Jan 10, 2018, 7:05 pm
Last edit by: littlevoices
This thread refers to the various Marriott brands within a specific geographic area. Marriott Bonvoy hotels in Hong Kong usually have posts asking which property is better, etc. Trip reports are usually better suited in the property specific threads
Broad summary of the Hong Kong Marriott brands is as follows:
Luxury
The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong - Superb full harbour views, good quality restaurants on-site and the world's highest bar (Ozone, that has up to a 20% discount for elite members that actually makes it reasonable value). Negatives would be price and location is in Kowloon (i.e. not ideal for tourists).
St Regis Hong Kong - New (in 2020), great quality rooms, excellent service in the hotel and restaurants, views are more standard and location is a little less convenient, but on the Island in Wan Chai and near the Exhibition Centre. Hotel restaurant l'envol offers quality French service and food and has two Michellin stars. Near the newly opened (2022) Exhibition MTR station with walking under cover (one stop from Admiralty or Hung Hom), or walk from Wan Chai (approx 10 minutes).
Mid-range
JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong - Ideally placed for tourism and likely business, built in an MTR complex with a luxury mall underneath. Small rooms with a good view of either the harbour or a hillside, but compensated with an excellent lounge and breakfast. Somewhere to spend time outside of the room. Not hugely changed since 1980 but a classic hotel with excellent on-site restaurants and a newly renovated/larger lounge than the version prior to COVID.
W Hong Kong - Quirky, next to the Ritz Carlton and with an outdoor pool. On-site restaurants are more limited but in a good location. A nice alternative to the Ritz if you want to explore Kowloon, or are under 30. Good weekend champagne brunch.
Renaissance Hong Kong Harbour View Hotel - More of a convention centre hotel, but with nice uninterrupted harbour views and reasonable room sizes. A little far from public transport but with walkways to get you to Wan Chai or Exhibition Centre MTR stations fairly rapidly (mostly under air-con).
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers - Huge hotel that historically had a separate "Towers" side (now being removed) and one of the worst lounges in the Marriott network (now improved) with poor elite recognition, but relatively large rooms and close to public transport, museums, shopping in Kowloon and the star ferry. Has had an ongoing refurbishment from late 2022 that appears to be addressing historic quality problems, but this is underway as the wiki is updated. As of March 2023, the "lounge" is on the second floor opposite the reception desk. It's open noon to 6:30pm only, with cocktails/food from 4:30pm-6:30pm and guests are allowed in for only one hour (enforced). There is no lounge opportunity for evening dessert/coffee.
Le Meriden Cyberport - Large rooms, nice staff, in the middle of nowhere (by HK standards) and very consistent brand standard, including a lounge. You will need to get a taxi to any sight or location unless you are visiting the tech companies in the area. Refurbished and reopened in November 2022, and has a shuttle to the Airport Express MTR/Central once an hour.
Hong Kong SkyCity Marriott Hotel - Next to the airport, far away from the city (on the MTR or Airport express via a shuttle bus) but excellent evening buffet and ideal to explore Lantau or visit friends (aircrew) in Tung Chung. You can't walk to the airport due to ongoing construction work, even if it looks like it is only a 5 minute walk, it isn't.
Hong Kong Ocean Park Marriott Hotel - Huge pool and ideal for children. Rebranded to a resort to limit elite benefits. Worthwhile for a long weekend away or when visiting Ocean Park. Close to the (less convenient) Ocean Park MTR for tourists. Good restaurants on-site, not much in the local area.
Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung Hotel - New hotel that opened in December 2020, more designed for shopping or being close to the airport (via taxi or hourly shuttle bus), good facilities and pool. Far away from the city centre in a residential area.
Boutique
The Mira Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Not so close to public transport (approx 10 minute walk from Tsim Sha Tsui MTR), limited elite recognition but good for the bars of Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) and Kowloon. A better place to head to after a day of shopping in Kowloon or a heavy night out in TST.
Mira Moon Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Close to the shopping of Causeway bay, good rabbit based romantic hotel with sizeable bathrooms and real baths but limited restaurant facilities in-house. Refurbished in July 2022.
