently the hotel where the President of China normally stays when he visits HK.

It is very easy to get to HK Island during the day using the Star Ferry, to either Wanchai or Central, which docks only a couple of minutes walk from the hotel. The only problem with this is that both these routes stop running around 7-30pm, so you would need to use a taxi (or buses) after that. ( http://www.starferry.com.hk for the schedules)

Could someone please refer me to an agent who can provide good rates for this hotel? Thanks! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/smile.gif

try this agency....

Aberdeens Tour http://www.aberdeentours.com and they have contracted rates for Harbor Plaza - it ranges from USD88 to 188 depending on seasonality or occupancy rate.

The reason for its notariety is that it is the main/biggest hotel owned by Lee Kashing, HK's richest man and that is why it has such high standards and gets Chinese VVip's. (He also owns about everything else within a kilometer or two of the hotel as well.

This gets me thinking. All the other major hotels in Hong Kong are owned or operated by US/European chains, or the Peninsula or Mandarin-Oriental groups, both of which have close ties to the previous colonial government.

Add to that Li Ka-Shing has been pretty supportive for the Beijing government, it's a no brainer that the Chinese VIPs will stay at his place instead of other better-known hotels.

I am planning on a trip to Hong Kong in the Sep/Oct 04 timeframe and have a few questions about my first visit. I have always been intrigued about HK and can't wait to visit. I think I will be there (with a friend) for about 5 days. I will be traveling from Hawaii and he will be coming in from the East Coast. We want to spend 3 nights at a convenient, modern hotel and wrap up the trip with 2 nights at the Peninsula. What is the best way to book two separate hotel stays? I checked Travelocity and they listed the usual (Hilton, Sheraton, Marriott, etc) in the $200-300 a night range. What is the best way to get into town from the airport? Is 5 days enough to experiece the basics of Hong Kong? Thanks in advance for any helpful suggestions.

Yes, 5 days is enough to cover the basics of Hong Kong, unless you're a big shopper, then who knows...

The best way to get to/from the airport, if you're staying at a 5* hotel like the Peninsula, Mandarin Oriental or Inter-Continental, is to use the hotel's car service. The Peninsula has had a fleet of Rolls-Royces for decades in ferrying their customers to/from the airport.

Otherwise, you can take the Airport Express train to the city, and then transfer to a taxi. [I don't think you'll really want to wait around for the free shuttle bus, if you're staying at the Peninsula, etc...]

The Peninsula has a helipad on its roof and offers a helicoptor transfer from the airport as well if money is no object. (I don't think I saves you more than 10mins on the transfer since you need to get to the helicoptor part of the airport.)

The Peninsula has a helipad on its roof and offers a helicoptor transfer from the airport as well if money is no object.It also might cost more than your ticket LAX-HKG (several thousand USD due to the expense of landing fees at the airport). Far cheaper to fly to Macau instead.

This gets me thinking. All the other major hotels in Hong Kong are owned or operated by US/European chains, or the Peninsula or Mandarin-Oriental groups, both of which have close ties to the previous colonial government.


I think you'll find that when you dig beneath the surface a bit, the tycoons own or control a MUCH larger percentage of the major hotels than you're suggesting (whether or not they employ western brands is irrelevant).