MOVE AROUND

    ong Kong is a town of 7 million people grouped in the space of over 1000 square kilometres. A great portion of that is taken already – there are numerous hills and mountains here, covered with country parks of all sorts and nature’s wonders. Building anything there is quite impossible for now. Because of it, you cannot really say it is 7000 people per square kilometer – there is even less space! And buildings can only go up – they cast the longest shadow in Hong Kong.

Having a car here is a luxury – the general up-keep of a car is expensive. The space for parking is scarce and it costs. But then… can you imagine most of the population having a car here? The country is tiny!

Every day, everyone has to go to work. There are, literally, rivers of people flowing in various directions (sometimes at least). Standing in a queue or taking the 3rd bus/metro in a row is normal when everyone returns home at the same exact time. And this is great! At peak hours public transport can go as often as every 4 minutes! It is fascinating when you are in the middle of it and crazy to imagine if you have never seen it.

Hong Kong has a great public transportation system with over 10 metro lines and tens of busses, minibusses, and residence coaches. The taxi is the most expensive, but nobody hesitates to take it. It is in fact, cheaper or the same as in Poland. There is a separate system of roads dedicated to pedestrians. It is not perfect but you are sheltered from the local showers, there is AC sometimes (since it often passes through buildings/malls), and it is faster than the ground roads even when there is more walking.

What should you know first?

The Octopus Card

It is common in big cities to have a card covering all public transport expenses. Here it is called – Octopus. It can also be used to pay in shops, restaurants, taxis, attractions, etc. It is an extremely useful piece of plastic in Hong Kong.

There exist two main types:

The standard card

Comes with in-stored 100 HKD to be used instantly and an additional 50 HKD deposit, which is given back when you return the card to the authorities.

150 HKD is a normal price for it.

This Octopus is the one that you can personalize and register (in case of it being stolen or to get residential price reductions and more).

You can buy them on-site at the airport or various offices of public transport in Hong Kong (also in some shops – the list is here). But when you buy it via Internet sites you need to know the difference. Most of the accessible cards there are the standard ones.

When you have a card using it is a pleasure. If only there is a sign of Octopus at the counter – you just tap the card to the machine and that is it. Octopus can store the maximum of 1000 HKD and if you use the card everywhere it has a tendency of running out quickly.

The ways to recharge the card are:

• Offices at the MTR stations
• Automats at the MTR stations
• Designated shops like 7 eleven, welcome, Circle K, McDonald’s, Starbucks, etc. (here is a link)

At the end of your trip to Hong Kong and its surroundings, you can keep the card as a souvenir or return it and get the deposit back. You can also get the money stored on Octopus back (if only it is less than 500 HKD). Direct yourself to the MTR office either in the city or at the airport.

App note – There exists an app for IOS users enabling them to use a telephone as the Octopus card. 

The other one is the Octopus by Octopus Card Limited – it is designed mostly for the residents. It gives various benefits: you can register the card there in case it is lost, you get coupons to buy in stores, and can collect a subsidy for your systematic travel. You can read more about it here, but it is not something that a tourist would need.

Metro

It covers Hong Kong beautifully with its 10 lines. They will take you from the airport to the city. There are a few covering the mainland districts of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Islands. Finally, there are those that will take you further away – even to the Chinese border, where you can cross and make a day trip to Shenzhen.

Times?

They go often – every 2/3 minutes in the peak hours to every 10 minutes when it is calm or there a weather problem (like a Typhoon 8, when everyone should stay at home instead of traveling).

The operational times are between 6 am and 1 am.

Every metro station is well marked with a characteristic symbol. Other signs in the city lead your way to the entrances. There are usually a few of them, giving you wide access to the main sites in the vicinity of the metro station. When you get off the train and exit you can always find a map of the local area (google maps also help). The exits marked by letters of the alphabet come with the list of strategic buildings/places they lead to. It doesn’t say much to a tourist, and I highly recommend the MTR maps and the Internet.

Prices?

The price of the ticket depends on the distance you will travel and the points where you will exit. Each MTR station usually has a big panel with connections and prices. It can be as cheap as 3 HKD or goes up to the airport fares (which are usually the most expensive).

Octopus comes a little bit cheaper than the single ticket fares (eg. Mong Kok to Central – 12,7 HKD with Octopus or 14,50 for a single ticket).