The Park Lane Hong Kong, Autograph Collection - New, and not yet opened. In 2025 it is expected that we will get a new Autograph, a conversion from the current Park Lane Hotel, Pullman. The hotel has a great bar and view. Let's see what happens
Value
Courtyard Hong Kong Sha Tin - generally agreed to be the best value Marriott in town with an excellent executive lounge, great value rooms and good elite service. However far from town (45+ minutes on public transport) and designed for those who want to visit Sai Kung or relatives in the new territories.
Hong Kong Island Hotel | Courtyard Hong Kong - Reasonable location and good value business hotel that isn't that far from central or the MTR, but is ultimately not very distinctive. Offers a good breakfast for elites and a small executive lounge more focused on drinks than food.
Ovolo Southside, Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Excellent value and close to Ocean Park. Near the MTR and with a well respected local Mexican restaurant. Offers a 3 hour social hour (free flow with food) if you book direct, a hidden gem. At points has been fully vegetarian as well.
Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong, Tung Chung - A combined building with the Sheraton Tung Chung, so very similar with some shared facilities but more basic rooms.
Typical responses from those who live in Hong Kong:
I want the best hotel money can buy: Ritz Carlton (views) or St Regis (service)
I want to save money: Ovolo Southside (qirky) or Courtyard Sha Tin (far away)
For business: JW Marriott (Hong Kong Island) and W Hotel (Kowloon)
Airport Stopover: The Sky City Marriott is in the airport complex (accessed via shuttle bus) but realistically you could head to the Ritz Carlton or W Hotel on the airport express in under 30 minutes. Alternatively the Sheraton Tung Chung, and cheaper Four Points may offer more reasonable rates and are only 10 minutes taxi to the airport in an area where a lot of Cathay staff live, or use the airport shuttle bus (link).
Theme parks: Disney is not close and arguably the Sky City Marriott or Sheraton Tung Chung/Four Points Tung Chung are closest, but would need a taxi. Staying at the W or Ritz Carlton may be preferable and using the MTR to get to the park (one change). For Ocean Park you have the Ocean Park Marriott (Resort) or Ovolo Southside within walking distance or the JW Marriott is only one MTR(metro) stop away and more central for other sights.
Staycation: Ritz Carton (on-site restaurants), St Regis (service, two good if pricey restaurants), Courtyard Sha Tin (bargain) or the Ocean Park Marriott (pool for children)
Space: Le Meriden Cyberport, but only because it's in the middle of nowhere (though this is subjective, as it's about 20 minutes in a taxi to central)...
Undiscovered gem: Maybe the Ovolo Southside but ultimately this is Hong Kong so you can't really expect a bargain, it's an efficient capitalist market after all!....
**Staying in China**
Note (pre-COVID) you could save serious (USD100s+) by staying in Shenzhen though this would involve crossing an international border and would only work for those who wanted to visit China and had a visa. With the border reopening this is an option, for example the St Regis Shenzhen is typically great value with free-flow executive lounge privileges on the 100+ floor or staying at the Four Points in Shenzhen is less than a round of drinks in Hong Kong and offers an unlimited dim-sum lunch for less than 20USD pp. Getting a visa isn't as easy as pre COVID though, and the China "visa on arrival" scheme can be over subscribed, leading to long queues. If you have a China Visa though this could still be an option, though it will take approximately 2 hours to get from the Shenzhen StR to the centre of Hong Kong (made up of approximately 20 minutes metro in Shenzhen, up to one hour of border/visa processing time, then 40 minutes on the MTR to Admiralty station)
**Quarantine FYI**
In December 2020 the Hong Kong government agreed a list of quarantine only hotels for what became part of the world's strictest quarantine regimes with at points any person entering HK needing to spend 3 weeks in a hotel. A number of Marriott hotels took part in this programme at varying points until hotel quarantine was removed in late 2022. The "new" Four Points in Tung Chung didn't open for normal guests until after the end of quarantine, and at time others were on/off the list, including the high end W, then the Ocean Park Marriott, Renaissance, Ovolo, Mira Moon and so on. Of the Marriott brands, only the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton never took part.
Broad summary of the Hong Kong Marriott brands is as follows:
Luxury
The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong - Superb full harbour views, good quality restaurants on-site and the world's highest bar (Ozone, that has up to a 20% discount for elite members that actually makes it reasonable value). Negatives would be price and location is in Kowloon (i.e. not ideal for tourists).
