MTR (Mass Transit Railway)
MTR (ferrocarril de tránsito masivo)
MTR (Mass Transit Railway)
Getting around Hong Kong to enjoy its world-class attractions couldn’t be easier with the quick and efficient Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system. This covers all major districts in the territory, including stops at the boundary with Mainland China (Lo Wu Station and Lok Ma Chau Station).
The MTR consists of ten rail lines, including Island, Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong, Tseung Kwan O, Tung Chung, West Rail, East Rail, Ma On Shan, Disneyland Resort and the Airport Express. The MTR also operates a light rail system that runs between Yuen Long and Tuen Mun in the New Territories, plus an inter-city train service to Mainland China. See the MTR’s website for more details, including its map: www.mtr.com.hk/eng/homepage/cust_index.html
Airport Express Travel Pass
Purchase a $220 or $300 Airport Express Travel Pass (both include a refundable deposit of $50) to enjoy one or two single journeys on the Airport Express, as well as three consecutive days of unlimited travel on the MTR, the Light Rail and MTR Bus (which operates in the northwest New Territories)1. The ticket is valid for 180 days from the day of issue.
1. Does not include additional travel on the Airport Express, East Rail Line First Class, and travel to or from Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau stations.
Tourist Day Pass and Child Tourist Day Pass
Purchase a $55 Tourist Day Pass or $25 Child Tourist Day Pass2 to enjoy any one day3 of unlimited travel on the MTR4 to experience Hong Kong. The ticket is valid for one month from the date of issue.
Please note:
The Airport Express Travel Pass and Tourist Day Pass and Child Tourist Day Pass are only available to visitors who are not Hong Kong residents and who have been in Hong Kong for less than 14 days.
2. Valid for children aged 3 to 11
3. One day of unlimited travel means 24 consecutive hours beginning from the recorded entry time of the first journey.
4. Except the Airport Express, the MTR bus, East Rail Line First Class, Lo Wu Station and Lok Ma Chau Station.
Two International Financial Center
Two International Financial Center
Two International Financial Centre (8 Finance Street, Central, Hong Kong Island) — Soaring 420 meters above the Central waterfront, this commanding landmark is the tallest building on Hong Kong Island, the second-tallest in the city and one of the tallest in the world. Two IFC was completed in 2003 as part of a complex that includes the upmarket IFC mall and the Four Seasons Hotel, as well as MTR Hong Kong Station, which services the MTR Airport Express and MTR Tung Chung Line. This is one of the few buildings in the world to be equipped with double-decker elevators.s.
Tsim Sha Ysui Promenade
Tsim Sha Ysui Promenade
Tsim Sha Ysui Promenade (Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon) – this promenade is busy, since the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, the Hong Kong Space Museum, the Hong Kong Museum of Art and Avenue of Stars. Aside from that, visitors will look south to the dramatic topographical and architectural spectacle that is the Hong Kong Island skyline towering over the busy waters of Victoria Harbour.
The Peak
The Peak
The Peak (Mid Levels, Hong Kong) — The highest point on Hong Kong Island, this has been the city’s most exclusive neighborhood since colonial times – back then it was the cooler air that attracted the rich and famous; in the post air-conditioning era, the views of one of the world’s most spectacular cityscapes keep them coming.
The anvil-shaped The Peak Tower has a large viewing platform called Sky Terrace 428, in addition to dining and retail outlets. Nearby, The Peak Galleria has a free-entry observation deck, as well as shopping and dining options. More eye gulps of the views can be had at Lugard Road Lookout, Lions View Point Pavilion. For leisurely unfolding vistas, take the 3.5-kilometre Peak Circle Walk.
Getting there – The Peak Tram: Riding the Peak Tram is a visual experience unto itself — Hong Kong Island’s skyscrapers slide past your window at what appear to be impossible angles as you make the ascent to The Peak on the city’s historic, funicular railway.
Located at Lower Terminus, The Peak Tram Historical Gallery is a way of paying tribute to The Peak Tram, its heritage and the history of Hong Kong. Since 1888, The Peak Tram has served Hong Kong, quietly witnessing 120 years of the city’s changes. The Gallery brings back many memories for local visitors and gives overseas visitors a glimpse of how the Pearl of the Orient has come to shine.
