OK, a forum member here posted this URL to purchase Octopus cards for pickup at HKG:

http://store.mtr.com.hk/shop/default.asp (site now wants IE or Netscape but doesn't seem to like Safari like it used to. It loads on Firefox after throwing up a warning tho but who knows if I actually try to purchase whether it will work?)

So it's appealing to order online, get a bit of a discount, pickup at the airport.

My question is, can you get an Octopus card without the Aiport Express rides at all? The part I'm most interested in is the Tourist 3-Day pass for unlimited rides on the MTR.

My flight will land down at HKG on Sunday night Jan 29 at 10:40 PM. By the time I get through customs (plan to carry on only), it will be pretty late already so I don't want to deal with AE and then transferring to taxi/shuttle etc. My hotel is the Metropark and I can get a shuttle straight from the airport to the hotel for 100HKD or 180HKD round trip.

So I would prefer to take the shuttle to and from the airport instead of AE. Well maybe I could do the one-ride AE for the return trip, since I should be more settled (my flight is 10 AM on Friday Feb. 3). But again, why transfer if I could just jump on one vehicle for the whole trip for approximately the same price?

So can I just buy an Octopus card with the 3-day MTR unlimited and some of the credit towards the ferry and tram and all the other transport options?

Can I order it online?