St Regis Hong Kong - New (in 2020), great quality rooms, excellent service in the hotel and restaurants, views are more standard and location is a little less convenient, but on the Island in Wan Chai and near the Exhibition Centre. Hotel restaurant l'envol offers quality French service and food and has two Michellin stars. Near the newly opened (2022) Exhibition MTR station with walking under cover (one stop from Admiralty or Hung Hom), or walk from Wan Chai (approx 10 minutes).
Mid-range
JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong - Ideally placed for tourism and likely business, built in an MTR complex with a luxury mall underneath. Small rooms with a good view of either the harbour or a hillside, but compensated with an excellent lounge and breakfast. Somewhere to spend time outside of the room. Not hugely changed since 1980 but a classic hotel with excellent on-site restaurants and a newly renovated/larger lounge than the version prior to COVID.
W Hong Kong - Quirky, next to the Ritz Carlton and with an outdoor pool. On-site restaurants are more limited but in a good location. A nice alternative to the Ritz if you want to explore Kowloon, or are under 30. Good weekend champagne brunch.
Renaissance Hong Kong Harbour View Hotel - More of a convention centre hotel, but with nice uninterrupted harbour views and reasonable room sizes. A little far from public transport but with walkways to get you to Wan Chai or Exhibition Centre MTR stations fairly rapidly (mostly under air-con).
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers - Huge hotel that historically had a separate "Towers" side (now being removed) and one of the worst lounges in the Marriott network (now improved) with poor elite recognition, but relatively large rooms and close to public transport, museums, shopping in Kowloon and the star ferry. Has had an ongoing refurbishment from late 2022 that appears to be addressing historic quality problems, but this is underway as the wiki is updated. As of March 2023, the "lounge" is on the second floor opposite the reception desk. It's open noon to 6:30pm only, with cocktails/food from 4:30pm-6:30pm and guests are allowed in for only one hour (enforced). There is no lounge opportunity for evening dessert/coffee.
Le Meriden Cyberport - Large rooms, nice staff, in the middle of nowhere (by HK standards) and very consistent brand standard, including a lounge. You will need to get a taxi to any sight or location unless you are visiting the tech companies in the area. Refurbished and reopened in November 2022, and has a shuttle to the Airport Express MTR/Central once an hour.
Hong Kong SkyCity Marriott Hotel - Next to the airport, far away from the city (on the MTR or Airport express via a shuttle bus) but excellent evening buffet and ideal to explore Lantau or visit friends (aircrew) in Tung Chung. You can't walk to the airport due to ongoing construction work, even if it looks like it is only a 5 minute walk, it isn't.
Hong Kong Ocean Park Marriott Hotel - Huge pool and ideal for children. Rebranded to a resort to limit elite benefits. Worthwhile for a long weekend away or when visiting Ocean Park. Close to the (less convenient) Ocean Park MTR for tourists. Good restaurants on-site, not much in the local area.
Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung Hotel - New hotel that opened in December 2020, more designed for shopping or being close to the airport (via taxi or hourly shuttle bus), good facilities and pool. Far away from the city centre in a residential area.
Boutique
The Mira Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Not so close to public transport (approx 10 minute walk from Tsim Sha Tsui MTR), limited elite recognition but good for the bars of Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) and Kowloon. A better place to head to after a day of shopping in Kowloon or a heavy night out in TST.
Mira Moon Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Close to the shopping of Causeway bay, good rabbit based romantic hotel with sizeable bathrooms and real baths but limited restaurant facilities in-house. Refurbished in July 2022.
The Park Lane Hong Kong, Autograph Collection - New, and not yet opened. In 2025 it is expected that we will get a new Autograph, a conversion from the current Park Lane Hotel, Pullman. The hotel has a great bar and view. Let's see what happens
Value
Courtyard Hong Kong Sha Tin - generally agreed to be the best value Marriott in town with an excellent executive lounge, great value rooms and good elite service. However far from town (45+ minutes on public transport) and designed for those who want to visit Sai Kung or relatives in the new territories.
Hong Kong Island Hotel | Courtyard Hong Kong - Reasonable location and good value business hotel that isn't that far from central or the MTR, but is ultimately not very distinctive. Offers a good breakfast for elites and a small executive lounge more focused on drinks than food.
