TravelLawyer

They've gone back to the December 2016 opening language on the website (no mention of March 2017):

This hotel will soon be joining the Hilton Worldwide Portfolio of Brands but is not yet accepting reservations. It is scheduled to open in December 2016.

lax2010

Just be advised that the ferry terminal at HKG (airport) is on the port side. Thus, unless you have a valid departing plane ticket, I doubt that you can take the ferry from Macau to HKG (airport).

Kacee

That's about the worst possible day-of-arrival plan I can imagine.

jbeckett

This is correct. When you arrive at HKG airport, you have the choice of taking the ferry to Macau (you do not go through Hong Kong immigration and enter Hong Kong, instead your entry is into Macau), or going through immigration and entering Hong Kong. If you enter Hong Kong when your flight arrives, you will not be able to take the ferry from Hong Kong airport to Macau - you will have to go into the city and take it from there. So with your plan, you will have to pick up your luggage in Macau (the ferry company will obtain it directly from the airline, you will not see it until you reach Macau), find a place to store it in Macau, and then carry it back to HKG.

To board the ferry in Macau to the HKG airport, you must have a same day boarding pass for a flight departing from HKG.

I agree. Macau is a very nice place to visit, but a day trip is not enough time. Come back some other time when you can spend at least a couple of nights there. You will have lots to do in Hong Kong, go ahead and spend the five nights there and enjoy it.

You'll have a unique experience either way - Hong Kong is a great city to visit. If I was trying to conserve points, I'd go with the HGI in Mongkok. You should try to find out the HGI room size though if you do this, sometimes Hong Kong hotel rooms are small.

dw

Boarding requirements for HKG bound ferries from Macau:

https://www.turbojet.com.hk/en/airpo...g-airport.aspx

jbeckett

Don't stay (don't even think about staying!) in Shenzhen if you want to visit Hong Kong. You will spend a lot of time in immigration lines and transport between the cities. China immigration is very similar to U.S. immigration - the lines can be atrocious. At HGI Kowloon, you'll be in a very good location.

Conrad or HGI location are both good with respect to sightseeing. There is more that you will be interested in within walking distance from Conrad, but the public transportation is cheap, frequent, and easy to use, albeit crowded.

storewanderer

If you really want to do Macau the day of arrival I suggest staying there (at the Conrad) the first night. If you can get a points and cash rate you will find an excellent value for your points (and cash) at that property. Probably one of the best redemptions you can get. The hotel check in is slow because they are so friendly and so interested in assisting the guest but once you get past that the rooms are wonderful and there is no shortage of places to see. Plus that way you can tell people you stayed in Macau.

They have a shuttle from the ferry terminals and you will be very well taken care of there. Then you can transport back to Hong Kong.

I was a bit of an idiot, spent my last night in Macau. I did not plan well and missed the connection between Macau and the Hong Kong airport and the next one did not give me enough time to get there. For some reason it seemed there was a 4 hour delay between them. I am not sure if I had the wrong provider or what. So I ended up having to ferry back from Macau to downtown Hong Kong, checked in luggage at one of the airport express subway stations in downtown Hong Kong, then took that to get back to the airport. Immigration in Macau and Hong Kong is simple, silent, and efficient, luckily. So make sure you review schedules before you go. However the experience was more than trying and a little stressful. It was a fourish or so hour span between leaving the Conrad and arriving to the HKG Airport.

I would not try to ferry HKG Airport-Macau back to downtown Hong Kong on day one of the trip but that is just me. That is just too much. I love 16 hour days on the go when I travel but that is really too much.

eponymous_coward

That is really not a great idea, as mentioned by everyone upthread when they talk about the fact that the HKG ferry pier is airside, not landside.

I would again stress that if you want a luxury hotel experience, Conrad Macao would save you points. Your proposal makes more sense as a 1-2 day stay in Macau rather than a day trip full of waiting for immigration and storing luggage plus schlepping it back to Hong Kong after the day trip.

Singapore is not a particularly cheap hotel market, much like Hong Kong. A not expensive luxury hotel in that market is something of an oxymoron compared to, say, Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur. It is possible to find good, not terribly expensive value in the Singapore market, but I wouldn't call it luxury.

Kacee

Mostly agree with your post, but this was not my experience. In both directions, immigration was chaotic and very slow. The facilities in Macau are third-world and the concept of "queue" is much weaker than in Hong Kong.

eponymous_coward

I wouldn't say they are nice and shiny, myself, and yeah, it can get backed up at times.

All told, I still think a day trip where you're forced to take your luggage to Macau (because the ferry pier is behind immigration) and come back for it to lug it to Hong Kong is a pretty terrible idea. It would work better to drop it off in Hong Kong at the hotel and THEN head over, if one must do Macau as a day trip (still think an overnight or two is even still a better idea).

pauleeepaul

Not to be obnoxious- but what is the basis for the confidence in the yet as unopened HGI? Who knows how big (read small) the rooms will be, or what sort of teething pains the property might experience?

Kacee

Website says 22-26 sqm. 22 is pretty much a closet with a bed. Conrad rooms are over 40 sqm.

eponymous_coward

No, I've stayed in those rooms in Hong Kong Kowloon-side (hey, it was a $100 room for two nights, didn't have to stay in Chungking Mansions either, and all I wanted was a shower and crash space). Try more like 10 sqm or so.

An HGI of that size is veritable luxury by comparison.

(Like I said, I'm cheap.)

This all depends on OP's attitude and what is acceptable/not acceptable for OP and the wife. I suggest that if the backup plan for the trip is "a luxury hotel in Singapore that's not overly expensive" after blowing all the HHonors points at Conrad Hong Kong, there needs to be some rethinking of this plan. Singapore is not particularly the place to find an inexpensive, centrally located four or five star any more than Hong Kong is. It's probably going to be "well, do you want the HGI/HIX in Hong Kong, or Singapore, and the Conrad in the other city, because you likely can't afford cash for one of them and you'll blow all the points on the other?"

(Ironically, "not overly expensive luxury hotel" is a lot more likely in Macau... but OP wants a day trip only.)

Kacee

Ouch. I get claustrophobic somewhere around 25 sqm

Agreed. HKG is slightly more expensive, but neither is a cheap city for luxury hotels.

Don't know if OP has any other points currencies, such as Chase UR, but HR TST can be a good deal on points and GH Singapore a good deal on P+C.

eponymous_coward

Yeah, if this is really "show the wife a good time in Asian cities in luxury hotels", HK or Singapore are not places where money goes far.

I was thinking boutique hotels might be an option in both cities, but there might be some come-down from a luxury full service hotel. The Shutterwhale has some interesting Singapore options.