lsquare

So I'll be in Hong Kong for about a week later this month. I would prefer to do sightseeing in the day time and shopping at night. What are the must see sights? Any malls worth visiting? Good places to get cheap food? Any discounts for transit? Any other passes I should consider buying? Which prepaid carrier for roaming? Are there any simcards that allows me to top up online and keep the card active and maybe roam around the world? Where is the best place to exchange my USD, Euros, GBP to HKD?

Thanks.

DragonSoul

What are the must see sights? Harbour skyline. Aberdeen. The Peak. The Peak Tram. Lantau. Cable Car. Buddha. Cheung Chau. Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront. Sai Kung. Happy Valley Racecourse for night races. Lots of places. We also have some pretty good museums.

Any malls worth visiting? No. If you fancy experiencing losing the will to live then New Town Plaza in Shatin... or it could be just me it does that to.

Good places to get cheap food? All over.

Any discounts for transit? Buy a On Loan Octopus Card, which provides slightly cheaper MTR trips. Can also be used on trams, buses, minibuses, ferries. Deposit (HK$50) is refundable. There's also the Concession Octopus card, which will get you bus rides for HK$2, but you have to be over 65 - and be able to prove it.

Any other passes I should consider buying? Check Klook.com (also app) for vouchers.

Which prepaid carrier for roaming? China Mobile, CSL, 3, any of them really.

Are there any simcards that allows me to top up online and keep the card active and maybe roam around the world? Loads, e.g. International SIM Card Prepaid Roaming SIM from OneSimCard , but you might want to do an internet search for them. Hong Kong won't necessarily have "cheap" option.

Where is the best place to exchange my USD, Euros, GBP to HKD? Worldwide House in Central, perhaps, unless you're exchanging a larger amount, in which case Berlin Exchange.

889

You don't really need to make a trip to Worldwide House for exchange. (Unless you're looking for rupiah.) Plenty of small exchange places w/o commission everywhere. Rates are posted and you can easily compare a few shops first.

The walk-through aviary in Hong Kong Park is a great experience, as is the very local shopping district in Sham Shui Po. Ferry rides to the Outlying Islands are also a must. Nice short walks and some food on Lamma especially, shame about the power plant.

The _Banking_Scot

Hi,

I would also visit the Chi lin nunnery and nan lian garden

Regards

TBS

jerry a. laska

Your food and shopping questions were addressed in this thread from earlier this year:
Your favourite spots for food and shopping in Hong Kong?
Currency exchange, see here:
Best place to buy HKD in Hong Kong?

garykung

Google it.

None unless they are must see sights. Shopping in Hong Kong are expensive.

How cheap are we talking about?

No. You need an Octopus card, a single card solution to almost all public transportation in Hong Kong.

They are pretty similar. The only difference are pricing.

No comment.

lsquare

What about the power plant?

889

It's a small island with a massive power plant attached, or vice versa. The plant lights Hong Kong Island.

Madone59

Go up the peak, walk around the flower market, the night market, head out to Big Buddha. There is so much to do, you can't go wrong wondering around.

Take a look at my RTW and Thailand trip reports for other suggestions and directions.

evergrn

I'm not sure that Big Buddha is a must.

For me, the must for first-time visitor would be: Star Ferry, The Peak (Peak Tram at least one way) including the walk on the Harlech/Lugard loop, Mid-levels escalator, TST promenade, 8pm light show, Bird/Flower Mkt, Hong Kong Park, Temple Night Market and/or Ladies' Market, dim sum numerous times, upscale hotel dinner buffet, cha chaan teng (Tsui Wah).

Beyond that: jog on Bowen Road and/or TST waterfront, one of the outlying islands (probably Lamma), Lin Nunnery, Sai Kung, Dragon's Back, Ngong Ping, Macau, Stanley, Disney, Ocean Park, afternoon tea at a nice hotel, wonton noodle soup.

kaka

say -999 for tsui wah.
for cr@p service but decent and quick food (for the experience), go to australian dairy cafe at Jordan.
or any random cha chaan teng in the neighbourhood.

and yeh, if you have too much time and want to go to a shopping mall, shatin new town plaza above the shatin station will be a self explanatory experience of "how amazing chinese are". make sure you go to the nearby shatin plaza for an even better experience.

and yes, @DragonSoul explained it right. and FT mods do not like how the phenomenon is called in the local terms so i cannot explain it here. the other FT did it quite well.

tentseller

Scrambled eggs sandwich, toasted @ AUS dairy.

The FT mods demanded retraction of the term used in the phenomenon or risk suspension.

kevincrumbs

Tsui Wah's quality has gone downhill in years and even back then, it was mainly a fun thing to do after a night of drinking in SoHo or Old Lan (Lan Kwai Fong). However, for a first time visitor, Tsui Wah is sufficient and easier to navigate than a truly local cha chaan teng. Being here in the States, I would gladly have some Tsui Wah if I could right now!

kaka

no..... thanks.
tsui wah's sole purpose is for that post-drinking session before extra fun. otherwise its a place where you can be guaranteed bad food at ard 20 usd which probably wouldnt break the bank.
if the main purpose is food or local experience, go elsewhere.

kaka

was it related to the experience in tsui wah?