Hong Kong

Discover the wonders of Hong Kong with our simple travel guide. Learn about the weather patterns and the best seasons to plan your visit. Find out how to navigate the city efficiently using public transportation. Explore top attractions like Victoria Peak and Tsim Sha Tsui, plus sample delicious dim sum and egg tarts. Our guide also reveals hidden spots that most tourists miss, giving you a complete Hong Kong experience.

Weather and Best Time to Visit

How to Get to Hong Kong

Hong Kong International Airport sits on Chek Lap Kok Island, handling over 70 million passengers annually. It connects Hong Kong with major global destinations including London, New York, Tokyo, Singapore, Bangkok, Seoul, Shanghai, Beijing, Sydney, Dubai, Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Toronto.

Until 1998, flights used Kai Tak Airport, famous for its challenging approach that required specialized pilot training. Aircraft would descend between apartment buildings, coming so close that passengers could sometimes see residents through their windows.

Both airports have established Hong Kong as a crucial Asian transportation hub. Many travelers exploring Asia pass through these terminals, where planes constantly arrive and depart over the South China Sea.

How to Get Around

When people arrive in Hong Kong, they step into a city that moves constantly. The Hong Kong International Airport welcomes travelers from across the world, serving as the first introduction to this bustling territory.

Once in the city, most locals rely on the MTR subway. Trains arrive every few minutes, with clear signs in English and Chinese guiding passengers through spotlessly clean stations. The network reaches into every corner, from the skyscrapers of Hong Kong Island to the markets of Kowloon and the green hills of the New Territories.

On Hong Kong Island, the double-decker trams, called "ding dings" because of the sound of their bells, roll slowly through the streets. These historic vehicles cost just a few coins per ride, and passengers sit up top to watch the city flow by through the windows.

The Star Ferry boats have crossed Victoria Harbour since the 1800s. For about 25 cents, riders can stand at the railing as the ship cuts through the water, with Hong Kong's buildings rising up on both sides like a canyon of glass and light.

Island hoppers take larger ferries to places like:

• Lantau with its big Buddha statue
• Lamma and Cheung Chau, where fishing boats bob in the harbor and seafood restaurants line the waterfront.

Smart travelers pick up an Octopus card first thing, a small plastic card that pays for all these transportation options with just a tap.

Red minibuses zoom through the streets, stopping whenever someone waves them down or asks to get off. They follow general routes but adapt to where people need to go.

For those wanting to visit Macau, high-speed ferries from companies like TurboJET and Cotai Water Jet make the journey in about an hour.

Food Scene

When locals in Hong Kong get hungry for breakfast, dim sum is on the menu. The steamed dumplings arrive in bamboo baskets, letting out a puff of fragrant steam when opened. 

Wonton soup comes in bowls small enough to ensure the noodles don't get soggy before you finish. 

As evening falls on Temple Street, food stalls light up and the smell of rice cooking in clay pots fills the air. Locals know to blow on the curried fish balls before taking a bite. 

Graham Street Market buzzes with activity each morning as shopkeepers arrange pyramids of fresh vegetables and call out prices. In Tai O, fishing boats return with the day's catch, which soon becomes dried seafood hanging outside shops, filling the air with a distinctive briny scent.

Char siu (barbecued pork) glistens with a red-lacquered coating, revealing juicy meat when sliced. People often buy egg tarts while they're still warm, the flaky crust breaking into buttery shards. Tea masters pull milk tea through cloth strainers, creating a smooth, strong brew that powers Hong Kong through its workday.

Hidden Gems

1. Peng Chau Island
Cars don't exist on small Peng Chau Island, where time seems to slow down. Morning light filters through narrow lanes where elderly residents chat on doorsteps and hang laundry overhead. Old factory buildings tell stories of a bygone industrial era, now quietly returning to nature.

At lunchtime, fishermen bring their morning catch to waterfront restaurants, where tables sit just feet from the harbor. 

Climb the gentle path up Finger Hill, and you'll see water stretching in every direction. The distant skyscrapers will remind you that city life isn't far away. The ferries from Central Pier 6 take just 25 minutes, but Tuesday or Wednesday visitors might find themselves among only a handful of others exploring the paths.

2. Tai O Fishing Village
Water laps directly beneath wooden homes in Tai O, where houses stand on stilts above the changing tides. Generations of fishing families continue traditions their grandparents taught them. The air carries the distinctive smell of shrimp paste drying in the sun. Watch the production process before tasting the finished product that gives local dishes their characteristic flavor. 

Food stalls line the narrow pathways, offering tastes that haven't changed in decades. Morning visitors see fisherfolk preparing their boats while afternoon light casts long shadows across the water. From Tung Chung MTR, the number 11 bus winds through mountains for an hour before arriving at this waterside community.

3. Sham Shui Po District
Every street in Sham Shui Po tells a different story through what it sells:

• -Electronic parts spill from shops on one road
• -Another displays endless rolls of fabric in rainbow colors
• -Shopkeepers organize vintage treasures and secondhand finds on tables that spill onto sidewalks
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The aroma of rice noodle rolls (cheong fun) steaming in metal trays mingles with the sweet smell of put chai ko pudding cakes baking in clay pots. Locals know to arrive around 10 am when shop gates roll up, but before the lunch rush forms lines at the best food stalls. Step out of Sham Shui Po MTR at exits A2 or C2, and the neighborhood immediately pulls you into its daily rhythm.

