Hong Kong City
Overview of Hong Kong City
It is hard to believe that what was once a sleepy, sparsely populated area of farmland and fishing villages has now become arguably the world’s most influential financial capital and commercial port. Past and present fuse in Hong Kong to create a capitalist utopia embedded within the world’s largest communist country. There is nowhere on earth quite like Hong Kong, which is reason enough for anyone to travel here.
The city, or ‘Central’ as it has become known, sits on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, the tourist capital and the original territory colonised by the British. Central is backed by the green hills of Victoria Peak and looks out over Victoria Harbour, home to annual firework displays and promenades forming natural meeting points for tourists and locals alike.
The city of Hong Kong, despite its surviving traditional enclaves, feels delightfully futuristic. The vast majority of the more than 350 skyscrapers in Hong Kong are concentrated in Central, and this glittering night-time skyline is one of the most iconic in the world. The speed of modernisation and construction means that few colonial buildings now remain, with the oldest surviving being Flagstaff House, dating back to 1846 and now home to the Museum of Tea Ware.
Hong Kong is a booming business hub, a fashion centre and a celebrated foodie destination. The diversity of its population and cultural influences add hugely to its unique appeal. In addition to all its impressive sightseeing attractions visitors will be happy to discover just how well everything works. Most notably, the efficient transport system makes getting around a pleasure.
Key Facts
- Language:
- The official languages in Hong Kong are English and Cantonese. The other main language is Mandarin.
- Passport/Visa:
All foreign visitors to Hong Kong must be in possession of onward or return tickets (except when in transit to mainland China or Macao), the necessary travel documentation for their next destination, and proof of sufficient funds to cover their stay in the country. Note that admission and/or transit will be refused to any national holding a passport issued by Kiribati, and endorsed “N-Kiribati” or “Investor”. NOTE: It is highly recommended that your passport has at least six months validity remaining after your intended date of departure from your travel destination. Immigration officials often apply different rules to those stated by travel agents and official sources.
- Currency:
The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar (HKD), which is divided into 100 cents. Major banks are open from 9am to 4.30pm Monday to Friday, and 9am to 12.30pm on Saturday. Banks and money changers charge commission, as do hotels that provide exchange services. All major credit cards are accepted and ATMs are widely distributed.
- Electricity:
- Electrical current is 220 volts, 50Hz. The UK-style three-pin plugs are standard.
Travel to Hong Kong City
Climate for Hong Kong City
The climate of Hong Kong is subtropical for half of the year and temperate for the rest, with hot, humid summers and cool, dry winters. Winter lasts from December to February. The coldest month is January, when the temperatures average between 58°F (14°C) and 66°F (19°C) and the city gets cooled by strong, cold winds from the north. In spring the wind blows from the south, bringing in warm, humid air and a rainy season that extends through summer. Temperatures in summer, between June and August, regularly climb above 86°F (30°C) and typhoons are possible.
Hong Kong is a little too hot and humid in the peak summer months to be comfortable, but in late spring (May) or autumn (September) the temperature is just right, making these the best times to visit Hong Kong.
7 day forecast for Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| Saturday Dec. 20, 2024 | Sunday Dec. 21, 2024 | Monday Dec. 22, 2024 | Tuesday Dec. 23, 2024 | Wednesday Dec. 24, 2024 | Thursday Dec. 25, 2024 | Friday Dec. 26, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hi: 63°F Lo: 50°F  Scattered clouds | Hi: 59°F Lo: 50°F  Overcast | Hi: 61°F Lo: 52°F Overcast | Hi: 61°F Lo: 54°F Overcast | Hi: 65°F Lo: 59°F Overcast | Hi: 67°F Lo: 59°F  Breaks of sun late | Hi: 65°F Lo: 59°F Overcast |
Health Notes when travelling to Hong Kong
There are no specific health risks associated with travel to Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s health facilities are first class but expect to pay cash. High quality medical care is widely available but comprehensive travel insurance is recommended to cover expenses.
Safety Notes when travelling to Hong Kong
Hong Kong is considered a safe destination but caution should always be exercised when travelling. Pickpockets are likely to target unsuspecting tourists so leave valuables locked up in hotel safes when possible. All street protests and political gatherings should be avoided. The typhoon season is usually between April and October, and the accompanying heavy rains may cause flooding and landslides.
Customs in Hong Kong
Littering and spitting are illegal in Hong Kong and will incur spot fines. In Hong Kong, the concept of ‘face’ is very important; avoid causing someone to lose face by publicly insulting them or contradicting them in front of others as this is considered very impolite. The Chinese have great respect for hierarchical relationships.