Ovolo Southside, Hong Kong, a Member of Design Hotels™ - Excellent value and close to Ocean Park. Near the MTR and with a well respected local Mexican restaurant. Offers a 3 hour social hour (free flow with food) if you book direct, a hidden gem. At points has been fully vegetarian as well.
Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong, Tung Chung - A combined building with the Sheraton Tung Chung, so very similar with some shared facilities but more basic rooms.
Typical responses from those who live in Hong Kong:
I want the best hotel money can buy: Ritz Carlton (views) or St Regis (service)
I want to save money: Ovolo Southside (qirky) or Courtyard Sha Tin (far away)
For business: JW Marriott (Hong Kong Island) and W Hotel (Kowloon)
Airport Stopover: The Sky City Marriott is in the airport complex (accessed via shuttle bus) but realistically you could head to the Ritz Carlton or W Hotel on the airport express in under 30 minutes. Alternatively the Sheraton Tung Chung, and cheaper Four Points may offer more reasonable rates and are only 10 minutes taxi to the airport in an area where a lot of Cathay staff live, or use the airport shuttle bus (link).
Theme parks: Disney is not close and arguably the Sky City Marriott or Sheraton Tung Chung/Four Points Tung Chung are closest, but would need a taxi. Staying at the W or Ritz Carlton may be preferable and using the MTR to get to the park (one change). For Ocean Park you have the Ocean Park Marriott (Resort) or Ovolo Southside within walking distance or the JW Marriott is only one MTR(metro) stop away and more central for other sights.
Staycation: Ritz Carton (on-site restaurants), St Regis (service, two good if pricey restaurants), Courtyard Sha Tin (bargain) or the Ocean Park Marriott (pool for children)
Space: Le Meriden Cyberport, but only because it's in the middle of nowhere (though this is subjective, as it's about 20 minutes in a taxi to central)...
Undiscovered gem: Maybe the Ovolo Southside but ultimately this is Hong Kong so you can't really expect a bargain, it's an efficient capitalist market after all!....
**Staying in China**
Note (pre-COVID) you could save serious (USD100s+) by staying in Shenzhen though this would involve crossing an international border and would only work for those who wanted to visit China and had a visa. With the border reopening this is an option, for example the St Regis Shenzhen is typically great value with free-flow executive lounge privileges on the 100+ floor or staying at the Four Points in Shenzhen is less than a round of drinks in Hong Kong and offers an unlimited dim-sum lunch for less than 20USD pp. Getting a visa isn't as easy as pre COVID though, and the China "visa on arrival" scheme can be over subscribed, leading to long queues. If you have a China Visa though this could still be an option, though it will take approximately 2 hours to get from the Shenzhen StR to the centre of Hong Kong (made up of approximately 20 minutes metro in Shenzhen, up to one hour of border/visa processing time, then 40 minutes on the MTR to Admiralty station)
**Quarantine FYI**
In December 2020 the Hong Kong government agreed a list of quarantine only hotels for what became part of the world's strictest quarantine regimes with at points any person entering HK needing to spend 3 weeks in a hotel. A number of Marriott hotels took part in this programme at varying points until hotel quarantine was removed in late 2022. The "new" Four Points in Tung Chung didn't open for normal guests until after the end of quarantine, and at time others were on/off the list, including the high end W, then the Ocean Park Marriott, Renaissance, Ovolo, Mira Moon and so on. Of the Marriott brands, only the JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton never took part.
Marriott Bonvoy hotels in Hong Kong, 2014-present
Nov 25, 2018, 1:28 pm
#631
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 29,760
Haven't been to CY for quite some times now, last time it freaked me out that not all the rooms in the hotel has heating system and it was only 10 degree C in Hong Kong (I think it was February). Upgrades are hard to get because I was told that their GM told the FDC to upsell rather than giving out comp. upgrades. I was there when the hotel lounge was renovating and that's why I could have breakfast at the Momo's. It's nice to see that they are offering that again - but I don't know when that's going to last - it seems that the CY swings a lot in what they do.
SkyCity is better if you are more than 2 in a room - they have bigger rooms with 2 double beds - the beds in a double double room in the CY are smaller.
