HONG KONG: Travel Guide For Filipino First-Timers (Budget + Itinerary)

We chose to go to Hong Kong on a Wednesday to avoid the crowd in most tourist spots which are normally packed on weekends. We arrived at 9 PM which you might think is a little late for someone who is just new to a country but don’t worry, this country is alive even in the wee hours of the evening. Besides, we didn’t have much choice. If you would notice, most of the cheap flights offered by our local air carriers are timed during the most undesirable hours, the reason why we had this kind of itinerary. This trip could have been squeezed easily into 3 days and 2 nights if only flights on 3 AM Thursday and 10 PM Saturday weren’t steep. We could have also saved 2 nights on the hostel. Since we were on a budget, we had to work on whatever we have on our plate.

Disembarking from the plane, we followed the crowd and the signs (which were written both in Cantonese and English) going to the immigration counters. Now this part is a bit tricky because we are so used to the airports we have here in the Philippines where after disembarking, we would simply walk to the immigration counters then once cleared, we would exit and hail ourselves a cab and be on our way. In Hong Kong, you will actually need to ride a tram (train) going to the terminal building where the immigration counters are located. We didn’t know this so we spent some good minutes getting lost and looking stupid like we went up and down the escalator to the trams several times before we figured that we needed to ride the tram to get to the immigrations. LOL. So once you arrive in Hong Kong, first thing, don’t ever doubt the signs and just follow. They won’t let you down.

The process with the immigration officers in Hong Kong Airport went by surprisingly fast. They only asked for our passports and for the immigration slip that we were given while we were still on the plane. We had it completely and correctly filled out with our details beforehand. They only asked a few questions like whether we have relatives there, where we staying, how long are we staying, the purpose of travel, you know. Just the normal stuff. After that, they gave us clearance to enter and a piece of paper as proof that is similar to a passport stamp. It was quite a bummer because I would’ve loved to have another stamp on my passport but sadly they no longer do that in Hong Kong.

Another miss we had was not pre-purchasing Octopus cards that we can use to ride the bus to our hostel in Tsim Sha Tsui. We also didn’t have any Hong Kong Dollars (HKD) with us. Good thing, the exchange counter at the airport was still open and we managed to get a few HKD, just enough to get us each an Octopus card because they didn’t accept any other currency. We loaded the cards 200 HKD each but only 150 HKD is spendable since the other 50 HKD will be for deposits that are refundable once the cards were returned. After getting our Octopus cards, we walked to the bus stations. Now, this one is also tricky since the buses are numbered unlike the buses we have here that indicate the destinations on the signboards. So in order to find the right bus, we referred to the board just in front of the exit to determine which bus we were getting on. Once we had it, off to the bus we went.

The buses to Tsim Sha Tsui (TST), which are available from 5:30 AM until midnight, are A21 and A20. These buses also cover almost all the stops in the area. I think taking the bus is the most ideal way to get there from the airport. First, it isn’t that complicated since it will take us directly to TST. Second, it is the cheapest. The ride just took 45 minutes because the traffic was smooth. When we finally arrived in the area, our next struggle was to try not to miss our stop. It was hard to tell from looking at the street signs so we had to refer to the bus monitor which was rather confusing. The bus driver was also not into babysitting naive passengers so we were on our own. And oh, Hong Kong practices Left-Hand Traffic so when you ride the bus, you might as well sit on the left so you could clearly see the side of the streets and the signs. Our hostel is in Chungking Mansions at 36-44 Nathan Road and Nathan Road is kinda long. Good thing, we found our stop just before the bus took us another 500 meters away.