Duty Free in Hong Kong
Travellers to Hong Kong over the age of 18 years do not have to pay duty on the following: 1.1 litres of spirits with 12 percent or more alcohol content; and 100 cigarettes, 100 cigars and 500g of tobacco.
Doing Business in Hong Kong
Despite its close proximity to China, Hong Kong’s business culture is worlds apart and more akin to the West. But one regional aspect is the concept of ‘saving face’, an awareness of positive appearances and perceptions of other people or companies. Bad news should never be presented in front of others and keeping one’s cool is vital. Open displays of emotion such as anger and irritation are frowned upon, as is causing embarrassment to another person.
Business culture in Hong Kong is quite conservative. Dress styles are formal and deference to senior members of companies is vital, with business suits usually in dark colours. Avoid wearing bright ties, or blue or white coloured clothes as these colours are associated with mourning. When greeting business associates, either shake hands or, if no handshake is offered, bowing is appropriate.
Respect for personal space is important and physical contact should be avoided. Gifts are given during introductions but never opened in front of the giver. Watches as gifts are inappropriate as they are associated with death. The business languages in Hong Kong are both Mandarin and English. Tone should always be even and measured, and cultural sensitivity and etiquette are vital.
When tea is served at a business meeting, never sip from your cup until your host has taken their first. Business in Hong Kong is conducted efficiently and punctuality is vital. If you are late, effusive and repeated apologies are in order, regardless of whether you caused the delay. It is customary to exchange business cards (printed in English on one side and Cantonese on the other) at the start of a meeting. Business cards should be given and received using both hands, with the Cantonese side facing the recipient. It’s common to greet the more senior person first.
Business entertainment is usually in the form of a lunch or dinner organised by the hosting partner, and food is also normally ordered and paid for by the host. Finally, the phrase ‘have you eaten,’ is a subtle form of greeting which generally means ‘are you wel?’. Business hours run from 9am to 5pm during the week and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays.
Communication in Hong Kong
The international access code for Hong Kong is +852. Some of the more popular mobile service providers are CMHK, CSL, Smartone and Birdie. Free WiFi access is available at most coffee shops, shopping malls, restaurants and hotels.
Tipping in Hong Kong
A 10 percent service charge is usually added to restaurant bills in Hong Kong, but waiters will still expect some loose change in addition to this. If no service charge is included, a 10 percent tip is expected. Taxi fares are rounded up to the nearest dollar, usually automatically by the driver.
Passport/Visa Note
All foreign visitors to Hong Kong must be in possession of onward or return tickets (except when in transit to mainland China or Macao), the necessary travel documentation for their next destination, and proof of sufficient funds to cover their stay in the country. Note that admission and/or transit will be refused to any national holding a passport issued by Kiribati, and endorsed “N-Kiribati” or “Investor”. NOTE: It is highly recommended that your passport has at least six months validity remaining after your intended date of departure from your travel destination. Immigration officials often apply different rules to those stated by travel agents and official sources.
Entry Requirements
- Entry requirements for Americans:
US citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days.
- Entry requirements for Canadians:
Canadian citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days.
- Entry requirements for UK nationals:
British citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. Expired British passports endorsed British Dependent Territories Citizen or British National (Overseas) issued in Hong Kong are accepted, provided they are accompanied by a Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card. For British passport holders endorsed British Citizen, no visa is required for stays of up to 180 days. For British passport holders endorsed British Subject, British Overseas Territories Citizen, British National (Overseas), British Overseas Citizen or British Protected Person, no visa is required for stays of up to 90 days.
- Entry requirements for Australians:
Australian citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days. Visa exemptions apply to holders of an APEC Business Travel Card, provided that the back of the card states that it is valid for travel to Hong Kong, for a maximum stay of up to 60 days.
- Entry requirements for Irish nationals:
Irish citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days.
- Entry requirements for New Zealanders:
New Zealand citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 90 days. Visa exemptions apply to holders of an APEC Business Travel Card, provided that the back of the card states that it is valid for travel to Hong Kong, for a maximum stay of 60 days.
- Entry requirements for South Africans:
South African citizens must have a passport that is valid for at least one month beyond the period of intended stay in Hong Kong. No visa is required for stays of up to 30 days (two months, if in possession of a Hong Kong Travel Pass).
Getting around in Hong Kong City, Hong Kong
With one of the best public transport systems in the world and a compact city centre, getting around Hong Kong is easy enough for even inexperienced travellers. The underground Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is efficient and inexpensive. Double-decker and single-decker buses cover all of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories, with final destinations displayed in both English and Chinese. Bus fares are low and distance-based. Small mini-buses are more expensive but also more flexible, stopping for passengers to board or disembark on request.
