Practical Information for visiting Hong Kong

Get an Octopus card immediately. It works on the MTR, buses, trams, ferries, and in convenience stores and many shops. It is the single most useful thing to acquire on arrival.

The MTR is fast, clean, cheap and reaches nearly everywhere including the airport and the border. The Star Ferry across the harbour costs a few dollars and is the best value view in the city.

The trams on Hong Kong Island — double-decker, slow, flat fare — are transport rather than a tourist ride, and the top deck is the best way to see the north shore.

Taxis are metered, plentiful and colour-coded by area: red for urban, green for the New Territories, blue for Lantau. Many drivers speak limited English; having the destination written in Chinese helps.

Ferries reach the outlying islands from Central and are inexpensive public transport.

The currency is the Hong Kong dollar (HK$), pegged to the US dollar within a narrow band, and separate from the Chinese yuan.

Cards are widely accepted, and Octopus is used for small everyday purchases well beyond transport.

Cash is still needed at wet markets, cha chaan tengs, some dai pai dongs and the smaller shops.

Tipping is modest: restaurants usually add 10% service, and rounding up a taxi fare is customary. ATMs are everywhere and reliable.

Coverage is excellent everywhere, including the MTR, the country parks and the outlying islands.

Tourist SIM cards are cheap and sold at the airport and in convenience stores.

Free public Wi-Fi is widespread. Note that Hong Kong has its own internet regime distinct from the mainland, and services blocked across the border generally work here.

Cantonese is the everyday spoken language, and it is tonal with six tones — quite different from Mandarin, which is also increasingly present.

English is an official language and widely used in signage, government and business, though less so among older residents and in the New Territories.

Written Chinese here uses traditional characters, not the simplified set used on the mainland.

Useful: m4 goi (m’goi) is thank you when someone does something for you; do ze (dōjeh) is thank you for a gift. The same m4 goi also means “excuse me”. The distinction between the two thank-yous is real and worth getting right.

Hong Kong is very safe, with low violent crime and a reliable police service. Ordinary precautions are sufficient.

Pickpocketing occurs in crowded markets and on busy MTR platforms.

Typhoons are the main disruption risk. Monitor the Observatory signals; at T8 and above stay indoors, and expect flights and ferries to stop.

Hiking accidents are the most common serious incident involving visitors. The trails are steep and the summer heat and humidity cause heat exhaustion quickly — carry more water than seems necessary and start early.

Traffic moves on the left, and the tram tracks and crowded pavements make crossing require attention.

No vaccinations are required and tap water meets drinking standards, though many residents still filter or boil it.

Heat and humidity in summer are the main risk, particularly on the hiking trails.

Air quality varies and can be poor when pollution drifts from the Pearl River Delta; readings are published hourly and matter for anyone with a respiratory condition.

Mosquitoes are present in the country parks and there are occasional local dengue cases.

Healthcare is excellent. Public hospitals charge non-residents substantially, and private care is expensive — travel insurance is worthwhile.

Hong Kong has its own legal system, separate from the mainland's. Since the 2020 National Security Law, offences relating to political expression have broad scope and apply to visitors. Visitors should be aware that public political activity and some online expression carry legal risk here in ways they did not previously.

Drug penalties are severe, including long sentences for possession.

Littering and spitting carry fixed penalties and are enforced. Eating and drinking on the MTR is prohibited and fined.

Smoking is banned in most indoor public places and in many outdoor areas including parks and beaches.

Escalator etiquette is firm: stand right, walk left — including on the Central-Mid-Levels escalator, the longest outdoor covered escalator system in the world.

999 reaches police, fire and ambulance, with English-speaking operators.

Public hospital accident and emergency departments treat everyone; non-residents are charged substantially more than residents. Private hospitals are excellent and expensive.

The Hong Kong Observatory issues typhoon and rainstorm warnings, and its app is the authoritative source during the season. Rainstorm signals — amber, red, black — also suspend normal activity.

For hiking emergencies, call 999; trails carry numbered distance posts, and quoting the nearest one is how rescuers locate you.