Bustling Hong Kong

Claire Summers on 13 May 2016
I visited Hong Kong in mid-May and stayed at the Cordis Hotel in Mongkok.

The hotel was incredible, the rooms were spacious, the king bed was comfortable, it had a roof top swimming pool, sauna and spa.

We took a Tai Chi lesson around the swimming pool with a very animated instructor, definitely worth it just for him. The hotel also offer free walking tours around the area so it's a good idea to get yourself on one of those to get your bearings.

The staff were extremely helpful and friendly and the food in the hotel was the best food we had in our time there.

The weather was a little cloudy with some sun, it was humid but not unbearable. It rained one evening, the humidity in the evenings was still high so there were no sudden drops in temperature during the night.

We stayed in Mongkok, Kowloon which is approx a 40 minute drive from the international airport (flight time from the UK is 12 hours).

Kowloon sits opposite Hong Kong Island and you can visit the Sky100 observatory to see great views across to the Island. We went to the Ritz Carlton which is set in the same skyscraper as the Sky100 and up to the 105th floor to have a coffee in their restaurant and admire the views.

After 5pm you can go up to their Ozone Restaurant on the 118th floor and have a meal whilst watching the Island light up, the view is amazing.

There is a lot happening in Mongkok, with lots of food markets plus the Ladies Market where you can shop for anything and everything.

Hong Kong have a MTR underground system is easy to use and will get you to most of the tourist attractions. You can buy various day passes to suit the duration of your holiday and have unlimited journeys.

You can also travel on the MTR to get to the cable cars which go across to Lantau Island. You must pre-book to use the cable cars to skip the queues, otherwise expect a 2 hour wait to get on! You can just book on-line the day you visit if you haven't managed to do so in advance.

In Mongkok, there are no shortages of shops if this is how you want to spend some time. Either on the street markets or in shopping malls.

Langham Place shopping mall is attached to the Cordis Hotel and has one of the longest escalators in the world! Its an easy place to get lost in!

We went on a trek to Dragons Back Trail, if you get the opportunity to do this and you don't mind a half day walk, then I would definitely recommend it.

It is not the smoothest of terrains so it is not the easiest of walks (we were glad it hadn't rained as it would make it quite difficult) and you will need some mosquito repellant but the views from the top of the mountain of Hong Kong and the Islands/beaches are incredible.

Another excursion you can do is to visit the Peak by tram which takes you up to a fantastic viewing spot where you can look down on the city below. I would pre-book tickets for this one as you could be waiting in the queue for hours in busy times to get a tram ticket.

There are a couple of fantastic restaurants i could recommend which is the Grand Harbour Hotel and Hutong Restaurant. Both have fantastic views of the Hong Kong Island skyline and at the Hutong, the Symphony of Lights Laser and Music show is in full view there.

The star ferry will take you from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island in 5 minutes and costs about 20p, the taxis are also inexpensive so getting around is cheap and easy.

You don't need a visa or jabs for Hong Kong, if you planned on going to mainland China during your stay then you would need a visa.

I found everyone to be helpful and friendly and the prices of food and drink were on a par with the UK.

If you want any further info, then just drop me a line.