I am an expat living in HK, originally from Manhattan. If you have more detailed questions about living here feel free to send me a private message.

That said, your plan looks good but just a few thoughts:
take the bus up to the peak. Riding the bus (upper deck) around HK is a good way to get a sense of the city. The bus up to the peak (#15)goes through Wanchai, Happy Valley and then some expensive residential neighborhoods. You can also take a taxi. On the weekend there will be a long line for the tram, and it's crowded.

A lot of expats live in both Midlevels and Pokfulam but they have very different feels. Maybe it would be fun to take the midlevels escalator with them and walk around soho and then Robinson road. Happy Valley is also a nice, quieter place to walk. I like the walk down Sing Woo road, around the racetrack, arriving at Causeway Bay, where there is plenty to buy/eat/see.

(For reasons I don’t understand, I have not been able to read threads or post messaged while logged in as Cicerone for about a week, so I have resorted to becoming CICII.)

If you have never been to Hong Kong, but are thinking of moving here, may I suggest a few additions to your plan? Living in Hong Kong and visiting it are completely different experiences. Both are excellent in their own way; however taking the Peak tram and going to Disneyland won't give you any idea of what it is like to live here. It is like going to see the Taj Mahal and using that as the basis to decide that you want to live in India.

1. Try to visit a school or two. Get an idea of location, costs and size. If time permits, have an interview. Most importantly get on a waiting list for a school -- most good schools here have waiting lists. Your kids are young, but the 5 year old will I assume be in kindergarten. Visit some pre-schools for the 4-year old. If you are interested in the American School, see http://www.ais.edu.hk/about or the British School see http://www.kellettschool.com/home.php, the German school, see http://mygsis.gsis.edu.hk/. There are also many local schools affiliated with churches, such as St Paul's see http://www.spcc.edu.hk/english

2. Try to see some apartments. Get an idea of location, value for money and size. Rents are rather high here, esp if you want to live on Hong Kong Island. You will find apartments to be small here compared to Bangalore. You won't be able have a house unless you have a very generous budget or live out in the remoter New Territories. See http://www.habitat-property.com/ and http://www.squarefoot.com.hk/ for an idea of rental prices, size, and locations.

3. Find out where you office will be. Then think about where you might want to live. Try the commute. Think about whether you will want to have a car or not.

4. Go to a grocery store. See local food costs and what is available.

On your questions:

1. If you have a harbour view room at the Salisbury, you will see the Symphony of Lights from your room. That is about all the attention it deserves, IMO.

2. For the Peak Tram, my preference for the time of day is to go up about 30 minutes before sunset so you get daylight and then night views. In Mid-November, sunset is about 5:30 PM, so that means being on the tram a bit before 5 PM. On a Sunday evening, there can be lines for the Peak Tram, so you may have to time this. Or go around 4 PM and do a nice walk and hang around until sunset. You could easily do the Peak late in the afternoon on Saturday, which would leave your Sunday free to do other things. (You can also see part of the Symphony of Lights from the Peak; again all that it may deserve.) Dinner on the Peak someplace like the Peak Lookout might be nice. They have a lovely terrace under the trees.

3. Disney on Monday is fine. Better than Sunday which will be more crowded.

4. For playgrounds:

-a few blocks behind the Salisbury is Kowloon Park, which is very large and has a few play areas, see http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/parks/kp/en/for a map.

-there is a small zoo and botanical park in Central, just up above the downtown area. They have orang utans and other animals. You can walk to or from the bottom station of the Peak tram from there. There may also be a small playground here. See http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/parks/hkzbg/en/index.php

-up on the Peak, you can do the Lugard/Harlech Road walk, which has a playground about halfway through the walk (about 20 minutes going via Harlech Road and 30 minutes going via Lugard Road/

-up on the actual Peak (which is about 20 minutes uphill from top Peak Tram station) is an open field in Victoria Peak Garden which is good for running around, and has some great water views over the South side. This is really lovely at sunset if you get a clear day (pollution in November does not always cooperate)

-near the bottom station for the Peak Tram is Hong Kong park which has an outdoor aviary, some carp ponds and some fountains. There is a small playground here as well near the aviary. Look for signs. See http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/parks/hkp/en/index.php for information


Some other ideas:

-if you go to most any park or open square are in the mornings (between like 6- 8 am) you are likely to find people doing tai chi. That can be interesting. I think the HK Tourist Association runs a free class along the harbour right near the Salisbury on several mornings a week, see http://www.discoverhongkong.com/login.html to find out if they are still offering this.

