Hong Kong octopus card?- another question
 

I know this has been asked in other threads, but I can't seem to find the answer.

Can the octopus card be purchased on-line prior to arrival in Hong Kong?

What type of card would be suggested for two people who will need airport transfers, ferry and underground for 3 days?

ANOTHER AIRPORT QUESTION- How does one get from the airport Cathay Pacific terminal to the Salisbury YMCA?

Mahalo.

You can buy the following online:

Airport Express Tourist Octopus "3-Day Hong Kong Transport Pass" with either one-way Airport Express (AE) travel for $209, or with roundtrip AE travel for $285.

www.mtr.com.hk/eng/train/ae_tourtickete.htm

The discount you get is 5% when you do it online vs in person.

These are derivatives of the Octopus cards, and you can load extra money onto it. But the "3-day pass" portion only applies to MTR trains. Not other modes of transportation.

The regular Octopus is basically a cash card, and you cannot use credit card to purchase it, as you can get cash out of it anytime.

In my opinion, the cost of the Tourist card is way too high. You need to take about HK$80 of MTR in your three days to make it worth it. If you decide to go to Disneyland or to Tung Chung (enroute to the Big Buddha), then maybe. Otherwise, no. And of course, only make sense if you've decided to use the Airport Express to/from the airport.

Otherwise, just get a regular Octopus (minimum HK$150 cash to start a card, $100 to spend, $43 you'll get back when you turn it in).

From HKG to Salisbury YMCA, you can:

- taxi (about HK$250)
- Airport Express (HK$90 one-way each, or $160 roundtrip), then the free shuttle to the Peninsula, which is next door to your hotel
- hotel shuttle (~HK$120 each). Makes no sense. I'd rather take the taxi.
- Cityflyer A21 bus. HK$33 each. Stop across Nathan Road from the Kowloon Hotel. You need to go down through a pedestrian tunnel, and then 2 blocks to the YMCA.
- S1 bus to Tung Chung (HK$3.5), then MTR (HK$15.1 with Octopus). Many changes and takes a long time. I wouldn't recommend it.

I think the 3 best methods are Taxi, AE/shuttle, and the A21 bus. Depends on your budget and how much luggage you have.

this is the link of the web page of the Salisbury YMCA about the transportation fron the airport to de Hotel
Regards
Josep Maria
http://www.ymcahk.org.hk/sales/html/...sportation.htm

Thank you for the information, it has been helpful to us as well.

As we are arriving from Tokyo at 10:35pm and need to transfer to the Salisbury, we will likely take a taxi. I assume there is no problem finding a taxi at that hour?

Liz

Hundreds of taxis lined up at HKG for hours to get a fare back to the city. You won't have problem <b>anytime</b> getting a taxi from the airport.

rkkwan:
I could use some good input from you. I'm taking a day trip to Hong Kong while I'm staying Taiwan for 5 days next month, and I want to know what is the best card I should purchase to get into Kowloon and back to the airport via Airport express and maybe use the MTR. I bought the Tourist Octopus card in my past few trips to HK, but obviously I don't need 3 days worth of MTR rides. Is there a cheaper option?

Don - Just get a sameday roundtrip AE ticket (HK$100 for Hong Kong, $90 for Kowloon).

With that little time, don't bother with the Octopus. Just get some change and pay for everything separately with cash.