2016 has been a remarkable year for me, so much blessings and a lot of “first-times”; an amazing roller coaster ride if I should define it. There were ups and downs, different challenges along the road yet still a marvelous year. I have achieved a lot of personal goals which I’m really very thankful of. 2016 has passed but it’s memory and the lessons learned remains and I’m glad to have recorded my journey through this blog. Here are the top 6 of my 2016 travel experiences:
It was my first outreach program for 2016 which was organized by our company. Charity works is always something that I want and love to do. We went to an Elementary School in Baraz Rizal where we treat the kids with fun games, feeding program and provided some giveaways. It was indeed a fulfilling and one of a kind experience. An awesome way to start 2016.
It was my first tripout of the country. I planned it since 2014 and it has only been made possible last year. I explored different beautiful places in Hong Kong and experienced how it feels like living abroad. Indeed, it was very memorable and amazing.
My first out of 6 Disneylands in the world, 5 to go 🙂 . This was one of the highlights of my 2016’s travels. It was a day full of magical and amazing moments, a day that will forever be in my heart, a memory that will never be forgotten.
My 2nd trip to a foreign land last 2016 was in Macau – the Las Vegas of Asia. It was such an overwhelming experience – visiting different huge casinos and hotels. A combination of past and present culture, Macau has indeed a lot to offer. One of my unforgettable Macau experiences was when we walked from Senado Square to Wyn Hotel until we got lost in the city looking for our way back to the Ferry Terminal.
Home of the Best Island in the world (www.travelandleisure.com ) , Palawan is one of my top pick destinations in the Philippines. It is probably every beach lovers favorite destination. Palawan is also home to the longest navigable underground river in the world and is one of the World’s Wonders of Nature. I would never forget of how amazed I was when we boat through its limestone’s caverns.
Kalanggaman Island is also in one of my top pick Philippine destinations. Located off the shore of Palompon Leyte, Kalanggaman Island boasts it’s long sandbars that stretches from both ends of the island with its powdery white sand and crystal clear water. It was my first camping experience and also my first time sleeping in a tent.
Indeed, 2016 has been an awesome year. It has opened a lot of opportunities and brought me to many beautiful places. It has been the launching point of my travel goals and I’m looking forward to more travels this 2017.
So how’s your 2016? Share your experiences and travel achievements and inspire others!
It was our fourth and last day in Hong Kong, our flight back to Manila was scheduled at 7:10 PM but we’re not done with our tour yet. We still have one more place to visit in our itinerary, Lantau Island. We were quite excited to experience the famous Hong Kong Cable Car, explore Ngong Ping Village, visit Po Lin Monastery and meet the Big Buddha. We really wanted to stay longer but our job and a lot of other things were waiting for us so we had to end our tour. If only we could get a job in Hong Kong in an instant and live there as long as we want :).
We woke up as early as 7:00 AM packed our things and the pasalubongs, prepared ourselves and around 8:30 AM we bid our farewells to our nice and little-comfy hotel. While on our way out we passed by the two friendly hotel crews ( i think they were pure Chinese ), they asked us if we’re checking out and thanked us for staying at the hotel. It was a rainy and cold Sunday morning in HK. With our luggage and pasalubongs, we head to the subway nearest to our hotel, Tsim Sha Tsui station and started our final tour in HK.
From Tsim Sha Tsui MTR Station, take the Tseun Wan Line (the Red Line) and alight at Lai King Interchange.
From Lai King, just right across is the Tung Chung Line. Hop into the train and alight at Tung Chung Station.
Exit at Exit B at the Tung Chung Station and from there you will find the City Gate Mall and right beside it is the entrance to Ngong Ping Cable car. Follow the signs and you will not get lost. Trust me, HK is a very tourist friendly country.
Click [HERE] for affordable Hong Kong Accommodations
We roamed around City Gate Outlets first as it was raining hard when we arrived at Tung Chung so we waited for the rain to stop. It was around 9:30 AM when the rain stopped so we immediately went Nong Ping ticket counter, we were quite lucky because the area wasn’t jam packed by tourists yet. There are two types of cable car, the Standard Cabin and Glass Cabin in which the only difference between the two is that the latter has a glass bottom which you can see what’s below. We bought two two-way standard cabin ticket worth HKD 75 each. We bought a two-way ticket to avoid the long queue in the ticket counter going back to Tung Chung.
My heart pounds fast to the excitement and nervous at the same time as we drew closer to our first ever cable car ride. After around 10-20 minutes of waiting, our turn came. We hopped into the cable car with 3 other tourists, i think they were Germans, im not really sure, the only thing i’m sure of is that they were not speaking in English, haha. It was almost 25 – 30 minute-ride, one of the most exciting and thrilling rides ever. It was kind of a bad weather in HK that day so the wind was slowly swaying the cable car which made me more nervous, haha. But nonetheless the experience was one of a kind. The view from above was extraordinary. It offers a panoramic view of the North Lantau Country Park. I was really amazed as to how they were able to attached those cables from the summit of one mountain to another.
