I know that Cantonese is the main spoken language and English is also an official language. Although I am chinese, growing up in the US, English is my first language. I can't speak or understand Cantonese (unless is is spoken extremely slowly) but am able to make my way through a conversation in Mandarin. I also can't read chinese except for numbers and some of my favorite dishes.

When speaking to locals, should I try to speak in Mandarin? or am I better off just using English? I head read that Mandarin is not too common in HK (I don't know how it compares to English) and sometimes speaking Mandarin can be a negative.

Depends on your definition of "locals". There are plenty of Chinese and Chinese-looking people who live in or visit HK and don't speak Cantonese.

Mandarin is very common in HK nowadays, and most people should be able to understand it to soem extent even if they don't speak it too well. Anyway, visitors from mainland China tend to spend a lot of money so it is to retailers' advantage if they can communicate.

If you are speaking to someone who works in a customer-facing role in areas frequented by tourists, English should be fine. If you are worried about a negative reaction to speaking Mandarin, first of all this will not be overt, and probably your accent will give you away as being an overseas Chinese which will have different connotations. You can always start off in English and then explain (in Mandarin) that your Chinese is not so good; or you could start off by asking in Mandarin whether the person you are talking to speaks English,

I've been scolded for speaking Mandarin in Hong Kong - not often, but it has happened - but other times, in the less touristy parts of the city, it has come in handy.

I like studying languages though, so getting 1-10, excuse me and a few foods down pat in Cantonese has worked out well enough.

No it is not, it is very common only where the mainland Chinese shoppers go to shop, shops in Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui, and Jordan, chain pharmacy like Watsons and Mannings, chain beauty shop like SaSa, jewelery shops, chain electronics store Broadway, some of the smaller pharmacy as well. (as mainlanders need to buy their baby formulas)

As a local, I can speak limited Mandarin, a lot more than I can actually understand what they said in Mandarin, not unless if they speak slow, but Mandarin speaking people generally speak really fast, so there is no way for me to understand what they said at all.

In the US, I actually speak English with the Mandarin speaking people, save the time to figure out how and what I should say in Mandarin, as using Cantonese to translate direct to Mandarin doesn't works at all, as we have a total separate spoken language, mostly full of slangs, Mandarin speaking people speaks what they write.

My DD and DS were both born in Canada and English is their "mother tongue". They are more proficient in French than Canto/Mando.

Neither had problem using English and whatever Canto slangs they picked up off youtube in HK. They got around to places to meet friends and back. They never had to go hungry or thirsty. They were not hanging around TST, MK nor Central.

You will be fine.

We are 外国人 (excuse simpl. spelling), but can speak some Mandarin. Most touristy places are fine with English, but sometimes some Chinese, even if Mandarin, has been handy....so it can be worthwhile to keep as an option.

tb

My ex-GF was Caucasian who had studied Mandarin and was fluent in it. She also studied Cantonese but was terrible at it, so I'd always tell her to try her Cantonese and if she felt flustered to fall back on English since as a lingua franca, it doesn't have any political overtones, unlike Mandarin.

As a prior poster has mentioned, it really depends on your situation both in terms of the type of place (Starbucks, electronics chain, local restaurant, a hotel, etc.) and the area in HK. I've been to some cha chaan teng in Mong Kok where the staff know enough Mandarin since that area is popular enough with Mainland tourists.

Without turning this into an OMNI post, I'd try English and fall back on Mandarin if English gets you nowhere. Learning some basic Cantonese phrases will probably put you in folks' good graces. YMMV.

Thanks for all the tips. I'll try english first then fall back on mandarin and try to learn some basic cantonese. I think English will be fine in most places. My main concern were hole in the wall restaurants/stalls and markets but pointing is pretty universal as well.

My friends from Taiwan who grew up in the US don't bother w/ Mandarin in HK. They all say they get further with English and people treat them better.

Mandarin is still considered the "communist" language in HK in some regards, even still in 2014. It just has to do with a lot that the older generation has gone through and relates to the history of HK.

Just see what works best for you, but from what my friends say they all use English first over Mandarin. Obviously Cantonese would be best though.

...and I've been admonished for speaking Mandarin in NY's Chinatown and Oporto. In fact, the guy in the latter place yelled at me to "speak in English or Portuguese, but not Chinese."

欢迎暗临, I guess.

But is that because you are Caucasian (I think)? What would happen if you try to speak Cantonese?

Did the Oporto guy speak Portuguese??

Mandarin is extremely common in business environments. More so than English nowadays. Just ride the elevators at the ICC, or IFC 1/2, and you'll see what I mean.

Many of those Mandarin-speaking people in "business" work for Chinese-funded mainland firms, which have not yet been internationalized so they are not representative of the international banks that have by far a much more significant influence in Hong Kong finance.

Otherwise, the primary language of business remains English for those working in the likes of ICC and IFC. Even the mainland banks have to switch modes to English when they deal with the outside world.

Really? I would say the boardroom and conference room is where the real business environment is and English is the defacto standard; no matter whether you are at ICC, IFC, 1 Garden Rd or 1 Jackson Sq.
Mandarin in business is limited to the casual conversation in the lifts and retailers.

Wow really? I always speak mandarin when I'm in NYC chinatown and haven't had anyone yell at me. I've had some rude service but I always assumed that was business as usual.