I have the choice of going to Guilin or Hong Kong? Is the scenery near Guilin worth the trip?

Would you pick Yellowstone or San Francisco?

Anyways, if you're already traveling within China, then go to Guilin. You'll probably have a chance to visit Hong Kong sometime in the future more easily.

The scenery is very beautiful around Guilin. However, it can be very touristy, esp the big boats going out on the river all at once in the morning with hundreds of people, so IMO you have to try to work around this and make your own tour if you can, or the charm of the river trips can be lost. This trip would also, IMO depend on two other factors. Time of year would be one. Guilin can be very rainy in the late spring and early summer months (so can Hong Kong, but you are not in Hong Kong quite so much for the outdoors as you would be for Guilin). Guilin can also be cold in the winter months. Fine if you are prepared for it and don’t mind it. Also, the trip to Guilin will require a PRC visa, I assume you can get one easily and/or quickly if the trip is soon. No visa is required for most people for Hong Kong (none for US citizens). The lack of English is a little bit more of an issue in the PRC, not really a big issue, but something to consider if you are on your own. Otherwise, the two places really could not be more different. Can you possibly do both? Also, what kind of trip are YOU interested in? A nature/scenery trip or more of a city trip? (I say that with some reservations, becuase there is a chance for a lot of outdoor activities and scenery in Hong Kong as well. It's just not the river scenery and worn mountains of Guilin.)

I would choose Guilin for the scenery, unless you want to go shopping, try Hong Kong.

http://www.travelsinasia.com/China/China.htm

How many days do you have? It's only an hour's flight time between both so you could do an overnight trip from HK to Guilin.

Guilin area has very breathtaking landscape surely is worth a visit.

Are there several flights from Guilin to Hong Kong per day?

I'm planning to spend 5 nights in the Guiling/Yangshuo area and then head to HK.

Monica

I'd pick Guilin.

To my thinking HK is a caricature of the country of China. It is a combo of Disney-Las Vegas experiences. (Indeed, Disney and gambling are both there, but I am comparing it to the concept of Disney.) If you like Vegas, you will love HK and Macao.

If you enjoy natural scenery and a real China city/town, albeit with tourists, then go to Guilin and then Yanshuo. If you enjoy a "Chinatown" immersion go to HK.

It is disingenuous to say Guilin/Yangshuo is too touristy and then compare it to HK!

Non-stop flights between HKG and KWL are all in the late afternoon to evening. To fly earlier in the day (both ways), you need to use Shenzhen (SZX) instead of HKG.

"It is disingenuous to say Guilin/Yangshuo is too touristy and then compare it to HK!"

It is not! Guilin was a pretty small town. It is what it is today, only because of the tourism.

Hong Kong is a financial/commerical center and a major port first. Tourism comes later.

And to say "HK is a caricature of the country of China" shows you know nothing about Hong Kong. Maybe Hong Kong is becoming more and more like China, but so far it is still very distinct, with British/western influence still very strong in the territory.

I am sorry rkkwan if you took offense. My point is 90% of westerners who visit Hong Kong will say they have visited China. They have not. It is almost comparable to saying if you have visited San Juan, PR, you have visited the United States.

The beauty of the mountains, caves, rice terraces, and Li and YuLong rivers is the purpose of tourism and they are not diminished by tourists. On the contrary, no pollution is allowed so the water is crystal clear except for turbulence after heavy rains. No one puts pictures of the City of Guilin or Town of Yangshuo on the covers of guide books. Instead you see the fishermen on the calm waters of the Li River with the karst mountains and magnificent coloring and shadows. The Chinese have not built overlook hotels perching off the Yangshuo mountains. There are no cable cars everywhere destroying the natural beauty. You can take a motor bike outside Yangshuo just a few minutes to see rural untouristed villages and take a private raft trip on Li River, seeing no other water vessels and tourists.

"It is almost comparable to saying if you have visited San Juan, PR, you have visited the United States."

Actually, I think it's more like people who visit Manhattan thinking they've visited the U.S. Or who visit Tokyo without venturing into the countryside. HK is still one of the world's great cities, with all the excitement and bustle that implies. It's certainly nothing like Vegas.

I think most travelers these days know that having been to Hong Kong is not the same as having been to China.

And I certainly haven't put down Guilin at all. Look at the very first reply to the OP. I suggest going to Guilin!

Definitely Guilin! That 5 hr or so boat trip down the River Li is awesome.

HK is gd for shopping & eating... some interesting sights - but can't be compared to Guilin.