There were still few people when we reached Ngong Ping Village. Different souvenir shops, restaurants and food outlets are available to cater the tourists. There’s a baggage counter in case you want to leave your stuff but it costs HK$ 80, a pricey baggage storage fee so we just opted to bring our luggage and pasalubongs with us as we tour around the area. But before starting our tour we decided to have our breakfast first in one of the restaurants.
After enjoying our sumptuous breakfast, we commenced our last but definitely not the least HongKong tour.
Ngong Ping Village is situated on a naturally scenic area in the western part of Latau Island. This 1.5 hectare area hosts some of the tourist attractions in Lantau Island such as Tian Tan Buddha (Big Buddha) and Po Lin Monastery.
We walked past the Twelve Heavenly Generals or Twelve Divine Generals as we make our way to see Big Buddha.
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With six Generals lined up on each side of the road, these twelve Generals are known to be the Imperial Heavens protector in Buddhist methodology. They represent different times of the day and correspond to different animals in the Chinese Zodiac.
Tian Tan Buddha commonly known as the Big Buddha is one of the popular attractions in Hong Kong and is one of the five large Buddha statues in China. It is a 34 meters bronze statue located at Ngong Ping Village, Lantau Island. The statue is built on a base platform known as “tian tan” (Altar of Heaven) hence it is called the Tian Tan Buddha. It was constructed in 1990 and was finished on December 29 1993 (source: wikipedia).
One will need to climb 268 steps to reach the base/viewing platform of the Big Buddha. Since we were carrying a quite heavy luggage and pasalubong, we decided not to take the 268 steps challenge and just offered our prayers to Big Buddha from where we were standing.
Next and last on our list was the Po Lin Monastery. It is a Buddhist Monastery located in Ngong Ping Village, Lantau Island. It was founded in 1906 and houses three bronze Buddha statues – representing his past, present and future lives – as well as many other Buddhist scriptures. We just took pictures from the outside of the monastery and didn’t bother to go inside as we were carrying many stuff.
There were different praying grounds in the area and we saw some (i think) Chinese folks offering their prayers in a traditional way. There were stalls nearby if you want to buy some incense to make your own offering. There’s also a souvenir shop in the area that sells all kind lucky charms.
Overall Ngong Ping Village is worth a visit, though I find the area a bit touristy. We spent almost 4 hours roaming around the village. At around 3:00 PM we went back to Tong Chung MTR station and head straight to the airport for our flight back to Manila. It was indeed an amazing journey.
Check my facebook page for more pictures (click the photo below)
Other Things To Do in Lantau Island
If you are looking for some hiking and escape from the crowd, try to visit the Wisdom Path. It’s a 15-minute walk from the Big Buddha Statue. The path consist of 38 wooden monuments representing infinity and forming a 260-word Buddhist prayer.
If you still have time, you can also go to Tai O Fishing Village. It is the only remaining village with Chinese stilt houses suspended over water. I was actually planning to visit this village when were in Ngong Ping but I wasn’t able to research on how to go their and we only had limited time so we weren’t able to visit it. Well, at least we still have reasons to back to Lantau Island.
It was our first out of the country experience and we were brave enough ( I guess ) not to sign up to any tour packages, instead we did a “Do It Yourself” kind of tour as we really wanted to explore and experience a foreign land on our own. The good thing about a DIY tour is that you get to have the freedom to choose where to go, what to do, no need to wake up early in the morning, no cramming, no schedule to follow.
We originally planned to go to Macau on our 2nd day during our 4-day Hong Kong trip. We woke up early and went to Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal at around 8:30 AM lined up on the counter to get a ticket going to Macau. While waiting for our turn, we realized that we might over spend in Macau (since we are on a limited budget) and we can’t afford to miss a lot of tourist spots in Hong Kong. Since HK is our top priority we’ve decided to move our Macau Trip on our 3rd day if our budget permits.
Road Signs
Since we don’t have an itinerary to follow, we chose to go to The Peak to experience a Tram ride and explore Central Hong Kong. From Hong Kong China Ferry Terminal, we walked back to Tsim Sha Tsui subway station and took an MTR bound to Central Station. The Peak Tram ticketing office was just 10-15 minute walk from the central station. It was pretty easy to locate the place as there were plenty of road signs. A lot of Filipino’s are also in the area (probably taking their day off) so if you don’t know where to go next feel free to ask them. We reached The Peak Tram station at around 11:00AM and boy! the crowd was overwhelming. There were a lot (as in a lot) of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from our goal. I managed to get a ticket just 15 minutes after we arrived at the station. We waited for another 30-45 minutes before finally boarding on the Tram Car. It was a thrilling ride. We were travelling on a cliff with an elevation of 1,312 ft and it’s very steep! Kind of scary at first but the view was amazing.