Alighting the bus, we were greeted by several Indian men who were rather friendly and to our surprise, can speak Filipino! They were offering hotel rooms but sadly we already had reservations made from Agoda. We continued walking until we reached Chungking Mansions. Now, this one is the most shocking of all. I mean we were expecting the usual hostel set up. You know, those things that we would normally see even from the cheapest inns we have here in the Philippines but Chungking Mansions is surprisingly different. Instead of seeing a posh lobby with a beautiful woman waiting at the reception, we saw various stalls of exchange counters, grocery stores, electronic shops, and Kebab restaurants. Still, confused? Think about Greenhills or Divisoria and have a better idea. Yup! That’s Chungking Mansions for you and that’s where you’ll be if you seek the cheapest hostels in HK. My mind was just blown away that I thought I had enough surprises in just a few hours in Hong Kong so we quickly looked for our hostel and decided to call it a night.

The following morning, we woke up early to spend the day in Disneyland. Since we had no cash (HKD) with us yet, we used our Octopus cards to buy breakfast in McDonald’s. We had the usual coffee, pancakes, and sausage. When the exchange counters in Chungking Mansion were finally opened at 8 AM, we had the rest of our money changed to HKD. Almost all our money was in Philippine Peso and only a few were in US Dollars, just for emergencies. After that, we walked to the subway to ride the MTR (Mass Transit Railway) to Disneyland. Now expect for the MTR system to be a bit confusing. You will not be able to figure it out by simply looking at the charts but if you do during your first try then congratulations! You’re a genius.

We had a hard time figuring out which train to board and the hordes people passing by shrouded my thinking even more so I thought it would be better to just ask. In an instant we had our answers from one of the guards in the subway. At first it still seemed like rocket science but once we got to ride our first train, the next steps were easier. So basically from Tsim Sha Tsui, we had to ride 3 different trains to Disneyland. There are several MTR lines which are distinguished by their colors. We took the red line first to Lai King station then transferred to the Tung Chung line (orange line) to Sunny Bay Station and last, the pink line to Disneyland. The total travel time was 1 hour.

We arrived in Disneyland at 9:45 AM. We took photos at the entrance while waiting for the park to open. At 10:30 AM, the park gates opened and we started our tour right away. We bought our discounted tickets from Klook months before that we didn’t have to queue at the counters anymore and only needed to show our confirmation using our phones. We didn’t really have any itinerary set so we roamed aimlessly and stopped by rides and shows that we found interesting. I was actually just after the parade and the fireworks. We also didn’t have the patience to line up for a photo with Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck and just settled for Goofy instead. We were more interested in buying some merchandise like t-shirts, caps, and headbands but they were too expensive for our taste.

We had schedules of shows on us but didn’t really care. We wanted to explore at our own pace without the pressure of seeing everything. We were more after the experience while being chill. We only watched two shows, Mickey Mouse and The Wondrous Book and The Festival of The Lion King. We almost missed the parade in the main street. The most entertaining rides for us were the Grizzly Gulch, Mystic Manor, It’s The Small World, Jungle River Cruise, and HyperSpace Mountain. We also enjoyed the interactive Marvel ride. At dusk, we waited patiently for the main attraction and were blown away by the amazing fireworks display. We didn’t stay for the night parade to avoid the hassle of going back to our hostel and left just after the fireworks display was over.

Our first Disneyland experience was indeed memorable and definitely one of the highlights of our Hong Kong trip. We surely had a blast but it made us too exhausted and hungry after. I guess we were just too old for a theme park made for kids. In my opinion, if you are not really into Disney and are more into thrill rides, a day in Disneyland should suffice. After making it back to Tsim Sha Tsui at 8 PM, we stopped by Cafe De Coral for dinner. I was just dead hungry that I could use a decent meal before slumber. We walked back to our hostel after satisfying our tummies and dozed off the night to recharge our too spent souls.

Note: Breakfast was not accounted for since it was taken from our Octopus Card.

The following morning, we had breakfast in KFC. Now one thing I noticed about Hong Kong is that they give opportunities to persons with disabilities and the elderly. I first noticed it in McDonald’s where I was greeted by a girl with down syndrome at the counter and then KFC where my order was taken by an elderly woman. Personally, I hate seeing elderly people work but if they aren’t fortunate enough to retire at an old age and still need a job to provide for their needs, I would surely love to have that same opportunity available in the Philippines. Anyway, after we had breakfast, we walked to the subway to get started with our adventure.