SkyCity is better if you are more than 2 in a room - they have bigger rooms with 2 double beds - the beds in a double double room in the CY are smaller.
We had 2 separate stays on this trip - one night and two consecutive nights. The first stay they gave us a suite - the real one, at the mid level of the hotel though we had to wait an hour for the room to be ready. The second stay when we arrived at 3pm they did not have any real suite available but did have 1 corner room (the portruding triangle shape part of the building) the guest would check out at 6pm (he paid for it) and the room would be ready by 7:30 to 8pm. We did not mind to wait and just left the bags then headed out to check out the new Shek Mun Mall with all the eateries.
It was worth the wait as the corner room is nicely set up. We actually prefer the corner room than the suite which actually is a big floor to ceiling room divider to separate the living area and the "bed room".
We were also granted a 4pm check out on our departure day. (our flight to MEL did not leave until after midnight, so would have preferred even later check out if possible. Can't do that even with pay so we headed to the airport and did CX lounge hopping instead.)
For those who are just 2 adults, even the regular room should be adequate. At the price difference both in $ and in points, CY Sha Tin is superior in value. It now replaces SkyCity to be the Marriott property of choice when we want to preserve our pts (1 night at JWM equal to 5 nights at Sha tin). SkyCity used to be 50% cheaper than JWM but now it is 100% cheaper (30K vs 45K in the past and 25K vs 50K now) so JWM is out no matter how nice the lounge is, room is outdated, especially the bathroom - the tub is very scratched up on our last stay (a more spacious corner 2 beds room).
Most Hong Kong residences dont have heating system built in as far as I know. People just bundle up in the cold days. Unlike in cold climates in Europe or America, it is soooo much colder you are talking about BELOW Zero, that it is impossible not to have indoor heating. Hong Kong is far far from that.
Nov 25, 2018, 9:27 pm
#632
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Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Shanghai
Posts: 42,031
Most Hong Kong residences dont have heating system built in as far as I know. People just bundle up in the cold days. Unlike in cold climates in Europe or America, it is soooo much colder you are talking about BELOW Zero, that it is impossible not to have indoor heating. Hong Kong is far far from that.
Nov 28, 2018, 6:45 am
#633
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Join Date: Aug 2010
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I live in Sweden so it's NOT somewhere warm - however the first room we got was really cold - a room Shatin facing North is something you wanted to avoid at all cost .
We are used to indoor heating so having no heat indoors is something we are not used to - and it was really below 10 C (it was a couple of degrees colder where I'm living in at that time - and we have heating everywhere inside).
I don't expect every home in HK have heating system - I grew up there so I know that and we had much colder winter there then compared to now. However in an international brand hotel I do expect central air-con that can adjust room temperature - only being able to cool down but not heat up is just not right (even serviced apartments have that in Hong Kong).
The hotel moved us to a south facing room and that room has heating system! They told me that only certain rooms have heating which i found it really odd.
We are used to indoor heating so having no heat indoors is something we are not used to - and it was really below 10 C (it was a couple of degrees colder where I'm living in at that time - and we have heating everywhere inside).
I don't expect every home in HK have heating system - I grew up there so I know that and we had much colder winter there then compared to now. However in an international brand hotel I do expect central air-con that can adjust room temperature - only being able to cool down but not heat up is just not right (even serviced apartments have that in Hong Kong).
The hotel moved us to a south facing room and that room has heating system! They told me that only certain rooms have heating which i found it really odd.
Nov 30, 2018, 7:27 pm
#636
Join Date: Aug 2018
Posts: 29
Im almost looking at Mira Moon. As far as upgrades It is essentially just one room upgrade right? So if I booked a new moon suite, potentially I could be upgraded to half moon (ex with mira moon hotel) Ive never booked at Marriott before.
Thank you
Thank you
Dec 1, 2018, 1:45 am
#638
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Bangkok
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Titanium, BAEC Silver, TK Miles & Smiles Elite
Posts: 2,209
But don't get your hopes up for any status treatment especially a gold. Some Design Hotels do give room upgrades but it's very discretionary and as a Gold I wouldn't hold my breath and don't be disappointed if you don't get anything above the welcome points. Breakfast too. if you don't book a rate with breakfast then you shouldn't get one. YMMV.