The crowd at the The Peak Tram Lower Terminus
While waiting for our turn to board on the tram
We reached the Peak few minutes after departing from lower terminus (terminal). The Peak Tower is a shopping and leisure complex, it’s like a mall with different stalls and food outlets. Madame Tussauds is also located here. Our tickets includes entrance to the Sky Terrace so after checking different souvenir shops we proceeded to the sky terrace which is known to be the highest viewing point in Hong Kong and provides a breathtaking panoramic view of Victoria Harbor and Hong Kong’s skyscrapers. We were given an interactive touchscreen audio device and a headset. It served as our personal tour guide as it discuss Hong Kong’s history (architecture, cuisine and culture). It was like having a personal tour while enjoying the scenic view of Hong Kong. We stayed there for quite a while, roamed around and enjoyed every view as far as our eyes can reach. Sad though because it was quite foggy when went there so we were not really able to see much of the whole Victoria Harbor and Hong Kong’s skyline.
The famous The Peak tower
It was already around 1:00 in the afternoon and yet the fog was still very thick.
Striking a pose at the highest point in Hong Kong ^_^
Retired Peak Tram Car
By the way, we purchased a return ticket with sky pass. You can also purchase just a single ticket with sky pass then just buy a return ticket from the upper terminus (The Peak Tower Terminal). Two way and single journey tickets without sky pass are also available.
Ticket Prices
This is what our ticket looks like. Was able to get these in just less than 15 minutes despite of the huge crowd. haha
As I’ve mentioned above, Madame Tussauds is also located here but we didn’t bought a ticket because it’s kinda pricey. Madame Tussauds is a wax museum which houses nearly 100 internationally known personalities. This is the first Madame Tussauds in Asia as it was originally founded in France.
Madame Tussauds Entrance and Ticketing Counter
Bruce Lee’s Wax figure at Madame Tussauds entrance.
If you get tired and hungry of roaming around you can take a rest and eat as there are different food establishments in the area.
We left The Peak at around 3:00PM, this time we decided to just walk around Central Hong Kong. We walked around the park, along the highway (lol) just appreciating the beauty of the city. There were many huge concrete and steel buildings which really shows how successful Hong Kong is.
Fountain at the park somewhere in Central Hong Kong. 😀
Bank of China Tower (right) and Cheung Kong Center (left)
Hong Kong’s old Supreme Court building
The Cenotaph commemorating the dead of World War I and II with Hong Kong Club Building in the background
2 International Financial Center
Hong Kong Observation Wheel overlooking Victoria Harbor
We felt a little bit tired since we did a lot of walking so we ended our Central Hong Kong tour at around 5:00PM. Since we were at the Central Pier area we decided to take a star ferry ride. We were quite surprised that we only have to pay HKD3.40 for the ticket, haha (it’s quite cheap isn’t it?). Funny thing is, we didn’t know where the ferry is going, haha. We just bought a ticket and boarded, excited and happy on our first star ferry ride. We only realized that we were back in Tsim Tsa Tsui when we got off the ferry ^_^.
The Star Ferry which only cost HKD3.40 per ride ^_^
Inside the Star Ferry
TRAVEL GUIDE FROM HOTEL IN TSIM SHA TSUI TO THE PEAK TRAM
1. Take the MTR from Tsim Sha Tsui station and alight at Central Station. 2. From Central Station exit at Exit J and follow the arrow signs to The Peak. It’s around 15 minute walk.
Going back to the hotel just follow the same route starting from Central Station and alight at Tsim Sha Tsui. Or since Central Station is in Hong Kong Island might as well roam around and do the sight seing, like what we did. You will find here the Hong Kong Observation Wheel like of the gigantic London Eye. Then going back to Tsim Sha Tsui, since Hong Kong Observation Wheel is near the ferry port, might as well just take and experience the star ferry at Pier 7. It’s around 5 minute sailing for onyl $3.4, half way cheaper than the MTR.
If you’re visiting Hong Kong then you just might as well visit Disneyland or it is probably one of the main reason why you’re in (want to go to) Hong Kong, or if you are reading this then you might have already read my magical Disneyland experience (if you haven’t read it yet click here).
In this post, I will be sharing the directions on how to get to Hong Kong Disneyland and other frequently asked questions.