-your time is short, but if you can get to a beach, that might be a fun experience. In November, it is coolish here (not cold) but beaches are still very pleasant for a stroll and sitting out. And a picnic. You might try Repulse Bay on Hong Kong Island, which is a great bus ride over from Central (take the #6) and is a wide, curving beach with a big temple at one end. There is a playground near or on the beach. There are some restaurants here, or you can bring a picnic. This is crowded on weekends, but livable. In mid-November, which is "winter" here, it is not going to be as crowded as in July. This area is also quite popular with expats with young children as it is near the primary school campus of the American School, so this would give you an idea of a different area of Hong Kong. It is greener. Or take the same bus all the way to Stanley which also has a beach, and a waterfront promenade full of restaurants as well as popular "souk" shopping for souvenirs.

-the hop on hop off buses may be of interest, they are open top and the kids may enjoy the ride. There are two operators who run buses, see www.rickshawbus.com
and http://www.bigbustours.com/eng/hongkong. There are tours of both sides of the harbour (Hong Kong Island and Kowloon/Tsim Sha Tsui). Sunday is a good day for this as there is little traffic.

-try dim sum on Sunday somewhere. Make a reservation if you can as this is the most popular day for lunch with the family.

Ciccerone has a great point about looking at apartments. I did that on my second day visiting Hong Kong before moving. I was pretty shocked by the high prices and small rooms. My "3 bedroom" on Hong Kong Island has the same square footage of my one bedroom in Manhattan, and costs 50% more. Look at hongkonghomes.com for an idea, this is a more reputable site run by the HK branch of Southeby's. Yes, a room that is 9 x 8 feet can really be considered a bedroom here.

Great feedback, thanks. I do like the idea of trying to see some apartments - will try to fit that in. And the kids would love a DD bus - glad to know that is an option!

Tansmets, I'm a former NYer, too, so I thought I couldn't be shocked at housing costs & small spaces, but maybe HK takes that to a new level? I may contact you when we get past the preliminary stages - thanks for the offer.

Cicerone, I'm printing out your entire message. Thanks for your advice. I do realize that Disneyland is not representative, but to my 5 year old, going to HK and not going to Disneyland would be like going to Agra and not seeing the Taj. Kindergarteners do talk amongst themselves about these things.

Yes, unfortunately Hong Kong takes overpriced housing to a completely new level. My "3 bedroom" (880 square feet net) with two baths in Midlevels is the same square footage and 50% more a month than my large one bedroom in the West Village, in a doorman building next to express trains. Really...

You can certainly spend a lot less than I do in Hong Kong, but I do have a nicely renovated apartment with great views of Kowloon and Victoria Harbor, which we definitely pay a premium for. You can also live far in Kowloon, and spend less than $2,000 USD a month. There are a lot of options here and no need to limit yourself to the better known expat areas. A lot of it will depend on where your kids go to school.


What I've grown used to and actually like, is the configuration of HK apartments. Each room is fairly small, so instead of the huge living room and bedroom I had in NY, I now have a small living room, a small master bedroom, a little office and a guest room / den /closet. Closets are not built in here as in the US so many expats used to a lot of space use spare bedrooms as closets. When I go back to the US it's amazing to me how much wasted space there is in bedrooms.

Hi , I am trying to reach Cicerone(Cicii).

I have been reading your threads on this forum and you have told people to email you to receive a current list of your favorite restaurants. I have tried your listed email but it has been returned to me three times. If you see this, I would love to have it.

I am leaving for Hong Kong mid January and will be there for one month. I am helping to move my daughter and her family to Hong Kong.

Thank you.

Harrison:

My email is ciceronehongkong@live.hk

I don't know why messages would have been returned to you.

If it happens again, and if you are comfortable listiing your email here, please do so and I will respond to you directly.

Hi Cicerone,

Thank you so much for your quick response. I have sent another email a minute ago and hopefully you will receive it. If not , I will post my email here.

Thank you so very much.