Sheung Yiu Folk Museum
Museo Folclórico Sheung Yiu
Sheung Yiu Folk Museum (Pak Tam Chung Nature Trail, Sai Kung, New Territories) — Once a fortified Hakka village that dates back to the late 19th century, this is now a small museum and Declared Monument housing typical Hakka furniture and artifacts. But there’s another reason to stop by: it’s located inside one of the most scenic country parks in Hong Kong – Sai Kung Country Park.
Sam Tung Uk Museum
Museo Sam Tung Uk
Sam Tung Uk Museum (2 Kwu Uk Lane, Tsuen Wan, New Territories) — There was a time when the urban hub of Tsuen Wan was nothing more than a sprinkling of rural communities bustling with village and agricultural life. Some of that nostalgic period is preserved at Sam Tung Uk (‘three rows of dwelling’ in Chinese), a 200-year-old restored rural walled village.
Those still living in the quaint village in the 1970s were relocated to make way for the Tsuen Wan terminus of the Mass Transit Railway. Tsuen Wan itself had already been transformed since the late 1940s, when wealthy textiles manufacturers and other factory owners in then-turbulent Shanghai were desperately looking for places to re-locate their businesses. Tsuen Wan offered the advantages of cheap land, affordable labour and good proximity to urban Kowloon. Factories hurriedly went up on former farmland, and soon the sights and sounds of rural Tsuen Wan were all but lost forever. But Sam Tung Uk lives on as our reminder. Declared a historical monument in 1981, the museum includes an ancestral hall, two rows of side houses, an exhibition hall and a lecture hall, and displays of period furniture, handicrafts and agricultural equipment.
Lei Cheung Uk Han Tomb Museum
Museo de la tumba de Lei Cheung Uk Han
Lei Cheung Uk Han Tomb Museum (41 Tonkin Street, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon) — In 1955, when leveling a slope for the construction of resettlement villages in Lei Cheng Uk, a government work team stumbled upon a mysterious four-chamber tomb. Its inscriptions revealed it dated back to the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220) and it has since been preserved as a Declared Monument. An exhibition hall adjacent to the tomb contains all the pottery and bronze wares that were excavated from the tomb, while texts, graphics, photos, maps and video models are used to explain the historical significance of the site and the historical period from which the tomb dates.
Law Uk Folk Museum
Law Uk Folk Museum
Law Uk Folk Museum (14 Kut Shing Street, Chai Wan, Hong Kong Island) — While Law Uk means ‘Law’s house’ in Chinese, this declared historical building and rare example of an 18th century Hakka village house has nothing to do with the law of the land. ‘Law’ is a transliteration of the Chinese surname of the previous owners, who were a Hakka family.
International Commerce Centre
Centro de Comercio Internacional
International Commerce Centre (1 Austin Road West, West Kowloon, Kowloon) – The 490m International Commerce Centre, known locally as ICC, is the latest ‘super skyscraper’ to take the title of Hong Kong’s tallest building. Together with the city’s second-tallest building, Two IFC on the opposite shore, the imposing pair create the dramatic effect of a modern day Colossus of Rhodes at the western entrance of Victoria Harbour.
The building’s 118 floors are mostly devoted to office space, but there’s also a Ritz-Carlton hotel as well as restaurants and the sky100 Hong Kong Observation Deck. Two of the building’s giant façades serve as a more than 50,000 square-meter platform for a spectacular light and music show, which was recognized with a Guinness World Record for the largest light and sound show on a single building. Using stunning animation and sound effects to convey the theme ‘Love Hong Kong’, this dazzling show happens twice nightly
Hong Kong Science Museum
Hong Kong Science Museum
Hong Kong Science Museum (2 Science Museum Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East, Kowloon) – this is perhaps one of the most interactive museums in Hong Kong (perhaps anywhere). Over 70 per cent of the Hong Kong Science Museum’s 500 exhibits are hands-on, meaning you can literally play around with a broad spectrum of cool topics, including robotics, virtual reality and transportation.
Be sure to check out the 22-metre-high twin-tower Energy Machine which, when activated, triggers a series of displays to produce spectacular audio-visual effects demonstrating various forms of energy. Admission: HK$25 (adults), HK$13 (children, students & seniors). Free admission on Wednesdays.