HOW TO GET TO DISNEY LAND FROM TSIM SHA TSUI
Many budget friendly hotels are located in Tsim Sha Tsui area. In our case, MTR was just few walks away from our hotel so it was very convenient for us. We allotted our whole second day for Disneyland only so we woke up early went there just few minutes right after they open and stayed up until the fireworks display. Here’s the directions on how to get to Disneyland from Tsim Sha Tsui:
From the MTR Tsim Sha Tsui station take the train bound to Tsue Wan (red line).
Alight at Lai King station and transfer to a different train bound to Tung Chung (orange line).
Alight at Sunny Bay station and transfer to Disney Resort line (pink line).
Disney Resort Train has only one stop so when it stops get out of the train and after few walks, taadaaah! you’re in Disney Land!
The fare is HK$19 – oneway (deducted from the Octopus card)
WHAT TIME DOES THE PARK OPEN
The park opens everyday from 10:00 AM to 8:45 PM. Please take note that the schedule may change anytime so I suggest that you check the park’s schedule on their official website (click here) first before going or planning your trip. Also, some attractions may open late or close early so if you want to visit them all make sure to check the schedules online.
HOW MUCH DOES THE TICKET COST AND WHERE TO BUY
There are two types of tickets and you can purchase depending on your choice/need. If you’re planning to explore the park in just a day, you can purchase a 1-Day Ticket:Standard Day or if you need two days to explore this magical kingdom you can purchase a 2-Day Ticket.
1-Day Ticket:Standard Day Cost
HK$539 : General Admission (Ages 12-64)
HK$385 : Child (Ages 3-11)
HK$100 : Senior (Ages 65 above)
For online purchase: Standard Day Tickets are valid for one visit during a 6-month validity period from the purchase date. Standard Day Tickets are valid on all dates during the validity period.
2-Day Ticket Cost
HK$739 : General Admission (Ages 12-64)
HK$525 : Child (Ages 3-11)
HK$170 : Senior (Ages 65 above)
For online purchase: 2-Day Tickets are valid for visit on any 2 days within a 7-day period. First visit must be on or before the last day of the validity period printed on the back of the ticket. Ticket Tag or Photo ID is required for Park admission.
Where to Buy Tickets
There are two ways to purchase a ticket, first is you can purchase from the ticket booths located at the park second is through online (credit card payment). Ticket prices are the same but the only advantage of purchasing online is that you don’t have to wait on the line, just go directly to the ticket booth and claim your actual Park ticket. Guests must be the authorized holder of the credit card used in the Website purchase. Guests need to present the credit card used in the Website purchase together with the confirmation number issued for the Website purchase to redeem the purchased tickets. Upon HKITP’s request, Guests need to present personal identification documents to verify their identities as the authorized holder of the credit card used in the Website purchase.
IS IT ALLOWED TO BRING FOOD INSIDE THE PARK?
Yes, but it depends on the kind of food that you’ll bring. Rice meals and meats are not allowed inside the park. You have to pass two security inspections and the guards are thoroughly inspecting the bags even up to the smallest pockets so don’t even try to sneak something not allowed. However, water, chips and bread are allowed. There are many restaurants & refreshments and food kiosk inside the park but the food are very expensive so make sure to eat a lot before going to the park and bring a bottle of water and something to fill your stomach (like bread and/or chips) but if you have money to blow then you can eat anything you want there by all means :).
IS THERE A MONEY CHANGER AND CHARGING STATION INSIDE THE PARK?
Yes there is a money changer and charging station. Just go to the City Hall located at the Main Street USA. I don’t have the information about the exchange rate but maybe it’s a little bit higher. If your phone ran out of battery you can charge it there for free. Just present a valid ID and bring your own charger with you. Don’t worry about about the three prong adapter, they have lot’s of those :). You can leave your phone there while charging and just present your ID when claiming it.
WHAT TIME IS THE DISNEY PARADE AND FIREWORKS DISPLAY
As far as I know there are two sets of parade, one in the afternoon at 3:00 PM the Flights of Fantasy Parade and the second one is at 7:30 PM Disney Paint the Night Parade (which I liked most and one of the highlights of my Disney experience).
Fireworks display is at the closing part which is 8:45 PM. It is a 10-15 minute display at the Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. Make sure to be there in front of the castle at least 30 minutes or more before the fireworks display starts as the area easily gets crowded. It’s up for you to find a very good viewing (for video/picture) spot.
NOTE: The time or type of parade may change depending on the weather and Disney Management. Like in our case, it was kinda rainy when we went there so for the 3:00 PM parade instead of Flights of Fantasy it was replaced by Mickey’s Rainy Day Parade but we were still able to see different Disney characters.
So there you go folks! So far these are the things that I think might be helpful for you as I also had these questions in my mind before.
