violetm

Hi,

Thanks to all who gave advise on my hotel thread, now that's sorted I just need to plan what to pack!

We'll be in Hong Kong from 3 - 9 April, and I'm trying to decide what clothes to take. We've travelled around Asian cities before but generally it has always been very hot and humid so pretty straightforward.

I'm guessing in April the weather won't be so hot? We don't mind it being cooler, in fact it will make a nice change (we live in a tropical part of Australia, and at the moment we're eating inside in aircon as it's too disgustingly hot and humid to eat outside!)

So, do you think it would be jeans and t-shirt during the day, or might it be too warm for jeans? Closed in shoes? Long sleeves? A sweater? A jacket? Raincoat? Or, might it be warm enough to swim in an outdoor heated pool?

I'm from Scotland so I own lots of these items I just don't get a chance to wear them much here ;-)

ekscrunchy

I will be in HK the last week in March, so would also love to have this info!

indianapearl

I was in HK from mid-March to mid-April 2008 --- I wore twill slacks, cotton camp shirts, cotton knit tops, no jeans. Although the daytime temps were in the 70-80 F range, the humidity was 85-90% most of the time, so cooling by evaporation just doesn't occur. A light wrap is good for evening especially since the AC is really cold in most HK restaurants. Have a wonderful time -- HK is a fabulous place!

Cicerone

Could not agree more with Indianapearl’s comments. It is the humidity that will be the issue, even if temps are only in the low 70s F. But we can get days in early April which are in the high 80s F as well. For April I would plan for warm and muggy with some rain. It probably should be fine for outdoor swimming.

For late March basically the same, perhaps a shade cooler, and more fog; but not a whole lot of difference. Swimming may not be as attractive as it is usually more overcast.

A raincoat is virtually useless in any months but Nov to Feb. It is simply too humid to wear one. I would go with light layers which you can remove and carry as needed. A small folding umbrella for the rain showers. A sweater for the bus, MTR and taxis which can be freezing (as are restaurants as mentioned above).

I don’t wear jeans so can’t comment on whether they are too heavy, but cotton twill or similar light material in long pants or capris would certainly be fine. If you are uncomfortable in jeans in 80%+ humidity, then don’t bring them. Local women won’t be wearing shorts on city streets in April (or really most any month), but that does not mean you can’t if you want to.

Shoes can be an issue, as if it rains open-toed are not that comfortable for wet city streets. Also, the streets are somewhat dirty. You will (or should) be doing a good bit of walking, some of it on stairs on hills/inclines which may be a bit damp and perhaps slippery, so flat and comfortable with non-slippery soles would be a good idea.

Weatherbase.com is a good site for historical temps and rainfall, and http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/world/city_guides/
is good for showing relative humidity. The Hong Kong Observatory website at http://www.weather.gov.hk/contente.htm can be useful for planning a few days before the trip, it has some historical info as well. (Their forecasts for more than 1-2 days ahead are often completely wrong, so I would not put too much stock in a forecast you see for a week before you arrive.)

<b>violetm</b>, you will be here for several public holidays, including Easter. You will also be here for Ching Ming which is Tuesday April 6. This is one of the two "grave sweeping" festivals in the year, and is a time when families visit graves to clean them and bring food and burn paper offerings to ancestors. It can be an interesting time to go to a local cemetery, and there is a large multi-faith one in Happy Valley quite close to your hotel. You will need to go more to the Buddhist section to see the families, although you may also be able observe them in the Christian section as well. Jason Wordie gives a really interesting tour of this cemetery, see www.jasonswalks.com. He is expensive, but perhaps he is doing a group tour during Ching Ming which you could join. Check his website. Or get his book called “<i>Streets: Exploring Hong Kong</i>” which has a section on the cemetery and also on the area around your hotel. There is a huge cemetery in Chai Wan which could be incorporated into the Dragon’s Back walk as well.

Monday April 5, and are also public holidays here, so on that day and April 6 you may want to avoid places like Macau, Ocean Park/Disney and the Big Buddha, as school will be out and offices closed. (Avoiding them on a Sunday is always generally a good idea as well.) If you decide to go to Macau on those days, then book the outward and return ferries ahead of time to avoid lines. If you decide to go to the Big Buddha, then either book the cable car in advance, or just take the bus from the Tung Chung MTR station (a very beautiful ride), and perhaps walk down.

<b>ekscrunchy</b>, if you are here the weekend of March 26, you will be here for the Hong Kong Sevens Rugby Tournament. It may be too late to get tickets, but see http://www.hksevens.com/index.html. Traditionally, it rains the entire weekend of this tournament so the field is a muddy mess and the spectators are a sodden one. If you don’t like hordes of young (and some old) drunken men, avoid Lan Kwai Fong, large parts of Soho and the bars of Wan Chai and parts of Kowloon from about March 24 – 28 (if you like them, then by all means go!!) Otherwise, if your visit is the week of March 29, then Friday April 2 is a public holiday (Good Friday), so I would also suggest avoiding places like Macau, the Big Buddha, etc on that day.

laartista

Sorry to hijack w/ a question for Cicerone, but I am also supposed to be there in HK 4-10 for sourcing. Will shops and showrooms be closed on those public holidays, I mean how widesread are the closures? Thanks

btw- again great info cicerone

Cicerone

<b>laartista</b>, shops will be open. I can't say for sure about "showrooms", if by that you mean wholesalers showrooms for departmemt store/corporate buyers. Most offices will be closed both days, so if you want to go to a showroom, you probably have to check on the invidual ones you are interested in. They may be open on Saturday, which is not a public holiday and is often a regular work day for local offices here.

laartista

Thanks again Cicerone, actually changed the dates to 8- 15 april just to play it safe. Unfortunately my hopinn was booked so looking for somewhere else. Really looking forward to HK

aussiedreamer

leave in 12 days for one week, thanks for all the great advise. Cicerone awsome as always. I will start a new post shortly on the restaurants we have booked, love your feedback if any first hand experience.
AD.