Hong Kong or Beijing?

Replies: 13 - Last Post: 09-Aug-2007 00:13 Last Post By: ellyse

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ephraim

28-Jan-2007 21:59
Posts: 110

Hong Kong or Beijing?

If you had 10 days to spend in China, would you spend it based out of Hong Kong or Beijing? Why?

(It's OK to assume that I'm not spending the entire 10 days in Hong Kong or Beijing proper ... overnight travel by rail or bus is OK.)

rorybo

29-Jan-2007 00:22
Posts: 118

Unfortunatley, this question is far to general, any number of people can weigh in for Beijing or for Hong Kong. These are vastly different cities, and each one has a fantastic selection of things to see and do, but really depends on what you're interested in. For example if you're interested in culture, Beijing wins, interested in nightlife Hong Kong wins. If you can elaborate a little more, some people might be able to help you. You also say 'based out of', do you mean you want to visit other cities within the ten days? There was a thread about this a couple of weeks back, maybe worth digging up.

Rory
Hong Kong Travel Guide

UnderWater8

29-Jan-2007 01:48
Posts: 182

also, what time of year would you be going? Weather in Beijing can be pretty extreme.

Hefner

29-Jan-2007 02:43
Posts: 295

both cities are great so, if possible, go to both places. if not, then go to Beijing as its a more "the real china" than HK and there's simply lots more to see (historical sights).

wallycurber

29-Jan-2007 03:06
Posts: 48

Beijing

If everything is under control - you're going too slow.

kereru

29-Jan-2007 04:52
Posts: 1,177

BJ is China whereas HK is more of an international (could be abywhere in the world) city. You'd get a very different experience. From BJ you could take the O/N train to Xi'an. from HK you could spend a few days in guangzhou/Zhuhai/Macau to get a feel for modern China.

"If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman." Margaret Thatcher

penfold389

29-Jan-2007 06:39
Posts: 3,982

Beijing.
Chance you would transit thru HK often during your lifetime.
HK is geaographically compact and you can easily do short trips during transit stops or short stop overs.
10 days is better used to enjoy Beijing in a 'majestic' way.

"It don't matter to me."

jadetreasure

29-Jan-2007 06:43
Posts: 3

I would base myself in Beijing. Besides there being a ton of things to see there, you can also take overnight trains to Xian, Datong, Luoyang, Qufu (home of Confucius), Chengde (not Chengdu which is in Sichuan Province), and have time to go to the more distant and wilder areas of the Great Wall, like Simatai or Jinshanling.

In my opinion, there's not a lot of interesting things to spend ten days doing in HK or in nearby Guangdong Province. A train to interesting (in my opinion) areas of Guangxi or Guiyang Provinces takes quite awhile, I think.

Jade

zhaoyun

29-Jan-2007 06:48
Posts: 733

I like Hong Kong far better as a city and think it's a great place to go, but Beijing has more to see and it would be more convenient to see the surrounding sights like Datong or Chengde. As noted above it's also more the "real China"- I don't think there is anything else like HK out there, but Beijing will give you a true "China experience" in a way the internationalized Hong Kong will not.

ephraim

29-Jan-2007 06:57
Posts: 110

Rorybo:

I'm aware that the question is general. However, I'm interested in hearing why you (or anybody else reading this) would prefer to visit one over the other. In other words, based on your interests, if you had a single chance to experience some part of China, would it be Hong Kong or Beijing and why? (I'm hoping to get back eventually, but this is the time I have for now.) I think it's worth hearing what somebody else thinks based on their own interests.

Regarding my own timeline and interests if it helps: I will probably be there in August (which I'm aware is probably the hottest time of year for most of the region). I'm interested in culture, history, nature, and 1-2 day treks. I have never been to China before, though I have spent time in SE Asia.

danzaokid

29-Jan-2007 19:04
Posts: 4

Do please consider one other factor - Your China Visa.

Assuming you are from USA you do not need a Visa for HK. But you will need one for China. The Visa is based on number of entries. So you will be limited to entering the China border by the number of Visa "entries" you signed up for. However, in Beijing you do not a visa to enter or exit that city - since it is part of China proper.

Hong Kong is a "sar" (special admin region) of China - which (visa wise) is much like how it was as a british crown colony.

danzaokid

29-Jan-2007 19:17
Posts: 4

My vote is Beijing -
reason - besides the visa issue, Hong Kong and the surrounding counties/provinces have been heavily influenced by the british and westerners. You'd have to do pretty far north before you see the real (old) China. Guilin/Yangshou should be on your list of Cities (perhaps 2-3 days).

Personally, with just 10 days - I'd fly into Beijing - go city hopping - and then leave from Hong Kong. In China - I do not believe you need a "central" place to center yourself because of so many big cities. However to visit Beijing proper - you will need at least 2 maybe 3 days just for that city alone.

That leaves you 4 days to see the rest of China?

astroboy

29-Jan-2007 19:39
Posts: 4,927

Quote
I like Hong Kong far better as a city and think it's a great place to go, but Beijing has more to see and it would be more convenient to see the surrounding sights like Datong or Chengde. As noted above it's also more the "real China"- I don't think there is anything else like HK out there, but Beijing will give you a true "China experience" in a way the internationalized Hong Kong will not.

Well, I don't really have any more to add than this, seeing how it's pretty much my thoughts on the matter as well. I'll add that Hong Kong is pretty much my favorite city in the world, but Beijing has a lot more to offer the short term visitor.

he'll defend us, he'll defend us,
the amazing astroboy!

ellyse

07-Feb-2007 03:12
Posts: 8,932

Beijing.
Cheers!

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