Riding the MTR was a lot easier on our 2nd day. We were to go to Lantau Island via a cable car in Tung Chung so we took the same route only this time, we were no longer getting off at Sunny Bay Station and will ride the train all the way to Tung Chung. In Tung Chung, we rode a bus to the cable car station. Everything went smoothly. Again, we didn’t have to queue for our tickets since we had it booked with Klook beforehand. They also have a dedicated booth at the station. We shared the cable car ride with 3 other passengers. The view of the mountain and the bay was really something. We saw some trails and stairs so we figured the mountains below were open for hiking. We also spotted several gorgeous waterfalls.

Almost 30 minutes hanging in the air, the Tian Tan Buddha appeared from a distance. A few minutes later, we arrived in Lantau Island. We first explored Ngong Ping Village and checked out some shops there. After that, we rode a bus going to Tai O Fishing Village. There we enjoyed sampling some street foods and exploring houses on stilts. Now the biggest disappointment was the dolphin viewing. We were compelled to give it a try since we really wanna see the pink dolphins. We thought those majestic creatures are worth spending our money over. Along with 4 other tourists, we rode a fishing boat and sailed into the sea Upon reaching the viewing area, no dolphins showed up. I expected for the tour operator to somehow wait and give the dolphins time to show up but barely 5 minutes of waiting, we already headed back. Now that was not my money’s worth! Instead of getting further upset, I chose to just shrug it off and went to continue with our tour.

We rode the bus again to go back to Ngong Ping Village. Once there, we spent the rest of our time exploring the Tian Tan Buddha and the Po Lin Monastery. The sun, being scorchingly hot and the unbelievable crowd made me feel dizzy. We hurriedly went to find us shelter. The heat of the sun has always been my weakness. I have asthma and allergic rhinitis that I feared might be triggered by it. We rested and had snacks in the nearby Starbucks. After that, we went to see a toy shop. We were in awe at the owner’s collection which ranged from Marvel and DC action figures to limited edition anime characters. Being huge in Japanese anime, it was paradise for me. Although I didn’t really have the money for it. We decided to head back at 4 PM. We thought we had seen enough and decided to rest at the hostel.

At 7 PM, we went out again and walked our way to Victoria Harbor to witness the Symphony Of Lights. It was such a splendid show. Witnessing the buildings on the other side of the harbor glow and light up in different colors as if dancing with the music was such an amazing experience. No wonder Hong Kong is just so lovely and alive. They really know how to put on a show. We admired Victoria Harbor some more after the show was over. I knew the Avenue Of Stars was just nearby but we decided we already had enough for the night and went to get us dinner. Once our tummies were filled, off to bed we went.

Our 3rd day was probably our most favorite although we weren’t really able to enjoy it to the fullest due to frequent showers. We spent it in Hong Kong Ocean Park where we got to see various marine animals in their Grand Aquarium. Although I don’t really find it amusing to see animals in captivity as I rather witness them in the wild, it was still amazing to see them up close. We spent almost our entire time in the “Thrill Mountain” trying out the most daunting rides. Our favorites were The Hair Raiser, The Abyss, and The Flash. They were really exhilarating. The experience with these rides were inexplicably nerve-wracking but awesome. It felt as if my spirit had left and flown into limbo for a second or two. We also enjoyed The Rapids, Raging River, and Whirly Bird. We would have loved to try all the rides but the rain had gotten in the way that most of the rides were no longer operational as early as 3 PM. We didn’t have a choice but to find shelter from the rain until it finally stopped.

