Hong Kong Getting there & around

Getting there & around

Bus & tram

Bus

You can reach virtually any major destination in neighbouring Guangdong province by bus from Hong Kong. With KCR East Rail services so fast and cheap, however, few buses call on Shenzhen proper, though most of the big hotels run minivans to and from that destination for around $100 one way. One-way fares from Hong Kong to other mainland destinations include Changsha $280, Dongguan $70 to $100, Foshan $100, Guangzhou $80 to $100, Huizhou $100, Kaiping $130, Shantou $180 to $200, Shenzhen’s Huangtian airport $150, Xiamen $370 and Zhongshan $100 to $150.

Buses are run by a multitude of transport companies and depart from locations around the territory; the list that follows is only a sampling. Schedules vary enormously according to carrier and place, but buses leave throughout the day and departures are frequent.

CTS Express Coach (2764 9803, 2365 0118; ctsbus.hkcts.com) Buses depart from locations throughout Hong Kong, including the CTS Wan Chai branch (2832 3888; Southorn Centre, 130-138 Hennessy Rd) on Hong Kong Island and from just south of the CTS Mong Kok branch (2789 5888; 62-72 Sai Yee St) in Kowloon.

Eternal East Cross Border Coach (3412 6677, 3760 0888; 13th fl, Kai Seng Commercial Centre, 4-6 Hankow Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui; 7am-8pm) Buses leave from just outside the Hang Seng Bank next door.

Motor Transport Company of Guangdong and Hong Kong (GDHK; 2317 7900) Buses bound for destinations throughout Guangdong leave from the Cross-Border Coach Terminus (2317 7900; Ground fl, Hong Kong Scout Centre, 8 Austin Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui; 6.30am-7pm), which is entered from Scout Path.

Trans-Island Chinalink (2336 1111; www.trans-island.com.hk) Buses depart from Prince Edward MTR next to the Metropark Hotel. Cars and vans leave from Portland St opposite the Hotel Concourse Hong Kong.

In addition, at Chek Lap Kok buses run by CTS Express Coach (2261 2472), Eternal East Cross Border Coach (2261 0176) and Trans-Island (2261 0296; www.trans-island.com.hk) link Hong Kong Inter­national Airport with many points in southern China, including Dongguan ($100), Foshan ($150 to $220), Guangzhou ($100 to $200) and Shenzhen ($100 to $180).

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Air

Competition of sorts is driving prices down slightly but expect to pay a premium to fly between Hong Kong and China as the government regulates the prices. Depending on the season, seats can be difficult to find due to the enormous volume of business travellers and Chinese tourists, so book well in advance. Some sample adult return fares valid for a year from Hong Kong are Beijing $2520, Chengdu $1970, Kunming $1890 and Shanghai $2200. One-way fares are a bit more than half the return price.

You should be able to do better than that, however, on both scheduled and charter flights, especially in summer. If you plan to fly to a destination in China from Hong Kong, you can save at least 30% on the above fares by heading for Shenzhen by bus or ferry and boarding the aircraft at Huangtian airport there.

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Departure tax

The $26 departure tax levied when leaving Hong Kong by sea is usually included in the ticket price.

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Land

The only way in and out of Hong Kong by land is to cross the 30km border with mainland China. The options for surface travel to and from China have increased dramatically since the handover, with buses and trains departing throughout the day to destinations as close as Shenzhen and as far as Beijing. Travellers should be aware that, although the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) is an integral part of China, visas are still required to cross the border to the mainland.

The border crossing at Lo Wu opens at 6.30am and closes at midnight. The crossing at Lok Ma Chau is open round the clock. The terminus of the new KCR spur line connects to the new Shenzhen Metro system at Huanggang station via a pedestrian bridge across the Shenzhen River.

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Sea

Regularly scheduled ferries link the China ferry terminal (Canton Rd, Tsim Sha Tsui) in Kowloon and/or the Macau ferry pier (200 Connaught Rd, Sheung Wan) on Hong Kong Island with a string of towns and cities on the Pearl River Delta – but not central Guangzhou or Shenzhen.

TurboJet (2921 6688, 2859 3333; www.turbojet.com.hk) runs high-speed ferries ($200, one hour) leaving the China ferry terminal for Fuyong ferry terminal (Shenzhen airport) five to seven times a day between 7.30am and 6pm. There are five return sailings from Fuyong ($185) starting at 9am, with the last at 4.30pm. One boat a day leaves the Macau ferry pier in Central at 8am. Return sailings are at 5.50pm and 7.30pm.

