Hong Kong to Guangzhou
 

So this is our first time going to Guangzhou, but we have been to Yiwu, and Shanghai. What is the best way to get from Hong Kong Airport to Guangzhou? My family and I are on different flights. I'm on AA metal from DFW and they are on CX metal from LAX around 7:30 pm. I've checked like the bus ride to Guangzhou, but the closest drop off is Jinan University to the Sheraton and arrives around 1:30 AM. Is it safe in Guangzhou around the time of arrival? Will I find I cab to get me to the hotel?

In your case, I would probably stay overnight in Hong Kong and take a train to Guangzhou the next morning.

Agree you're going to be dead tired when you get to your hotel in Guangzhou. I'd just head across the border and spend the night in Shenzhen: much much cheaper than a room in Hong Kong. And the train is about half the time of the bus.

But if you do head to Guangzhou, it is quite a safe place even in the wee hours, and finding a cab should not be a problem.

The "direct" bus trip between HKG and Shenzhen/Guangzhou is a complete PITA because of the border crossing and the amount of walking/physical change of buses/loading, unloading, and reloading of luggage involved.

Like the rest of China, I did not feel unsafe in Shenzhen and Guangzhou during any time of the day on my past trips there.

The buses between Hong Kong and the mainland are a bit of a pain (TBF, I've only done it once - but it wasn't a pleasant journey). Especially if you have luggage and don't speak Chinese.

I agree with 889 and CXFan above. You'd probably be better spending the night in HK or Shenzhen and then heading to Guangzhou in the morning.
If I were you, I'd the ferry to Shenzhen, spending the night there and then head over to Guangzhou.
The last ferry to Shenzhen departs at 9.45pm and costs on 220HKD. Hotels in Shenzhen are far cheaper than HK and it is much easier/ quicker/ cheaper to get from Shenzhen to Guangzhou, than from HK to Guangzhou.

+3 on Shenzhen, but there are a few things to consider:
1. You might need to wait over an hour for the ferry
2. Shekou is not especially close to relevant train stations, especially Luohu
3. Buying or picking up tickets at the stations can be surprisingly annoying
4. Guangzhou South is in the boondocks (Guangzhou East is not, but those trains depart from Luohu, and are not HSR)

While the above might seem unpleasant, it is arguably the best option on the table, and point #3 is pretty easy to address.

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If cost is the main concern, the choice is definitely Shenzhen. Hotels in Shenzhen are much cheaper.

With OP arriving in HKG about two hours ahead of his family and should be quite tired after a long trip, I am uncertain if OP should spend more time navigating his way through Shenzhen at night. That's why I suggest staying in Hong Kong, possibly in TST East where OP can take a direct train (ride is less than two hours non-stop) from Hung Hom (10 minutes walk from TST East) to Guangzhou the next morning. That may costs USD100-200 more for the family comparing with staying in Shenzhen, but OP's family can have a nice rest for the night.

Upon further reflection, I like your plan the most.

That 4 hr bus ride after a 15 hr TPAC is nothing short of painful.

To make the trip actually enjoyabe.

HKIA sky pier to Shekou port Shenzen.
enjoy the night time ferry ride.

Hotel stay in Shekou.

30 min taxi to Lowu.
see metropolis of Shenzen and shopping at
bootleg city.

Train from Lowu to Guangzhou East 1.5 hours.

Arrive relaxed and actually enjoy the journey.^

If he goes with the Shekou plan, I recommend a fast train from Shenzhen North. As I noted up thread, the drawback to this is that you arrive at Guangzhou South, but that isn't the end of the world. I shall also note that 40% of my friends in Shenzhen prefer the Luohu (slower train) option. In either case, getting physical train tickets before heading to the train station is well worth the hassle.

That's a good idea, not much further to Shenzhen North Stn then Lowu.
And travel time to Guangzhou at 300km/hr a lot quicker.

G1002, G2912, G6012…
105 departures from 07:00 to 23:04 29m-46m^

Shenzhen North is a huge place and not fun your first or second time there, especially if you have luggage. Shenzhen Station is far easier to navigate. There's also Futian, which can be reached by Metro from Shekou. It's large, too, but uncrowded.

Practically speaking, I don't see how the OP will get physical tickets beforehand. My recent experience is that tickets for next-train departure will probably be more easily available at Shenzhen than Shenzhen North. (I believe the HSR trains from Shenzhen North have fewer carriages and much less capacity than the high-speed but not quite HSR trains out of Shenzhen.)

Diy works, and I can also recommend ringyi (on Wechat). I used ringyi twice in October to assist with moving, and was impressed by their service. Their fee is y50; for this, you an get train tickets (hopefully blue) sent to your hotel.

Guangzhou to Hong Kong...bets way out
 

Trying to figure out the easiest way to head from Guangzhou to Hong Kong.. the bus seems the easiest in terms of just having to board in Guangzhou & alight in Hong Kong..but not sure what the running times are like and whether they're prone to delays as well..?

Is there a regular ferry from the Nansha Ferry terminal to Guangzhou? I'd be staying near the Canton Exhibition center and seems like a one hour taxi ride to the ferry terminal.

Any other ideas ?