You can buy your tickets at the MTR office or in the machine, which is usually not that far away. Be sure that you choose the right one – there are also machines where you can add value to the Octopus with your cash.

Needless to say – you either have your Octopus which you tap crossing the gates, or you buy a ticket and use it to enter. Do not throw it away – it is needed to exit as well.

Busses, minibusses, residence coaches

There are over 700 routes in Hong Kong.

They are operated by various companies and the ones that belong to residential complexes (like Park Island or Discovery Bay busses).

There are regular busses and minibusses (I call them cucumbers). Each one designed to do something else. Minibusses tend to be faster and slightly more expensive – and truly local experience. They come in red or green roofs which makes them easier to spot.

How to figure them out?

Reading the names of the places on the bus stop can be pointless. But there are ways to get by.

First – google maps works, although it sometimes loses the signal because of all this concrete around you. The main problem here is getting off at the wrong stop or having a hard time finding the bus stop.

Second – there are various apps but living in Hong Kong made me appreciate this one the most (you can read more about it here). It gives fares and great maps of routes of all the busses in Hong Kong. The problem is there is number 2 that runs in the mainland and number 2 that runs on Hong Kong Island… It is not that bad – only sometimes you need a few tries before you find your bus. The ability to read maps and to know where you are more or less is a plus here.

Prices?

The prices depend on the distance – the same as it was with MTR. There is no point in using a bus only for 1 or two stops. There is only one price as you enter the bus – you pay for the section of the road it currently travels on (the routes are divided into sections). You can read more about it on the information panel at each bus stop.

Of course, there are lines that only connect two points – then the payment is not a problem, but there are no bus stops on the way. It is most common with the busses that connect the remote living districts with the main body of the city (Ma Wan, Discovery Bay, etc.)

Since this is out of the way you should know the way of conduct with the buses.

• You need to wave for it and press the button inside if you want to get off it
• You can buy your tickets with cash with the bus driver, but you need to have an exact change – otherwise, you just pay what you put into the machine.
• You can also pay with the Octopus
• The signs are both in English and Chinese, but usually, the name of the final destination is on the bus or on the bus stop (some sign in big letters)
• Stay in the queue – people can get a bit nervous here
• Everyone is quite respectful about elderly people

Trams

have been operational in Hong Kong since 1904. They could have been installed earlier but the local government found only Victoria Peak – Central interesting. But with the population boom of the end of the XIX century, the chair coolies were not enough. You can find them only in the northern parts of Hong Kong Island.

Trams were electric from the beginning, never horse pulled. They connect a 13-kilometer line from Kennedy Town in the West to Shau Kei Wan in the East. They are all passing through the center of the Central district on the Island and they are quite popular among tourists today.

There is some charm in traveling in this vintage vehicle, sitting tight inside among the other people, looking at the skyscrapers and life around you. Another bonus is the price which is always the same – 2,60 HKD for Adults and 1,20 – 1,30 HKD for children and seniors – regardless of the distance you travel.

Cherry for the end – the locals call it ding-ding and you can rent an old-school cart for a party. How cool is that?!

Water ferries

It should not be a surprise, but Hong Kong consists of quite a few islands. With no other means to get there than boats. Setting aside the practical part of all this – it is a great attraction for tourists.

The most popular of them is called Star Ferry – it connects the southern parts of Kowloon with the Central pier on Hong Kong Island. This green and white boat are operating since the end of the XIX century. It is a part of many tourist combo-tickets since you can see both the panorama of Victoria Harbour with its skyscrapers and the Tsim Sha Tsui promenade with its Avenue of Stars. It operates from the early morning till 11.30 PM so you can get some night photos as well. The price varies around 3 HKD (there are different weekend prices, there is also the upper deck – better for photos).

As for the other ferries – only on Hong Kong Island you have 3 main pier areas – Central, Aberdeen, and North Point. There is more – in Kowloon, Lantau, Tsuen Wan, or Sai Kung… The ferries or slow boats take you to the major smaller and bigger islands of Hong Kong. You can even take a speedboat to Macau and spend a weekend there.

The prices are reasonable, and you will find them and a timetable on the Transport Department of Hong Kong website (link included).