Scenic Routes

In Hong Kong, transportation isn't just about getting from one place to another, it's about experiencing the city itself. Here are five routes that tell the story of Hong Kong through its landscapes and urban scenes:

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• Peak Tram to Victoria Peak: The wooden tram creaks as it climbs at what seems like an impossible angle. As you ascend, skyscrapers appear to tilt in the windows. Come at sunset when the city transforms below you, office lights flicker on one by one, and the harbor turns to liquid gold. The tram has been making this journey since 1888, and sitting in these historic cars connects you to generations of visitors who gazed in wonder at the same view.

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• Star Ferry Tsim Sha Tsui to Central: The green and white ferries have crossed Victoria Harbour since the 1880s. The seven-minute journey costs less than a cup of coffee but delivers a front-row seat to one of the world's most recognizable waterfronts. At 8 pm, the buildings perform their light show. In winter months, the air clears and the buildings sharpen against the night sky.

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• Ngong Ping 360 to Tian Tan Buddha: The cable car swings gently as it carries you over Lantau Island's green peaks. Below, hiking trails thread through the hills, and fishing villages nestle in distant bays. Spring brings clear skies that stretch all the way to mainland China. In the glass-bottom cabins, you'll feel suspended in air with nothing between you and the forest floor far below.

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• Hong Kong Tram East to West: Locals call it the "ding-ding" for the sound of its bell. These narrow double-deckers roll through the northern corridor of Hong Kong Island, passing old apartment blocks where laundry flutters from bamboo poles, alongside steel-and-glass towers. From the upper deck front seat, you'll see shopkeepers arranging wares and food vendors preparing street snacks, all at eye level as you pass.

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• Bus Route 6 from Central to Stanley: The bus climbs up and over the island's spine, then hugs coastal roads where waves crash against rocky shores. One moment you're in a concrete canyon, the next you're sailing above beaches and bays. In autumn, the seasonal haze lifts and the sea sparkles blue. The front seats on top become mini-observation decks as the bus navigates hairpin turns that reveal new vistas around each bend.

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Events, Festivals and Local Markets

The Chinese New Year Flower Market features red lanterns hanging overhead as families walk between rows of peach blossoms and kumquat trees at this yearly gathering in Hong Kong. In the days before Lunar New Year, parents lift children onto their shoulders to see above the crowds while vendors call out their prices. The scent of fresh flowers fills the air as people select plants that will bring good fortune for the coming year.

The Hong Kong Food Expo fills the air with the clinking of sample plates and sizzle of cooking demonstrations during this August food gathering. Grandmothers taste test traditional sauces while young couples snap photos of elaborate desserts. Lines form for popular stalls where chefs prepare specialties from across Asia and beyond.

Stanley Market welcomes shoppers with cool sea breezes to this coastal marketplace in Hong Kong's southern district. Narrow pathways lead between stalls selling hand-painted ceramics and silk scarves. Weekends bring local families who shop, then relax at nearby cafés watching boats in the harbor. The market welcomes visitors every day of the year.

The Ladies' Market comes alive as evening lights illuminate the canopies of over 100 stalls on Tung Choi Street in Hong Kong's Mong Kok district. Shopkeepers arrange colorful displays of clothes and trinkets while neighbors call to each other across the walkway. Bargaining is part of the experience here, with prices dropping as the night progresses. Open daily from noon until the last shoppers head home.

Best Places to Visit

1. Hong Kong Island's glass skyscrapers stand beside colonial buildings while trams rattle past century-old temples. During the day, businesspeople hurry through the Central District's narrow streets. As evening approaches, the same streets transform as restaurant doors open and tables spill onto sidewalks.

From Victoria Peak, visitors watch day turn to night as thousands of lights gradually illuminate buildings below. The city doesn't just show its beauty, it reveals it slowly as darkness falls.

October to December brings clear blue skies and comfortable temperatures around 21°C (70°F). The air feels crisp rather than heavy, making walks through the island's neighborhoods more enjoyable.

Each autumn, the Hong Kong Wine & Dine Festival turns the waterfront into an open-air feast. Every night at 8 pm, buildings across the harbor coordinate their lights in the Symphony of Lights show, with music playing as the skyline pulses with color.

How to get to Hong Kong

• -By MTR (subway) from anywhere in the territory
• -Taxi or bus from Hong Kong International Airport

2. Kowloon sidewalks overflow with people, sounds, and smells. Neon signs hang above streets where market vendors call out to passersby. Here, restaurants serve fish pulled from tanks moments before cooking, and tiny family-run shops sell goods they've made for generations.

At night, along the Tsim Sha Tsui promenade, people gather to watch Hong Kong Island's buildings light up across the water. The harbor becomes a mirror, doubling the city's glow.

As darkness falls, Temple Street transforms into a night market where fortune tellers set up beside stalls selling everything from phone cases to tea sets. At Ladies' Market, shopkeepers expect customers to negotiate prices, turning shopping into conversation.

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• How to get to Kowloon
• -MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui, Jordan, or Mong Kok stations
• -Star Ferry from Hong Kong Island
• -Airport Express with direct connection to Kowloon Station
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Tips for Traveling to Hong Kong

VISA & ENTRY

Most visitors receive visa-free entry for 14-90 days

Verify requirements for your specific nationality

Ensure your passport remains valid for at least 6 months

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CULTURAL ETIQUETTE 

Using basic Cantonese greetings is appreciated by locals

Wear modest clothing when visiting temples

When giving gifts, avoid clocks and white flowers as they have negative associations.

MONEY MATTERS

Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) is the local currency

Credit cards are accepted at most establishments

Get an Octopus card for public transportation and small purchases

HEALTH & SAFETY

For emergencies, call 999

No vaccinations are required for entry

Consider purchasing travel insurance

Tap water is generally safe to drink

TRANSPORTATION

The MTR subway system provides fast and reliable service

Double-decker buses serve most areas of the city

Taxis are reasonably priced, but many drivers don't speak English