If you have further inquiries or suggestions please feel free to write it down in the comment area and I will try to respond the soonest time possible as soon as I read it.
It’s as if it was only yesterday when I went to the magical world of Disneyland. This magical kingdom is probably every kids and kid-at-heart’s dream. When I was a kid I used to watch different Disney shows (even up until now, though not as often as before) and never have I imagined that it would come to a point that I’ll meet almost all Disney characters in person.
Disneyland is our only priority during our Hong Kong trip, haha. So we decided to spend our second day exploring the majestic world of Disney. We woke up early ate our breakfast and prepared ourselves. We wanted to be there when the park opens up until they close (very determined souls, lol).
We left the hotel around 9:30 AM and we were shocked by the cold weather, but that doesn’t stopped us from our goal. Hong Kong itself is very tourist friendly and they have a very expandable mode of transportation so it was kind of easy for us to navigate to our destination.
It was around 10:30 AM when we reached Disneyland and I couldn’t hide my joy and excitement. I was overwhelmed and never thought that right there and then I was in Disneyland. haha (sorry if masyadong madrama). There were a lot of people of course as expected.
The ticket booths are around 5-minute walk away from the main entrance. Before entering in the ticket booths are, we passed through the first security check in which our bags were thoroughly inspected up to the last single pocket. We bought a 1-Day Ticket which cost HK$539 each then went through the last security check and viola! a garden with a huge Mickey Mouse smiling face greeted us.
We grabbed a map from the shelves located just as before entering the Main Street USA. I suggest you get a copy of this map as this will be very useful in navigating around Disneyland.The park has 7 lands to explore, Main Street USA, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, Toy Story Land, Mystic Point, Grizzly Gulch and Adventureland and yes! we were able to visit and experienced all 7 magical lands.
Each land has it’s own unique attractions. The queue for the rides are jam-packed so we were only able to experience few of them. As much as I really want to try all the rides but we don’t want to consume all day lining up waiting on the queue. Also, taking a picture with all the Disney characters in each land is kind of impossible because I think they don’t have a specific time when they’ll come out and when they do, it’s only for few minutes then they’ll leave again (yeah, they’re hiding somewhere and just coming out whenever they want for picture taking, lol and the queue is very long). Luckily we were able to took a picture with the three characters (for one whole day we only took a picture with three of them), Buzz lightyear, Baymax and of course Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
Let me share the story behind this picture with Mickey and Minnie. Around 11:00 AM we saw a very long queue of people patiently standing and waiting on the line, when we checked we saw Mickey and Minnie so we both rushed and went on the line but the Disney staff told us that the meet and greet is already done and that we have to wait for 3:00 PM if we want to have a pic with them then he told us to be there as early as 1:00 PM. We were quite sad and disappointed and somehow lost hope to have a pic with Mickey and Minnie. We already set an expectation to ourselves that we will be leaving Disneyland without a pic with them. But while we are resting and waiting for the 3:00 PM parade we noticed that there are already few people lining up though we’re not seeing any Disney character yet so we just followed the crowd and stand on the line only to find out that it was another meet and greet with Mickey and Minnie. Haha So there it is, luckily I was able to take a pic with Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Yey!
Second picture out of luck is with Baymax. While we are busy taking selfie with Mickey and Minnie we saw Baymax and the queue wasn’t that long so right after taking a picture with Mickey and Minnie Mouse we ran to Baymax’s picture taking area. Haha
This picture with Buzz lightyear is also out of luck. Haha Just right after we finished eating our lunch in a food court at Tomorrowland we saw Buzz lightyear walking towards the picture taking area so we rushed and stand on the line. Wew! Another lucky picture. Haha. So all these pictures with the three Disney characters are all out of luck.
Here are the different attractions in each lands:
Main Street USA
Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad – Main Street Station
Main Street Vehicles
Animation Academy
Art of Animation
Tomorrow Land
Space Mountain
Stitch Encounter (a real-like theater interaction with stitch which I was put on the spotlight because Stitch said that I am a space prisoner. lol Out of all people inside the theater I was the one that he spotted.)
Orbitron
UFO Zone
Autopia
The Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
Fantasy Land
Sleeping Beauty Castle
Mickey’s PhilhasMagic
Fairy Tale Forest
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Cinderalla Carousel
Hong Kong Disneyland Railroad – Fantasy Land Station
Fantasy Gardens
Mad Hatter Tea Cups
It’s a small world
Mickey and the Wondrous Book
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Snow White Grotto
Toy Story Land
Toy Soldier Parachute Drop
Slinky Dog Spin
RC Racer
Barrel of Fun
Mystic Point
Mystic Manor
Garden of Wonders
Grizzly Gulch
Big Grizzly Mountain Runaway Mine Cars
Geyser Gulch
Adventureland
Festival of the Lion King
Rafts to Tarzan’s Tree House
Tarzan’s Treehouse
Jungle River Cruise
Liki Tikis
All seven lands has different Restaurants & Refreshments and shops.