Hong Kong’s old-fashioned trams are also a cheap and convenient way of getting around. On the water, fleets of ferries connect Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the Outlying Islands. Last but not least there is an abundant supply of taxis, colour-coded according to their area of operation. Taxi fares are low but many drivers don’t speak English and visitors are advised to have their destination written down in Chinese characters.
Visitors can opt to purchase a contactless Octopus Card, making it easy to pay for trips on the MTR, buses, minibuses, ferries, trams and a few taxis.
Events in Hong Kong City, Hong Kong
Chinese New Year
Sunday January 22, 2023 (22 January 2023)
Where: Wan Chai Harbour front; parade route in Tsim Sha Tsui
When it comes to Chinese New Year celebrations, nobody does it better than Hong Kong. The streets are jammed with dragon dancers, street performers and illuminated floats. Doors are hung with colourful messages of good fortune and lights are draped over all the city’s skyscrapers. Markets and temples become magical places filled with flowers, incense and celebration. The highlight of the festivities is the glittering night parade that is complemented by special lighting effects and concluded by traditional fireworks over the harbour, which is said to scare away demons and ensure good luck. Chinese New Year is a truly special time to visit Hong Kong and allows visitors to see the city at its most glittering, vibrant and colourful. Hong Kong’s celebrations run for much longer than the three days usually set aside for Chinese New Year on official calendars.
http://www.discoverhongkong.com
Hong Kong Arts Festival
Monday February 21, 2022 to Wednesday March 23, 2022 (TBC 2023)
Where:
As a major international arts festival and the city’s premier arts event of the year, the Hong Kong Arts Festival presents a fabulous assortment of music, theatre, dance and a wide range of creative visual arts by top international and local performers. The festival is renowned for the richness and diversity of its programme, ranging from classic entertainment to modern and innovative forms of performing arts. The festival is opened with the Piazza Party, which is a special open-air extravaganza of music, dancing and free entertainment. The Hong Kong Arts Festival also sees unofficial performances spring up all over the city, with street musicians and performers adding to the atmosphere, and smaller art and theatre venues contributing their own artistic gems. For lovers of the arts this festival is an exciting international event showcasing some of the very best that the world, and especially Hong Kong, has to offer.
http://www.hk.artsfestival.org
Dragon Boat Festival (Tuen Ng)
Friday June 03, 2022 to Sunday June 05, 2022 (3 – 5 June 2022)
Where: Victoria Harbour and other venues in the New Territories.
The Dragon Boat festival commemorates the death of a national hero, Qu Yuan, who drowned himself in protest against the corrupt rulers of the 3rd century. Legend has it that the villagers threw rice dumplings into the river and beat drums to scare the fish away from his body in an attempt to rescue him. There are many variations of this myth but the main festival activities today bring to mind the event. Rice dumplings are eaten and teams of local and international racers compete in fast and furious dragon boat races to the pounding of drums, as well as competing in various other water-based activities. The elaborately carved, brightly painted dragon boats are the highlight of the festivities, combining heritage, sport and spectacle. It has become quite a prestigious sporting event and teams come from foreign countries and clubs to compete. Recently the event attracted nearly 5,000 athletes, representing 180 clubs and 20 countries. The Dragon Boat Festival is also a huge party and the Victoria Harbour event attracts around 400,000 spectators all intent on a good time. The festivities in Victoria Harbour are the main event in Hong Kong, but the festival is celebrated all over China and some races are held in rivers in the New Territories as well.
http://www.discoverhongkong.com
Mid-Autumn/Moon Festival
Saturday September 10, 2022 (10 Sep 2022)
Where:
One of the major festivals celebrated in Hong Kong, the Moon Festival is also one of the most widely celebrated festivals for Chinese all over the world, and is traditionally a time for family reunions. At this time of year the moon is thought to be the biggest, brightest and most beautiful, and to celebrate this sighting colourful lanterns in a variety of traditional shapes are lit and all open spaces and hilltops are crowded with families and bright lanterns, watching the full moon rise and eating traditional sweet moon cakes. As with many Chinese celebrations there are numerous ancient myths and legends to explain the festival. In Hong Kong the traditional ceremony retains its charm but the city also adds its own modern, neon touches to festivities, with light and laser shows and impressive exhibits. Moonlight cruises in Victoria Harbour are a popular Moon Festival activity and a delightful way to experience the bright lights and floating lanterns – not to mention the full moon over the harbour.