CMSE Passenger Transport (2858 0909) runs some 13 Jetcats (day/night sailing $110/145, one hour) that link Hong Kong with Shekou, a port about 20km west of Shenzhen town and easily accessible by bus or taxi to the town centre, from 7.45am to 9pm daily. Seven of these (between 7.45am and 7pm) leave from the China ferry terminal in Kowloon, while the rest (9am to 9pm) go from the Macau ferry pier on Hong Kong Island. Return sailings from Shekou are from 7.45am to 9.30pm.

Zhuhai can also be reached from Hong Kong on seven ferries a day ($177, 70 minutes) from the China ferry terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui (from 7.30am to 5.30pm) and on the same number from the Macau ferry pier in Sheung Wan (8.40am to 9.30pm) on ferries operated by the Chu Kong Passenger Transportation Company (2858 3876; www.cksp.com.hk). The 14 return sailings from Zhuhai ($158) run between 8am and 9.30pm.

Chu Kong also has ferries from the China ferry terminal in Tsim Sha Tsui to a number of other ports in southern Guangdong province, including Humen (Taiping; $177, 90 minutes, three a day at 9am, 1.45pm and 5.30pm), Kaiping ($212, four hours, daily at 8.30am), Shunde ($185, 110 minutes, six sailings between 7.30am and 6pm) and Zhongshan ($196, 90 minutes, eight or nine sailings from 8am to 8pm).

Ferries run by Expert Fortune (2375 0688, 2517 3494) link the China ferry terminal with Nansha ($138, five sailings daily) between 8am and 3.30pm, with return sailings ($100) between 9.30am and 5pm or 5.30pm. One daily ferry departs from the Macau ferry pier at 8.20am.

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Train

You can now book cross-border train tickets online via the website of KCR (www.it3.kcrc.com). You have to sign up, but it’s a useful service. Reaching Shenzhen is a breeze. Just board the KCR East Rail at East Tsim Sha Tsui station (1st/2nd class $73/36.50) or at any other KCR East Rail station along the way (such as Hung Hom, Kowloon Tong or Sha Tin) and ride it to Lo Wu; China is a couple of hundred metres away. The first train to Lo Wu leaves East Tsim Sha Tsui station at 5.28am, the last at 11.05pm, and the trip takes about 40 minutes.

The most comfortable way to reach Guangzhou by land is via the Kowloon–Guangzhou express train (usually via Dongguan), which covers the 182km route in approximately 1¾ hours. High-speed intercity trains leave Hung Hom station for Guangzhou East train station 12 times a day between 7.28am and 7.20pm, returning from that station the same number of times from 8.18am to 9.32pm. One-way tickets cost $230/190 in 1st/2nd class for adults and $115/95 for children aged five to nine. Adults/children are allowed one piece of luggage, weighing up to 20/10kg. Additional bags cost $3.90 per 5kg.

There are also direct rail links between Hung Hom and both Shanghai and Beijing. Trains to Beijing West train station (hard/soft sleeper from $574/934, 24 hours) depart on alternate days at 3pm and travel via Guangzhou East, Changsha and Wuhan, arriving at 3.18pm the following day. Trains to Shanghai (hard/soft sleeper from $508/825, 23 hours) also depart on alternate days at 3pm and pass through Guangzhou East and Hangzhou East stations, arriving at 1.38pm the following day.

There is one daily departure to Zhaoqing (adult/child $235/117.50) via Dongguan, Guangzhou East and Foshan at 12.30pm, arriving in Zhaoqing at 4.27pm. The train departs Zhaoqing at 4.56pm, reaching Hung Hom at 8.53pm.

Immigration formalities at Hung Hom are completed before boarding; you won’t get on the train without a visa for China. Passengers are required to arrive at the station 45 minutes before departure. To reach Hung Hom station from Tsim Sha Tsui by public transport, take the KCR East Rail for one stop, bus 5C from the Star Ferry pier, or the green minibus 6 or 8 from Hankow Rd.

One-way and return tickets can be booked 60 days in advance through CTS, including at CTS Hung Hom station branch (2334 9333; 6.30am-8pm) and at KCR East Rail stations in Hung Hom, Mong Kok, Kowloon Tong and Sha Tin. Tickets booked with a credit card via the Tele-Ticketing Hotline (2947 7888) must be collected at least one hour before departure.

A cheaper but much less convenient option is to take the KCR East Rail train to Lo Wu (or to the Shenzhen Metro via Lok Ma Chau), cross through immigration into Shenzhen and catch a local train from there to Guangzhou. There are frequent local trains (Y70, two hours) and high-speed trains (Y80, 55 minutes) throughout the day.

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