Emro2

We will be staying in and around Hong Kong for two weeks in November.
We are mostly interested in culture, food, nature, art and antiques, good food.
I thought about staying six days in TST then moving to Macau for two (or three ?) nights, then staying for the rest of the holiday on Hong Kong Island and making excursions to e.g. Lantau island and Shenzhen.
I am a bit afraid our stay is just too long for what we can see and do in the area, but flights are booked already so ...
Is Shenzhen worth more than a one-day excursion ?

Thanks for your ideas !

rkkwan

Two weeks is indeed a long time for Hong Kong and Macau. What nationality are you? Do you already have a Chinese visa? Even for going to Macau, most nationals need a visa, and for US citizens, it costs US$140 and a hassle to get if you don't live in a city with a Chinese consulate/embassy.

If you think 2 weeks is too much time, consider visiting Taiwan as well. Relatively inexpensive and very frequent flights from Hong Kong.

tripplanner001

U.S. citizens are able to visit both Hong Kong and Macau without a Chinese visa. To visit the mainland, yes, you may need a visit, unless you are doing a 72-hour transit through a major city. You can also get to SE Asia (e.g. Singapore, Thailand) relatively cheaply, and do a week there.

Emro2

Thanks for your input.

We are W.European and apparently do not need visa for Hong Kong and Macau for a stay of less than 90 days.

If we would tour to Guangzhou we'd apply for a PRC visa in HKG and would wait for it to be delivered after +/- 4 days.
If we would go tho Shenzhen we'd apply for a 5-day visa at the point of entry at Lo Wu.
We would not need a visa for Taiwan for a visit of less than 30 days.

Has anyone taken part in a cooking class in Hong Kong?
Maybe any suggestions ?

rkkwan

I see. Well, I am probably biased as a HK local now, but Shenzhen is not worth more than a day trip, unless you're there for shopping (for cheap/fake goods). Having said that, hotels are cheaper in Shenzhen than Hong Kong, so it may not be a bad idea to do a loop of HK - Shenzhen - Macau - HK. There's a hourly (mostly) ferry from Shekou in Shenzhen to Macau, and it's cheaper than the one from HK anyways. Shekou is actually the nicer area of Shenzhen that most expatriates prefer.

So, you can leave HK on a particular day, spend a night at a nice hotel in Shenzhen, take a late afternoon ferry from Shekou to Macau, then 3 nights at a nice hotel in Macau. 3 nights will give you two full days to explore the place, which has lots to offer besides the casinos. Schedule it so that your 3 nights in Macau are Sun-Thursday, as rates are much higher for Friday and Saturday nights.