A 3-D theater inside Mickey’s PhilharMagic
The Disney characters parade is scheduled at 3:00 PM and 7:00 PM. The Disney Paint the Night Parade at 7:00 PM is the one i liked most. There’s also a charging station if your phone ran out of battery. Just go to the City Hall located at The Main Street USA, don’t forget to bring your own charger and a valid ID and the staff will charge your phone for free. You can even leave your phone there while charging and continue roaming around the park. If you’re going to claim your phone and charger just present a valid ID.
Cute Tinkerbell! as if she’s really flying
Mickey Mouse
Beautiful Ariel of Little Mermaid
Characters from the movie Monster
Gorgeous Bell of Beauty and the Beast
One of the character from the Disney movie Cars
Sheriff Woody from Toy Story
One of the cool and amazing costumes of the dancers on the parade
The last part and highlight of our Disneyland adventure was the fireworks display. We were already dead tired for roaming around the park the whole day but we can’t leave without witnessing the famous Disney Fireworks display. Around 8:00 PM we went in the open area in front of Cinderella’s Castle and looked for a spot to sit and rest while waiting for the clock to strike at 8:45 PM (this is the time that the fireworks display starts). There were already a lot of people sitting and waiting so if you want to have a perfect viewing (video/picture) spot, be sure to be there at least an hour before the fireworks display as that area of the park easily gets crowded.
The show started at exactly 8:45 PM and I was again amazed and overwhelmed :). The castle looked stunningly beautiful while it was being illuminated by the sparkling lights (it was my first time seeing a real Disney Castle and fireworks so pardon me if I’m kind of madrama, haha dati sa mga intro ng Disney Movies ko lang to nakikita black and white pa).
It was indeed a magical and unforgettable day. My first time Disney experience. I wonder how does the other five Disney’s look like. Can’t wait to visit em all.
My first trip out of the country and my first Hong Kong experience. It wasn’t my first time riding a plane but it was my first time facing an immigration officer which to me was the scariest part of it all. I know a friend who has been offloaded twice at the airport so I was so afraid and praying that it won’t happen to me and thank God I experienced no issues with the IO. I was only asked two questions, how long have I been working, coz according to the immigration officer I look like a minor (I don’t know if it was a compliment or something that I should be scared of so i just smiled)second question was the health card that our company uses, maybe to validate if I’m really working.
CHECKLIST
Our flight was scheduled at 4:10 PM so after my shift from work around 11:00 AM, afraid of getting stuck in the traffic, I immediately went to the airport. Me and my partner lined up on the long queue for the first security check. We were a bit early for the check in as the counters opens 3 hours before the flight so we decided to double check our documents. Here’s what we brought:
Passports
Airline Tickets (back and forth)
Hotel Accommodation Voucher
Company ID
Money (in HKD)
and a Pen (yes you read it right, a Pen. You will be filling out different forms so it’ll be kind of a hassle if you don’t have your own pen, so it is very important.)
TRAVEL TAX
Since the check in counters were still closed we decided to settle the Travel Tax first. The travel tax counter is located on the left hand side from the check in counters. You have to ready you passport and the travel tax fee hand it over to the teller and keep the receipt as you will be showing it to the check-in teller. I suggest that you settle this one first before checking-in so you won’t go back and forth from the check-in counter to the travel tax counter and back to the check-in counter.
Travel Tax Fee = Php1,620
CHECKING-IN AND IMMIGRATION
We wanted to kill some time waiting for the counters to open so we decided to eat first as we haven’t eaten anything yet for lunch . By the time we got back the check-in counters were finally opened so we lined up on the queue. We handed out our passports, travel tax receipts and plane tickets going to Hong Kong to the check-in teller. We didn’t check-in any baggage as we wanna travel light, so the process just took around 5 minutes or so. We asked for the immigration form after the teller handed us our boarding passes. You will need to present this form to the immigration officer so if the check-in teller didn’t give you these, don’t forget to ask.
After filling out the immigration forms we headed to the immigration booth. As a first time out of the country travelers, we patiently waited on the queue feeling excited and nervous. When my turn came I handed out my passport, round-trip tickets, hotel accommodation voucher and company ID to the IO. As mentioned above, I was only asked two questions and finally my passport got it’s first ever stamp! yahoo! haha! sa wakas! We then head to the final security check and waited for our flight at the departure area.
DURING THE FLIGHT
Our plane took off almost 2 hours after our scheduled flight. As usual, the most common reason of the delayed flights in NAIA, air traffic! Few minutes after the plane took off, the flight attendant distributed the arrival cards. You will need to present this to the Hong Kong immigration officers. We immediately filled out the cards and kept it together with our passports.
