Ctrip used to have a closed platform business model, where terms like "free cancellation up to 24 hrs" "refundable" and "pay at hotel" meant just that, along with full quality control over policies and operations. That changed around 2014 and especially 2015. Ctrip is now an open platform used by hundreds (thousands?) of Chinese agents to springboard their own offerings, and with their own policies which seem to supersede whatever Ctrip continues to post as policy. The exact agent you would be dealing with is invisible to the customer, as far as I can tell (unlike Qunar). This has caused a lot of issues--particularly with hotel reservations--and I am now uncomfortable recommending Ctrip as a first-line provider for hotel reservations. If Ctrip themselves are making the hotel reservation directly, then you can expect the written policy given for that booking to be honored.....but you can't tell anymore if it's Ctrip directly or one of the other agencies on the platform. The mathmatical odds don't favor the direct booking though. I have found Elong.net is currently a reasonable alternative for the mainland, though I'm not sure how they are for Hong Kong specifically. For additional information:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/china...-beyond-5.html
For Hong Kong in the past several years, I have tended to use Agoda.com (sometimes need to print out a voucher), booking.com, asiatravel.com, Australian site wotif.com, and (very seldom): expedia.com.