Dec 1, 2018, 1:45 pm
#639
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Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: ZOA, SFO, HKG
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"Enhanced rooms may include rooms with desirable views, rooms on high floors, corner rooms, rooms with special amenities, rooms on Executive Floors."
You will get the upgrade because you will be checking in on a Sunday. But the upgrade you should expect will be a room with a better view only, i.e. still a New Moon Room. In fact - the best case scenario will be a Half Moon Room (1 level up).
Dec 4, 2018, 11:19 am
#640
Join Date: Dec 2013
Location: Tennessee
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Posts: 700
Which SPG/Marriott for HKG?
Planning a vacation for my wife and I. This will be our first trip there so we will be hitting most of the main tourist sights. I am not sure how easy it is to get around this huge metropolis.. We would like to spend at least one day maybe 2 days visiting Lantau island. We would like to do a (moderate) hike and maybe take a guided food tour as well in HKG. We have about 4-5 days before heading to Amanpulo from there. I am still considering spending this time in Vietnam but leaning towards HKG since it will be a lot easier logistically to get to MNL from HKG and 4-5 day is not enough time for Vietnam. Looking for 4*, or if the price is right a 5 star property. The Le Meridien looked nice and it has rooms with great views which is a plus, but there are so many Marriott/SPG to choose that look pretty nice its hard not knowing anything about Hong Kong. I also welcome suggestions for things to see and do in HKG. Thanks!
Dec 5, 2018, 6:36 pm
#641
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Join Date: Jul 2003
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Planning a vacation for my wife and I. This will be our first trip there so we will be hitting most of the main tourist sights. I am not sure how easy it is to get around this huge metropolis.. We would like to spend at least one day maybe 2 days visiting Lantau island. We would like to do a (moderate) hike and maybe take a guided food tour as well in HKG. We have about 4-5 days before heading to Amanpulo from there. I am still considering spending this time in Vietnam but leaning towards HKG since it will be a lot easier logistically to get to MNL from HKG and 4-5 day is not enough time for Vietnam. Looking for 4*, or if the price is right a 5 star property. The Le Meridien looked nice and it has rooms with great views which is a plus, but there are so many Marriott/SPG to choose that look pretty nice its hard not knowing anything about Hong Kong. I also welcome suggestions for things to see and do in HKG. Thanks!
The official Hong Kong Tourism site should be very helpful if you have not found it yet, especially you are interested in doing some hiking.
Discover Hong Kong - Official Travel Guide from the Hong Kong Tourism Board
The Le Meridian is not at a convenient location for first time visitor. Hong Kong hotels are not cheap thanks to Hong Kong has the HIGHEST land cost in the world. So you would need to find come compromise in your options. May want to put easy access to most sightseeing spots as your first criteria to choose properties.
Metro is fast and frequent though can be really crowded not just peak hours but all day long on popular sections.
Bus system is extensive but road congestion during peak hours can be a real killer.
Google map is very good to give you public transportation options nearby when you enlarge an area big enough it will show all the buses stops including the minibuses, the route numbers, and you can find more details by further research.
Taxi is cheap in Hong Kong but again subj to road congestion.
Also Hong Kong is comletely different from Vietnam. Hong Kong is VERY metropolitan while Vietnam probably is several decades behind. For example, Hong Kong is at the same level as Tokyo and Singapore while Vietnam, incl the Ho Chi Ming City and Hanoi, are many levels down. So you would also need to determine which type of experiences you are seeking.
Last edited by Happy; Dec 5, 2018 at 6:44 pm
Dec 5, 2018, 11:21 pm
#642
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: Bangkok
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Titanium, BAEC Silver, TK Miles & Smiles Elite
Posts: 2,209
Planning a vacation for my wife and I. This will be our first trip there so we will be hitting most of the main tourist sights. I am not sure how easy it is to get around this huge metropolis.. We would like to spend at least one day maybe 2 days visiting Lantau island. We would like to do a (moderate) hike and maybe take a guided food tour as well in HKG. We have about 4-5 days before heading to Amanpulo from there. I am still considering spending this time in Vietnam but leaning towards HKG since it will be a lot easier logistically to get to MNL from HKG and 4-5 day is not enough time for Vietnam. Looking for 4*, or if the price is right a 5 star property. The Le Meridien looked nice and it has rooms with great views which is a plus, but there are so many Marriott/SPG to choose that look pretty nice its hard not knowing anything about Hong Kong. I also welcome suggestions for things to see and do in HKG. Thanks!