Hungry Ghost Festival (Yue Lan)
Friday August 12, 2022 (12 Aug 2022)
Where: Various. Popular venues are King George V Memorial Park, Kowloon and Moreton Terrace Playground, Causeway Bay
It is believed that the gates of the underworld open for a month, once a year, and the discontented and vengeful ghosts of those who died without proper funeral rites, who met a violent death, or whose living relatives neglected their after-life spirits, roam the earth looking to satisfy their hunger for attention and peace. The purpose of the festival is to prevent these ghosts from inflicting harm on the living in order to gratify their needs. Elaborate religious parades with food offerings fill the streets, and roadside fires are built to burn gifts of money and crafted paper objects such as cars or furniture to appease the wandering ghosts. Various types of entertainment also take place to keep them happy. The festival’s origins are similar to Halloween but the Chinese culture of ancestor worship makes it a far more personal festival in some ways; families often leave out food for their lost loved ones. One of the main highlights of the festival is the Chinese opera. Operas in honour of the dead, showcasing their great deeds in life, are performed all over the city.
Hong Kong Sevens
Friday November 04, 2022 to Sunday November 06, 2022 (4 — 6 November 2022)
Where: Hong Kong Stadium, Causeway Bay
The Hong Kong Sevens is one of the biggest sporting events in the city and one of the most exciting rugby events on the international calendar. Top national teams compete in this famed event, while enthusiastic spectators party it up in the stands, particularly in the legendary South Stand where the music blares and the beer flows among the outrageously dressed fans intent on enjoying the rugby as well as having a good time.
All the world’s best rugby nations compete in the event and the competition is furiously contested. The games are short (15 minutes long) and fast – quite different to regular rugby matches – and the atmosphere for spectators is more light-hearted and festive than in big international matches. 40,000 spectators can pack into the stadium but this is just the centre of festivities and the event spurs a carnival feeling all over the city, with the party spilling into the streets and venues of Hong Kong.
https://www.worldrugby.org/sevens-series/?lang=en
Hong Kong Summer Spectacular
Wednesday June 01, 2022 to Wednesday August 31, 2022 (TBC 2022)
Where: Throughout Hong Kong
Hong Kong is synonymous with shopping, so it’s only fitting that the city would choose to dedicate a festival to it. Special offers and big sales are in abundance, from retailers to restaurants across the city. The diverse shopping experience features a host of summer events and promotions. The festival lasts the whole of the peak summer period in Hong Kong and incorporates the Hong Kong Spring/Summer Fashion Week. The celebrations of the sizzling season also incorporate the Dragon Boast Festival, which is a very popular event at Victoria Harbour and a giant party for spectators. Big music events and international concerts are always staged in Hong Kong during this period. The whole city comes alive with celebrations, sales, special deals and events during the Hong Kong Summer Spectacular, which has become a general celebration of summer and all that the city has to offer – it’s no coincidence that it occurs in the busiest months of the year. For many people, however, it remains first and foremost a shopping and fashion extravaganza and the best time to find bargains in Hong Kong’s famous variety of shops.
http://www.discoverhongkong.com
Nightlife in Hong Kong City, Hong Kong
Hong Kong is renowned for its jam-packed nightlife and the city covers all its bases for after-dark entertainment, with a feisty nightclub scene, lots of good live music and some world-class performing arts for more sophisticated tastes.
Notorious Wan Chai has calmed down a lot over the last few decades. Although it has retained some of its seediness, there are also many British-style pubs frequented by expatriate locals in the area. The Central district’s Lan Kwai Fong is known for having one of the biggest drinking crowds in Hong Kong and the bars to sustain it. SoHo has a number of ethnic bars and restaurants, and off-the-beaten-track Knutsford Terrace is popular for its open-fronted bars and cafes.
Live music has become a standard feature of so many restaurants, cocktail lounges and bars in Hong Kong so actively seeking it out is seldom necessary. The Fringe Club is Hong Kong’s most well-known venue for all things alternative and live acts can be seen here on most weekends. As the night wears on, most of Hong Kong’s small bars tend to evolve into raucous nightclubs. Trendy dance clubs impose a strict dress code and often only grant entrance to members.
Those looking for a quieter night out may enjoy seeing Chinese opera, performed at City Hall in Central and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui. The Hong Kong Ballet Company and various theatre groups also stage performances throughout the year, though the highlight of the arts calendar is definitely the Hong Kong Arts Festival in February and March.
Public Holidays Around the World
Planning your year? Knowing public holidays in different countries can help you plan trips, schedule events, or understand global schedules. Below, find a comprehensive list of public holidays sorted by country.
