The wrong way to see Hong Kong on a layover

Hong Kong is one of the easiest cities in Asia to see on a stopover, and one of the easiest to waste. I have met travellers who spent six hours of a nine-hour layover on the Airport Express and the Peak Tram queue, and came back with one photograph of fog.

Here is how I would actually do a short visit, plus what to skip.

First, the practical screening

You need to know two things before you leave the airport.

Can you leave the airport?

Most nationalities get visa-free entry to Hong Kong for 30 to 180 days, and mainland China's visa rules do not apply here. If your baggage is checked through, you can usually leave. If you need a visa for Hong Kong specifically, check before you fly, because it is a separate immigration system.

How much time do you actually have?

The Airport Express takes 24 minutes to Central. Add 30 minutes to clear immigration and reach the platform, and 45 minutes to get back through security. A six-hour layover gives you roughly three hours in the city. Nine hours gives you about six.

Do not leave the airport on a layover under five hours. It is not worth the stress.

Three plans, by how much time you have

Three hours: Central and the Star Ferry

Ride the Airport Express to Hong Kong Station. Walk to Central Pier through the elevated walkways. Take the Star Ferry to Tsim Sha Tsui, which costs a few Hong Kong dollars and takes eight minutes, and is the single best value experience in the city.

Walk along the Tsim Sha Tsui promenade, look back at the skyline, then take the ferry back. Total walking: about 5 km. Total time: three hours with a coffee stop. Take the Airport Express back from Kowloon Station if you end on that side.

This is my standard recommendation for a short layover and it never disappoints.

Six hours: add dim sum and a market

Do the above, then eat properly. A proper dim sum lunch in a busy restaurant is the thing to do with an extra three hours, and it is genuinely different from dim sum in Europe.

Look for a big open dining room with a queue. Order by pointing at what other tables have. Expect 20 to 40 minutes of waiting at peak lunch. Budget 100 to 200 HKD per person.

Afterwards, walk through a wet market in Mong Kok or Sham Shui Po rather than a tourist street market. The wet markets are where the city actually shops.

Nine hours or an overnight: add the Peak or Lantau

With a full day, you have a choice.

The Peak is the classic and the Tram queue can be 90 minutes at weekends. Instead, take the number 15 bus from Central Exchange Square, which costs about 12 HKD, takes 40 minutes, and gives you a better view on the way up than the tram does. Or walk up from Central via the Old Peak Road, about an hour of steep climbing, and take the bus down.

The alternative is Lantau. The Ngong Ping 360 cable car to the Big Buddha takes 25 minutes and there are hiking trails from the village that are far better than the Buddha itself. Or skip the cable car and take a bus to Tai O, a stilt-house fishing village on the west of the island, which is one of the most interesting places in Hong Kong and gets a fraction of the visitors.

The Airport Express trick

If you are returning to the airport the same day, buy the same-day return ticket rather than two singles. It is significantly cheaper. You can also check in your luggage at Hong Kong or Kowloon Station for most airlines and travel light for the day, which changes the whole experience.

Also: the in-town check-in desks accept bags from about three hours before departure. Use them and you can spend your last hours downtown rather than dragging a suitcase.

Getting around

• Get an Octopus card at the airport or use a contactless bank card on the MTR. Both work. Octopus is easier.
• The MTR is fast, clean and cheap. Use it.
• Taxis are cheap by European standards but drivers may not speak English. Have your destination written in Chinese.
• Walking is the best transport in Central, Sheung Wan and Tsim Sha Tsui. The elevated walkway network means you barely touch the street.

What to skip

The Peak Tram on a weekend. The Madame Tussauds at the Peak. The Symphony of Lights laser show, which is genuinely underwhelming. The souvenir markets on Temple Street, which sell the same magnets as everywhere else.

And the escalator if you are pressed for time. It only runs one direction depending on the hour.

Eating on a layover

Do not eat at the airport on the way out and do not eat at a chain. Hong Kong is one of the great food cities and a layover is a poor excuse to skip it.

If you only have three hours, eat in Tsim Sha Tsui after the ferry. There are excellent noodle shops within a five-minute walk of the pier.

The honest summary

Hong Kong rewards a tight plan and punishes wandering. Decide your three hours before you land, take the Airport Express, use the Star Ferry, eat something local, and be back at the gate with an hour to spare.

It is one of the few cities where a nine-hour layover genuinely gives you a real visit rather than a stressful dash. Take advantage of it.

Originally published on 71Asia Tours blog.