The soft drizzle turned into a downpour. We were supposed to head out at 5 PM to go to The Peak but decided to cancel as the rain poured relentlessly. All of our tickets were booked in advance in Klook so I thought our tickets for The Peak would be wasted. Fortunately, we can still use the tickets for a certain period of time later so I decided to just sell it to someone else. We were freezing cold while inside the MTR. In our effort to avoid the surge of people in the subway once the rain was over, we ran from Ocean Park to the station under the pouring skies and got ourselves soaking wet. Back in our hostel room, we started packing our stuff as we were heading home early the following morning. The rain came to a halt at around 10 PM so we decided to go to McDonald’s for coffee and some cookie. While we talked about our experiences and looked back to everything that happened during the past three days, I and my travel buddy couldn’t help but agree that our Hong Kong trip was absolutely epic. It wasn’t perfect but it was the kind we really enjoyed.

Our flight back to Manila was at 10 AM. We really wanted to stay for at least a few more hours that we desperately prayed for a delay. I hate delays especially on flights but I could really use one just so I could have a few more hours to enjoy Hong Kong. But of all the occasions Cebu Pacific would actually be on time, this was it. It was 6:30 AM when we rode the bus to the airport. The ride took longer as the morning traffic was heavier. While at the airport, the first thing we had to go through was security. Hong Kong has stricter guidelines when it comes to inspecting bags and luggage. They were very meticulous. They went through every single one of the stuff I had in my bag. Like every piece of clothing from my t-shirts to my underwear. It was, for this reason, I failed to stash away the expensive spray sunscreen that I bought the other day. (Cries) Good thing I usually pack light so it wasn’t really hard to pack them again after.

After passing the inspection and the immigrations, we had breakfast in McDonald’s. It was just 8:30 AM so we still had plenty of time before our flight. You might have noticed by now that I always eat at McDonald’s. It’s not because I love their food way too much which many people consider junk but it’s because they teach me a thing or two about culture and the country in a general sense. Like how Philippine McDonald’s has spaghetti, Vietnam’s has Bahn Mi and Hong Kong’s has noodle soup. So other than indulging myself in a country’s local cuisine, I also indulge in McDonald’s for cultural learning. Lol. Anyway, after finishing our meals, we headed to the trams to go to our boarding terminals. At exactly 10 AM, we departed for home.

P.S. Don’t sleep. You will see the majestic view of Mt. Pinatubo on your way back.

Over the years, flights to Hong Kong from the Philippines have been widely available. Now, people can fly from different airports nearest to them other than Manila. Local and International carriers have opened flights to Hong Kong from airports like Clark, Cebu, Caticlan, Puerto Princesa, and Davao

• If you are new to traveling abroad then there’s a handful of information you need to know first to set your expectations better. This article might just help.

• If you have relatives in Hong Kong and you will be staying with them, I think it will be better not to tell the immigrations about it, both here in the Philippines and in Hong Kong. Chances that they might offload you for that reason is highly viable. Just book your first night in a hotel first, then for the rest of your stay, with your relatives.
• Wear simple clothes. Dress to impress doesn’t play well with people in the immigrations. Leave that for your stroll in the city or in Disneyland but not when you’re trying to get in a country.
• Purchase an Octopus Card beforehand. Klook has them which are already loaded with 50 HKD. This way you wouldn’t have to worry about not having cash for small purchases and for bus and train rides to go to the city. You can return them and avail of a refund in any MTR stations on your last day in Hong Kong. For this trip, 200 HKD on our Octopus Card was more than enough to take care of our train and bus rides.
• You don’t need to bring HKD all at once. Exchange counters in Hong Kong accept Philippine Peso. Exchange rates are also better using Philippine Peso and your money will have more value than doing PHP to USD here then USD to HKD in Hong Kong. Just have some HKD for small purchases before flying to Hong Kong.
• When you are booking your accommodation, use reliable booking sites such as Agoda. Also, don’t book the rest of your stay in one hotel right away. Just book the first night so you can quickly leave and look for a better place if the hotel doesn’t appeal to your liking.
• Bring Type B adapters. Electrical sockets in Hong Kong are mostly in Type B style especially those in hostels.

