"MY FIRST FAR EAST ASIAN EXPERIENCE" Hong Kong by Pinat

Hong Kong Travel Guide: 8,194 reviews and 19,580 photos

In the Avenue of Stars - Hong Kong
In the Avenue of Stars
HOW LUCKY I WAS!

It was in August 2008 when I received an invitation for a conference in Hong Kong. I didn't pay much attention and forwarded it to my boss. I never thought I'd go but at the end of September I learned that I'd be off to Hong Kong for the conference by mid-October. What a surprise!

I wasn't ready for such a trip. My trips had always been nicely planned to European countries. Plus, I didn't have much time to do some research and learn what to do and what not to do. Worse, I don't like Asian food.

Basically I just checked the weather, downloaded some walking routes, randomly booked a hotel (which turned out to be a big failure) and took off.

The first things I remember of Hong Kong is the hot weather, the humidity, the strange smells, the crowd and my very first experience of jetlag of course.

I was in Hong Kong for five days: Three days for the conference in the beautiful Hong Kong Gold Coast Hotel in Kowloon, two days in the wierd Hotel Dorsett Far East with short visits to as many places as I could, including a tour in Lantau Island.

On my first day, I was annoyed by everything and on my fifth day I was sorry that I didn't have more days to discover more cuz it wasn't that annoying after all. Now I hope to go once again and also plan to stop in Singapore on my way back to Turkey. As of now, it's just a wish but we'll see.

Pros and Cons
  • Pros:A country like a big city: You can see a lot in a short time!
  • Cons:The crowd and the humidity
  • In a nutshell:Getting Lost in the Madding Crowd
  • Last visit to Hong Kong: Oct 2008
  • Intro Updated May 30, 2009
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Reviews (7)

Vegetarian Lunch at Po Lin - Hong Kong Vegetarian Lunch at Po Lin Restaurants (1)

Po Lin Monastery is famous for providing high quality (really high quality) Buddhist vegetarian cuisine in Hong... more travel advice

View from the Cable Car - Hong Kong Lantau Island & Cable Car Transportation (3)

Ngong Ping 360 is a spectacular 5.7km cable car journey between Tung Chung town center and Ngong Ping on Lantau Island,... more travel advice

The misty mountains of Lantau Island - Hong Kong Touring Lantau Island Things to Do (1)

Lantau Island is almost twice the size of Hong Kong Island and is one of the best-loved outlying islands according to my... more travel advice

The View from the Room I'd Stayed - Hong Kong Loved the Room Service:) Hotels (2)

I was lucky enough to stay in one of the best hotels of Hong Kong I believe for three nights. As it was a business trip,... more travel advice

Comments (8)

  • Reply
    SLLiew's Profile Photo
    Mar 16, 2010 at 12:13 PM

    Revisiting I enjoyed HK. Great place to shop, eat and sightseeing.

  • Reply
    lindyz's Profile Photo
    Dec 17, 2009 at 2:28 PM

    Good tips Pinat - Ill be sure and NOT stay at the Dorsett Far East Hotel!!! Hong Kong is my next travel destination in September 2011 - I cant wait!!!

  • Reply
    DAO's Profile Photo
    Jul 4, 2009 at 11:05 AM

    Hi Pinar, welocome to VT. Glad to see all the tips you are building. Great information, especially about the bad hotel. All the best!

  • Reply
    hopang's Profile Photo
    Jul 3, 2009 at 9:52 AM

    Lovely Hong Kong page with excellent photographs! You have visited Lantau Island. That's great. Thanks for sharing. We hope to visit Lantau Island one day! ~ho & pang

  • Reply
    VZ-Pam's Profile Photo
    Jun 25, 2009 at 4:22 PM

    Nice pages & honest comments. Tsuen Wan is a bit far from central and Po Lin Monastery really have nice vegetarian dishes :)

  • Reply
    ncfg's Profile Photo
    Jun 21, 2009 at 3:50 AM

    Very nice page! It is great to have working travels and to get a chance to know new places.

  • Reply
    junecorlett's Profile Photo
    Jun 20, 2009 at 5:52 AM

    I have been to HK and really loved it - 13 yrs ago, going to Thailand via HK and will be spending 6 hrs at the airport, pity!!!

  • Reply
    Toshioohsako's Profile Photo
    Jun 8, 2009 at 6:30 AM

    Nice hotel tips but also nice photos. I have been to HK almost 30 years ago and its time to go back sometime. Have a nice day.

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