Hong Kong is such a gorgeous city! I had visited Hong Kong a few times, and I love this city. Although it’s a small city (its population is about 7,5 millions people as of 2019) but It’s a good place to visit again, and again. This blog will give some travel tips for your first trip to this city.
I had felt in love with Hong Kong city since I had watched many Hong Kong movies; it made me coming to visit it to find out about its food, about Hong Kong people.
The first time I came to Hong Kong was in 2002, and our trip lasted only 5 days 4 nights; by that time Hong Kong did not have Disneyland yet, it only had Ocean Park. We had only 5 hours to stay at Ocean Park, we had fun but we did not ride all of the excitement rides in there. I was a little bit disappointed, but I was okay because I used to go to Disneyland in California many times, but my niece and nephews were so upset , they wanted to stay there longer.
I think the city was lovely, Hong Kong people were friendly, and food were delicious such as steamed shrimp dumplings, roasted goose, egg tart, wonton soups.
I remember we were walking a long way to get to Victoria Harbor; we just kept walking and walking until we got there. There was no place to seat until we found a McDonald restaurant, bought some food and enjoyed the views. By that time, there was not even one bench along the way to Victoria Harbor; but it’s good to get there because Victoria Harbor was a good attraction to visit along with Clock Tower and Hong Kong Space Museum just a few minutes to walk to.
Victoria Harbor was a great place to walk and enjoyed Hong Kong life. Beautiful scenes and amazing views make Hong Kong nights fantastic and wonderful. At night, its best to see the lights of Hong Kong from Kowloon side.
We did not have time to visit Hong Kong Space Museum. Anyway, we’re glad that we visited the Big Buddha on the last day of the tour. The Big Buddha or Tian Tan Buddha is one of the largest seated Buddha statues in the world. It stands at 34 meters high (112 feet) and is one of Hong Kong’s most popular sights.
Currency
The currency is the Hong Kong dollar. As of today, 1 US Dollar equals 7.85 Hong Kong Dollar. Most places accept Visa or Mastercard, and I’d say 40-50% of places will also accept American Express.
Language
The main language spoken in Hong Kong is Cantonese, a local dialect. A lot of people speak English, and most of the signs are bilingual.
Free WiFi
There are lots of free WiFi. If you need WiFi to do your job or stay in touch with family and friends, then there are free WiFi everywhere. Make sure switching your phone to airplane mode, to avoid any overseas charges, then turn the WiFi on and you should be able to connect.
If you cannot find any, just walk a few blocks and try again. You can also grab a cup of tea or cafe at a local cafe and settle in for a quick few minutes of WiFi action.
Seasons in Hong Kong
Hong Kong has 4 seasons, and it is mild for more than half of the year. It is not a year-round tropical country as many people seem to believe. Spring is a cloudy season in Hong Kong. There are hot, humid and wet summer (June – August), sunny pleasant autumn and mild, relatively and dry winter. The best time to visit Hong Kong is from October to early December, when the weather is sunny, cool and pleasant.
How to Get Around Hong Kong?
Public transportation is efficient, cheap and clean, and the network is very extensive. Taxis are cheap as well if you are in a hurry.
The best way to get to and from the airport is via the Airport Express train. Tickets can be purchased at the station and the train stops in Tsing Yi, Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. It takes around 25 minutes from end to end. Buy your ticket ahead of time online here, the price difference is not much, but it saves you time from waiting in line. Once you’ve purchased your ticket online, you can use the QR code that they send you to swipe through the gate.