Hong Kong?

[Burgmeister]

We haven't been to Hong Kong since 1996 but we are booked to go next February and I'm sure an awful lot has changed since our last visit.

I have a number of questions that, hopefully, someone will be able to answer.

Firstly, are ATMs available? I'm thinking cash is still king in HK?

Can you pay for single journeys on buses or do you have to pre-purchase a ticket? I know they have the Octopus card but I'm not sure whether we will need one or not? If I have an Octopus card can I use it on the Star Ferry or the Hong Kong Island trams? It appears that you can't top up an Octopus card with a credit or debit card - only cash. Is it straightforward to do?

Do taxis take card payments or are they cash only?

Thanks

[Glee Fan]

Hi, we were in HK in February. I’ll try and answer your questions as best I can.

We didn’t go on a bus but did get an Octopus card. They are fab! You do need to top up with cash, we just did it at a booth at the MTR station. It was really straightforward. You can use the Octopus cards in 7/11, McD, on the tube, tram and yes the Star Ferry too among loads of other places too.

We didn’t use an ATM as we took cash with us. We did use cabs but used cash not card.

We had a fab time, absolutely loved it. Any other questions, please ask!

[Burgmeister]

Thanks Glee fan, that's really helpful. It's been a while since I took a lot of cash anywhere as I use my cards for everything (especially now I have a Revolut card). Obtaining cash from my Revolut would definitely be an advantage as the rate is so much higher than changing before you go but if that isn't possible I guess I will need to stuff my pockets with HKD!

Is it still cheap while you are there? Is reasonably priced food readily available?

Thanks

Edit: Do you need an Octopus card each or can you get one to use for the whole family?

[Glee Fan]

No, you’d need one each as there’s a barrier system so would be tricky to have one between you. I seem to remember reading you can only buy one ticket at a time on them to exactly stop that from happening but I could be wrong 🤨

We didn’t take a huge amount of cash to last us, paid on card for a lot of things but cabs, markets etc we used cash. We took £500 worth of HK dollars to last 5 days and ended up spending a lot of it at the airport in duty free to get rid of it!

Dim sum is cheap. Cost us about £20 for us both for dinner but then at the other extreme we spent quite a lot on dinner at Ozone at the Ritz Carlton. There’s plenty of in betweens though.

I am in the middle of writing a trip report, I just haven’t finished it yet!

[Burgmeister]

Thanks for that. I'll look forward to reading your report - I'm sure it will be very helpful. As I mentioned in my original post, we aren't going until February so, hopefully, you will have finished your report by then!

[PoohBears#1fan]

It's 3 years since we were there, but we used ATMs, we also used the Octopus cards, and as the PP said, we needed one each, very easy though.

Enjoy, I love Hong Kong

[Pumpkin Pie]

We were there last year and arrived with no cash. We have a Halifax Clarity card and had no bother at all withdrawing money. We used an ATM at the airport and also at a mall near our hotel with no problems.

We both used the Octopus type card for travel everywhere. It’s easy to buy at the information desk then top up if needed. You can get a refund on the cost of the card when leaving. The staff at the information kiosks are helpful.

We paid cash for a taxi to the airport - can’t remember if they take card payments.

We found it very easy and cheap to travel all over HK.