This is what an Immigration Arrival Card looks like, distributed by the flight attendants at the plane few minutes after taking off.
ARRIVING IN HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AND IMMIGRATION
Airport Express Train. Their subway trains are very long and big enough to accommodate a lot of passengers per ride.
The cold and misty Hong Kong weather greeted us as we got off the plane after it landed around 8:00 PM. We then followed the crowd and it lead us to a train which took us to the airport’s main arrival area (yes! Hong Kong International Airport is that big that you need to ride a train to go to different terminals). We headed to the immigration counters and presented our passports and arrival cards. The IO just asked me one question (how long are you staying here) and handed me back my passport.
OCTOPUS CARD AND AIRPORT EXPRESS TICKETS
After clearing the immigration we went to the airport express counter and purchased 2 standard Octopus cards. This is a must-have card whenever you’re in Hong Kong as it serves as your “prepaid credit card” which is accepted in all forms of transportation (Bus, MTR and some taxis) and even when purchasing at 7/11 and other convenience stores. We also bought Airport Express tickets which we used for the train going to our hotel.
This is what the standard Octopus Card looks like.
Octopus Card Cost
HK$150 each (HK$50 for the deposit and HK$100 consumable. The deposit and remaining balance is refundable when you surrender the card. If you ran out of balance you can top up at any MTR stations or in 7/11. HK$150 consumable was more than enough during our 4 days stay in Hong Kong.)
If you’re travelling with a kid you can also get an Octopus Card for your child which cost HK$70, HK$50 for deposit and HK$20 consumable. For further information about octopus cards you may access their official website here.
2 Airport Express Tickets Cost
HK$150 (group of two single journey tickets, HK$75 each)Apart from Octopus, you may use Single Journey Tickets to travel on the MTR. A Single Journey Ticket entitles you to one ride to a pre-selected destination on the day of purchase. The fare is based on the distance traveled.
HONG KONG TOURISM BOARD AND VISITOR INFORMATION
After securing the cards we went to their tourism board section and grabbed some brochures and maps. It’s free so don’t be shy to get some as those will be your guide in exploring Hong Kong.
FROM HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO TSIM SHA TSUI
Our original plan was to take a bus going to our hotel but since we arrived late we decided to take the airport express. We stayed at USA Hostel located in Tsim Sha Tsui. The exact address is Flat C2, Floor 13, Mirador Mansion | 54-64B Nathan Road, Tsui Sha Tsui. From the airport we took the airport express train and alighted at Kowloon station then we took the airport express shuttle and alighted at Holiday Inn which is few walks away from our hotel. We were so dead tired and sleepy so we just bought something to eat in 7/11, rest ourselves and called it a day.
If you want to take a bus you can ask the airport staff where the bus station/stop is and from there look for the A21 (Airbus 21) mark. Hop-in when the bus arrives and alight at Tsim Sha Tsui, 13th stop with the airport as the first stop.
TIP: Don’t be shy to ask the airport staff for the directions. It will be much easier if you have a print out of the Hotel Name and Address and you just show it to them when asking where to go next. Also, Hong Kong is very tourist friendly, streets are filled with arrow signs with English translations so you really won’t get lost. Just always bring a map with you.
For any question, suggestions, corrections or clarifications please don’t hesitate to write it at the comment section below or you may personally contact me here. Will be posting a lot of Hong Kong experiences and travel guides soon. Keep posted by following me thru email.
Eleven days from now (as of the writing of this post) and I’ll finally step out of the country for the first time. I have never felt this excitement in my life before, butterflies are flying crazy in my stomach. I have been planning this trip for the last two years and the most awaited date in my calendar by far for this year is fast approaching.
Preparations
Passport is ready and excited to get it’s first ever tattoo, back and forth plane ticket are ready, hotel accommodation for 4 nights and 4 days is ready, pocket money has long been saved up, almost everything’s set except for the itinerary. haha! I have been doing my research and there’re quite few must-visit places in Hong Kong so I haven’t really made up my mind yet as to what places I’m gonna include in the itinerary or maybe I’m gonna have to fit em all in our 4 day tour.
Places Planning to Visit
Disney Land and Ocean Park are two of the most important destinations in Hong Kong that I have in my list and they’re on top priority. Victoria Peak where Madam Tussauds Wax Museum is located, Ngong Ping Village, riding a star ferry, symphony of lights, cable car and Avenue of the stars are some of the places that’re on my list. Apart from visiting the said places, hunting for authentic Chinese dishes, experiencing the night life and shopping spree (if my budget permits) are also on my list. yipeee!