• Apply and bring sunscreen. The sun is totally unbearable there at midday until the hours before sunset.
• Wear a cap, comfy and breathable clothes, and the right footwear. You will walk a lot inside the park so you wouldn’t really wanna be doing that on high heels or tight clothes.
• Bring food. It’s prohibited but the park management allows small snacks like bread, chips, and chocolates. Also, bring a water bottle. Beverages inside the park aren’t cheap.
• Expect that some attractions might be closed for maintenance.
• Avail FASTPASS on some rides and attractions. For those who don’t know, Fastpass is a ticketing system that virtually saves your spot in a queue. It is not something you can purchase online but is complimentary with your admission to the park. What you will do is go to the ride or attraction itself and get a Fastpass. Your Fastpass will indicate a time as to when you should go back to avail of the ride. This way you can enjoy the park first and you are certain you can enjoy the rides later.
• Book your Disneyland Tour on Klook and avail of a huge discount. This will also save you from queuing at the counters to buy tickets which are unbearably long sometimes.

• Bring an umbrella especially if you are planning to tour Tian Tan Buddha and Po Lin Monastery in the afternoon.
• Bring food and water. Expect for the food on the island to be a lot more expensive than in the city.
• If you will go to Tai O Village, skip the dolphin watching. It’s not really worth wasting your time and money on. Focus on the houses on stilts and sampling local foods. If you really want to go on dolphin watching, book a separate tour.
• The cable cars are available from 10 AM to 6 PM on weekdays and just an hour earlier on Weekends.
• You can also tour Lantau Island on a bus but nothing beats the cable cars. It’s one of those things you should experience during your first time in Hong Kong. You can book your Ngong Ping 360 experience on Klook. Saves you some money and helps you skip long lines especially on weekends. For this tour, we only booked our round trip cable car transfer. Everything else was by ourselves. However, Klook offers tours that include both the cable car ride and Tai O Village.
• If you are into branded shoes and sneakers and would love to buy some at discounted prices, you can drop by Citygate Outlets in Tung Chung after touring Lantau Island.

• Go for the rides first. There are usually not many people queuing for rides in the mornings and early afternoons. Return for the Grand Aquarium later in the day.
• Don’t miss the Hair Raiser, The Flash, and The Abyss if you enjoy thrill rides. If only the queues weren’t that long, we would really love to ride them for the 2nd and 3rd time.
• Book your Ocean Park Adventure in Klook. They have discounted tickets that already include a meal for lunch. It’s actually ideal if you hate long lines in ticketing counters and restaurants.

• The bus and MTR are the two most ideal mode of transportation when touring Hong Kong. They are the cheapest too and you can pay using cash and Octopus Card.
• It’s better to book your tours in advance to avoid queuing just to get your tickets. Some are even cheaper due to occasional promos. I highly recommend Klook. We had all our tours booked through them and everything went smoothly.
• Book your accommodation in advance through reliable booking sites such as Airbnb and Agoda. You don’t have to book your entire stay at once. Also, note that the photos you see in these booking sites were provided by the establishments themselves so if there are misrepresentations then better for you to leave a review for other’s awareness.
• Hostel rooms in Hong Kong are usually small particularly the inexpensive ones.
• Being connected is not a problem in Hong Kong. Free WIFI is available everywhere especially restaurants, MTR Stations, and hostels.

The most ideal area to look for a place to stay is Tsim Sha Tsui as it is strategically located near almost all the attractions and has easy access to transportation, malls, and restaurants. Now one thing I would like people to understand when looking for hostels or hotels online is that Hong Kong is one of the most expensive places to live in and it has one of the highest property rates per square meter than anywhere in the world. Expect that your P2000/night will not get you a deluxe and spacious room with a large bed and a bathroom with a tub so lower your expectations to avoid disappointments later.

I hope you enjoyed reading our Hong Kong adventure and found it useful for your upcoming trip. If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments. Share this post to your friends who might need it. Stay tuned for more. Until next time. Ciao!