Last edited by ftrichard; Dec 6, 2018 at 5:09 pm
Dec 5, 2018, 11:56 pm
#643
Join Date: Apr 2014
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Posts: 920
Aside from simply being a very nice hotel with excellent amenities, the JW is a great choice for first time visitors due to its proximity to the Admiralty train stop and many great shops and attractions. The JW also has a well-staffed concierge desk with knowledgeable and helpful staff who can help make recommendations, give directions, book tours/events/restaurants etc.
It’s also close to Omotesando Koffee on Lockhart Rd, my favorite Hong Kong coffee shop.
It’s also close to Omotesando Koffee on Lockhart Rd, my favorite Hong Kong coffee shop.
Dec 6, 2018, 12:10 am
#644
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I agree the JW is an excellent location, especially for a first time visitor.
Dec 6, 2018, 9:11 am
#645
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Giving OP wants to do some hiking, and visit Lantau - he may want to split his stay into 2 parts - SkyCity is on Lantau, extremely easy to visit all the "attractions" on Lantau, incl taking the New Lantau Buses thru the whole island, and get up to the Big Buddha much cheaper than using the cable car, from several spots at Lantau.
There are 3 shuttle bus lines to the Hong Kong port of the new HKZHM bridge with 2 lines stop right by the Sky City side street, and 1 at Tung Chung. It can be an interesting sightseeing by just taking the shuttle bus to the Hong Kong port, take some pictures and then head back to Hong Kong. Or, make Macau a day trip much cheaper than using the traditional means - the ferries. Key is only do this on a Weekday, avoid F/S/S.
Hotel has regular shuttle to Tung Chung MTR station which connects to several lines (far more convenient than the Shek Mun station near Courtyard Sha Tin)
Courtyard Sha Tin is outrageous value if you use points and the hotel has regular shuttle to get you to TST (Middle Road, right behind the famous Peninsula hotel), or to the Sha Tin MTR station so you save one transfer from Shek Mun. Though buses are far more convenient with the stops right in front of the hotel. Hotel also gives a concise public transportation sheet.
There are days I see it goes by $800, but more normally between $1000 to $1200.
Then splurge to stay 2 days at JWM with its excellent location - literally you can walk to Wanchai and further to Causeway Bay, or the opposite direction, to Central - via the pedestrian passage high above the street, or take the tram. Hong Kong Park is very nice to visit and the Aviary is impressive - all free. It is 5 min walk from the JWM thru one of the exits of the Admiralty MTR. Hotel concierge can point the way.
There are 3 shuttle bus lines to the Hong Kong port of the new HKZHM bridge with 2 lines stop right by the Sky City side street, and 1 at Tung Chung. It can be an interesting sightseeing by just taking the shuttle bus to the Hong Kong port, take some pictures and then head back to Hong Kong. Or, make Macau a day trip much cheaper than using the traditional means - the ferries. Key is only do this on a Weekday, avoid F/S/S.
Hotel has regular shuttle to Tung Chung MTR station which connects to several lines (far more convenient than the Shek Mun station near Courtyard Sha Tin)
Courtyard Sha Tin is outrageous value if you use points and the hotel has regular shuttle to get you to TST (Middle Road, right behind the famous Peninsula hotel), or to the Sha Tin MTR station so you save one transfer from Shek Mun. Though buses are far more convenient with the stops right in front of the hotel. Hotel also gives a concise public transportation sheet.
There are days I see it goes by $800, but more normally between $1000 to $1200.
Then splurge to stay 2 days at JWM with its excellent location - literally you can walk to Wanchai and further to Causeway Bay, or the opposite direction, to Central - via the pedestrian passage high above the street, or take the tram. Hong Kong Park is very nice to visit and the Aviary is impressive - all free. It is 5 min walk from the JWM thru one of the exits of the Admiralty MTR. Hotel concierge can point the way.
Last edited by Happy; Dec 6, 2018 at 9:19 am