First thing to must-have before stepping out of the Airport
I’ve done my research for the do’s and don’ts in Hong Kong and most travelers are suggesting to get an octopus card before getting out of the airport. It is like the MRT stored value card here in the Philippines however the octopus card can be use in almost all public transportation in Hong Kong and purchases into some convenient stores such as 7/11 and many more. It’s a prepaid card that can be reloaded in any MTR stations or in 7/11.
I’m really very excited and quite nervous (haha), as I will be traveling to a foreign country for the first time. If only I could fast forward the time till the day of out trip and pause it for 4 days while we’re in Hong Kong :D.
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Exactly 46 days from now (as of the writing of this post), i will be embarking on a first time ever trip out of the Philippines. The thought of meeting new people and discovering new cultures plus touring different places in Hong Kong excites me the most. At last! my passport will get it’s first official tattoo. lol. I’ve been wanting to visit Hong Kong from the time that i first got my passport (that was 2014) but never really had the chance to plan and pursue it, not until now.
I started planning our trip last October 2015 and we chose March 17-21 2016 as our travel dates. Since this will be both our first time traveling out of the country, the first thing that i did was reading a lot of blogs and forums discussing about travels to HK. I got a lot of tips/ideas to the point that i cannot even decide what to do (i got little bit praning, haha).
Allow me to share my preparations. ^_^ Let’s start first with the:
PLANE TICKET
Looking for a pocket-friendly plane ticket is the first thing that travelers do in planning for a trip and sometimes this is also one of the most challenging and lengthy part. Lengthy because you have to wait for the PISO FARE! ^_^ But if you don’t really mind paying for the regular/expensive plane ticket (depending on your destination) you can just do this at the later part of your travel plans which i don’t really recommend.
I patiently waited for Piso fare but up until last week of November i still haven’t seen any from either Cebu Pacific or AirAsia so i decided to book the lowest fare which cost us Php800.00 each x 2 = Php1776.00. But that’s only one-way, i didn’t book the ticket back to Manila because it was too expensive (at least for me), t’was around Php4000.00 each. I waited for few more days hoping for a luck but I gave up and just booked the lowest fare I saw in AirAsia worth Php5872.78 in total, so that’s Php2936.39 each, still way cheaper than the 4 thousand pesos in Cebu Pacific.
Plane Ticket Cost Back and Forth( for 2 persons) = Php7648.78
Manila to Hong Kong via Cebu Pacific = Php1776.00
Hong Kong to Manila via AirAsia = Php5872.78
Do you guys think it’s still expensive for a plane ticket from Manila-Hong Kong-Manila for 2 persons? Next time I’ll try to book for a plane ticket at least 6 months or a year ahead. ^_^ Hopefully I can get much cheaper that 7k.
HOTEL
Our original plan is to make our own itinerary and be a “backpacker” in Hong Kong then we saw a Travel and Tours promotion online worth only around 6 thousand pesos per person including the accommodations but t’was only for 4D3N stay. Since we are staying for 5D4N in HK we ended up going back to our original plan. We tried inquiring in different Travel and Tours but it was very expensive so we just scrapped that idea.
I started looking for hotels in HK thru Travel Book Philippines, agoda.com and www.expedia.com.ph. My goal is to find a cheap and comfortable hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui (as i’ve read in many blogs this is the center of Hong Kong and it is near to many public transpo).
I ended up booking in USA Hostel in Kowloon thru www.expedia.com.ph . It cost us Php6892.80 for 4 night stay good for 2 persons. That’s including the taxes and fees. Not bad eh? ^_^ But i’m sure there are a lot more cheaper hotels in HK, I just really didn’t have enough time to search.
TIP: Creating an account to different online booking websites really help. So far I’ve tried using the 3 booking sites mentioned above and they give good discounts/promotions. Also, make sure to read the reviews and terms and conditions of the hotel before booking.
Itinerary
As of now, Disney Land and Ocean Park are the only places we have in our itinerary. Haha! I’m still on the process on listing all beautiful places in Hong Kong and fit it in our 4 days schedule.
Total Cost in Peso for 2 Persons (Back and Forth Plane Tickets and 4 nights Hotel stay)
Plane Ticket : 7648.78
Hotel : 6892.80
Total : 14,541.58 (7,270.79/each)
We are planning to bring Php20,000 (3262.55HKD) as our pocket money plus credit cards.
So if westick to our budget for this trip, the overall total will be Php34,541.58 (Php17,270.79/each).OMG!!! this does not include the travel tax in NAIA yet (if there’s any). haha
Wew. These are all the things i have settled for now. I can’t wait for March to come and take some selfies with Mickey and Minnie Mouse. lol
For any questions or suggestions please leave it in the comment section.
