Hong Kong Public Transportation
How to get around Hong Kong efficiently.
Back in Hong Kong: Missed the Chaos
Hong Kong was visited by a typhoon, Prapiroon, which threw the air traffic situation into total chaos. Hundreds of flights were cancelled or diverted. Thousands of people spent the night at the airport.
The Hong Kong Observatory hoisted a number 3 signal instead of a number 8. Their criteria had to do with the wind force at Victoria Harbor. So even though the winds did not reach 100 KMH there they were over 200 KMH at the airport. Times have changed since the current system was installed in 1917. Boats are not the major concern, anymore. In true bureaucratic fashion the Observatory said they acted just as they were supposed to without acknowledging that following the rules to the letter put people’s lives in danger and helped create a mess at Chek Lap Kok Airport.
Date: August 6th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #4
Ride!!!!
“Ride what?” you ask. Let’s start with one of Hong Kong’s icons, the Star Ferry. For HK$2.30 (US$0.30) or free if you are over 60, you can ride the ferry back and forth across the harbor. As long as you don’t get off, you can make the trip as many times as you wish. You better do it soon, though. At the rate the government is filling in the Harbor, the Star Ferry may soon be a memory.
The Star Ferry
Date: June 19th, 2006 |
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Hong Kong Versus Singapore - Coming and Going
Two days ago I started to compare Hong Kong and Singapore, and then I got distracted by the Dragon Boat races so I want to continue what I started.
Airports
For years I believed that Changi Airport in Singapore was the best airport in the world. Now that Hong Kong has Chek Lap Kok, Singapore has some competition.
Date: June 2nd, 2006 |
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Changes On Hong Kong’s Victoria Peak
Four days until the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens.
The Peak Tower is going to be made part of the nightly “Festival of Lights” when it re-opens sometime this summer. It has been undergoing a substantial revitalization, which, without messing with the original “wok” design, will provide more interior viewing area, add access to views of the South side of Hong Kong Island and hopefully attract some higher class vendors than were there before. I’ve seen better merchandise in the lowliest of the night markets.
The Tower Before Refurbishment
I’ll say more about the Peak when the Tower re-opens and other changes are made. I do want to offer two tips, though.
Date: March 27th, 2006 |
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Well, Maybe Not a Paradise
A couple days ago I posted an entry entitled Hong Kong: “A Public Transportation Paradise.” I received a very interesting comment from a recent visitor from France. Here it is. Remember English is not his native language but he communicates very well.
“Glad to read once a positive and almost enthousiastic comment ! Yes, buses go anywhere, but even with the differents internet sites, it’s not obvious to find out which bus(es) can get you from such place to such other place. List of buses exists, but sorted by #line (with a description of the route). …
Date: February 8th, 2006 |
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Ten Things to do in Hong Kong, #7A
Visit!!!!!!!!!!
“Visit what?” you ask. Well, not the usual tourist traps but rather the outlying islands, 221 of which are uninhabited and a number of which are barely inhabited.
I’ll start with the three most popular and then talk about the others in a subsequent posting.
Lantau
Lantau is the largest island in the territory and the most visited. It is the home of Chek Lap Kok Airport, Disneyland, Po Lin Monastery and its 110 foot high sitting Buddha, the soon to be opened Ngong Ping 360 Cable Car Ride, Tai O with it’s stilt housing and Discovery Bay, an expat dominated enclave. But don’t think it doesn’t have its secret places where you are unlikely to run into many other tourists.
Tai O Village on Lantau Island
Date: July 1st, 2006 |
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Hong Kong Versus Singapore - Getting Around and Getting Along
Fourth in a continuing series.
There are just a few other comparisons between the two places that need to be made. One is the ease with which people can move around the city. Singapore has wide streets that make walking a pleasure. Hong Kong’s streets, on the other hand, are usually narrow and overcrowded. Strolling is difficult in the built up areas. It also seems as if the sidewalks and streets are constantly being torn up.
Tree Lined Lane in Singapore’s Chinatown
Date: June 8th, 2006 |
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Being a Tourist Guide In Your Own Home Town (HK In a Day and a Half)
I recently had the opportunity to show a couple of first time visitors around Hong Kong. They were connecting to a cruise and so had only a day and a half. Additionally, the weather was hot and extremely muggy, a condition they were not used to. What to do? What to do?
Since they were staying in Hung Hom on the Kowloon side, the first leg was easy. Take the Star Ferry to Central where we could meet up easily (I live in Central). Since I had just arrived that morning after an all-night 14 hour flight from the U.S., I set up a 2:00 PM meeting and they used the late morning and early afternoon to wander around and have a light lunch.
Star Ferry and Convention Center
Date: May 9th, 2006 |
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Complaining About Hong Kong Taxi Drivers
Complaints are up about taxi and mini-bus drivers, especially as a percentage, the unregulated red mini-busses. I seldom ride the red mini-busses but I do use taxis quite often (I live up a fairly steep hill) and ride the green, regulated mini-busses from time to time
Naturally, the representatives of the drivers said the complaints were overstated. They might have a point. In all my years in Hong Kong, I cannot recall one instance where I was mistreated by a taxi driver and only once was I taken on a “ride” instead of going directly to my destination and I’m partially to blame for not speaking up.
Date: March 15th, 2006 |
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Hong Kong: A Public Transportation Paradise
The other day a visitor to Hong Kong asked me if he should rent a car to visit some sites in the New territories. My response: “No way!!!!!!!!!!” You can get anywhere you want to go using trains, busses, mini-busses and taxis.
In my opinion, Hong Kong has the best public transportation system in the world. There are differing levels of service depending on where you are going, how quickly you want to get there and how comfortable you are with public transportation.
Date: February 6th, 2006 |
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