Disney Hong Kong
 

My wife and I are traveling with our 4 year old. We have a pretty long layover in Hong Kong on a Monday. We arrive around 2pm and dont depart until 11:30pm that evening. Anyone try to go to Disney for an afternoon? We've been to Hong Kong recently but have never been to Disney. Assume we have enough time as it is small and close to the airport. Ideally tire my son out before our evening flight to Australia. Also, assume no departure tax as we arrive and depart on the same day.
Thanks,

Hong Kong does not have a separately paid departure tax, so any tax you may pay is already included in your ticket price. But you are correct that same-day layovers don’t pay the tax.

Hong Kong Disney on a Monday is possible (assume it is not a public holiday here, if you can give me your exact date I can confirm, as I would probably recommend avoiding Disney on a public holiday; for example Monday September 15 is a holiday here). You can leave your carry-on bags at the airport, and take the train to Disney (one change is necessary, but otherwise very easy and would not take long). I have not been to Disney and it is quite small, but should be fine. Another possibility is to do the cable car up to the Big Buddha. The cable car is practically next to the airport. The ride would be fun, generally I find the Buddha boring but the cable car and big statute may interest the child, nice views if you get a clear day. This would not take as much time as Disney and would be getting dark around 7 pm so you could not spend as much time there as at Disney. It may be possible to do both if you wanted to pay the admission price for Disney for a short time.

My other recommendation if you get a nice day is to go to the Stoep Restaurant which is a very nice casual beach-side restaurant on Lantau. Your son could play on the beach and you could have a meal there and hang out for several hours in the late afternoon (they have pints). You can take a taxi from the airport in about 15 minutes, a bus is also possible, it may require a change but would not be hard to do, I could look into bus numbers if you are interested or the airport could help you. The restaurant is in to Lower Cheung Sha Village. They do not have a website. Phone number is 852 2980 2699. It is barbeque seafood and other dishes, quite good, not expensive. Lovely beach setting, you can walk for several miles along the beach areas, see http://www.hkoutdoors.com/lantau-isl...ha-lantau.html. You can also rent bicycles in Mu Wui and bike around parts of the island, this may be too much for your time and not sure they have child seats, etc. But check guidebooks if you are interested.

May I also suggest that if it is raining on your layover day (entirely possible for Hong Kong) that you consider the Hong Kong Science Museum. They are open until 9 pm on Mondays, good for your timing. This gets raves from parents as a good place for kids, lots of kid-friendly activities. See http://hk.science.museum/eindex.php. It is in TST next door to the Hong Kong History Museum (which is also quite good, perhaps not so much for a 4 year old, but could also work.)

Also, you could take him to the Elements Mall where they have an indoor skating rink and a number of restaurants. Elements is on the MTR line (Kowloon Station for the Tung Chung Line), which is <i>also</i> the Kowloon Station Airport Express station. It would be a quick cab ride to or from the Science Museum and you could combine both quite easily.

Thanks for the suggestions. We are arriving on the 9th of Sept. I did some further research on Disney and apparently there is a special discount for those in transit. Always appreciate your posts.

I'm actually going to be in Hong Kong on a shorter layover in late September on a Saturday (noon to 6pm). I've always wanted to see the Big Buddha, and since I'm going to be at the airport anyway, I though it might be a fun and quick alternative to shopping at the airport. Do you think I could do the round-trip in 3 hours? I don't want to have to rush back but want a little time before the flight.

How does the Disneyland &quot;special discount for those in transit&quot; work?

Woody