Macau, Hong Kong and China in 8 days
 

Hi,

My wife and I will be travelling to Macau this November. We'll be there for 8 days from 22Nov ( evening ) to 30Nov.
We plan to travel to Hong Kong and the nearby China too.

Wish to know

1.where are the backpackers area with safe, clean budget hotels in these 3 places.

2. What are the must see places in Macau, HK and nearby China?

3. Is Guangzhou far from HK? Is it worth travelling there?

4. Is it better to stay in one country travel to the other two everyday and cone back to stay for the night

5. How to travel in 8/9 days in 3 countries?

Thank you

"1.where are the backpackers area with safe, clean budget hotels in these 3 places." - you're more likely to get a response to this over on the Lonely Planet thorntree (and check out their guide along with Rough Guides).

"5. How to travel in 8/9 days in 3 countries?" Better not to try. Settle for two.

That's all one country.

I went to Macau as a day trip from Hong Kong. Traveled by ferry. Hong Kong deserves more than a day trip from Macau.

Well, they are pretty much one country. China is huge so I assume you want to visit the cities in China close to HK and Macau.

I think you can do Macau in two days, then spend 3 or 4 days in HK and 2 days in Shenzhen and/ Guangzhou.

What do you want to see for China? Shenzhen and Guangzhou are basically developed cities in China. There is a shopping mall in Shenzhen just at the boarder and tourist like to go there to shop, eat and indulge (e.g. massage). You don't get to see much culture things in these two cities.

Hong Kong is worth more than a day trip definitely. You can visit the Peak, Big Buddha, Disneyland, take the ferry, etc etc and there are tons of good shopping and food.

New hotels have been opened in Macau since the last year like Venetian and MGM... I believe the Venetian is just like the one is Las Vegas, even if you don't like to gamble, it's nice to check out the casinos. There are some sightseeing and great good to try. Afterall, two days is definitely sufficient.

Sorry, no feedback on backpackers areas.

Re #4, you basically will take the train/ subway to Shenzhen/ Guangzhou from Hong Kong which is exteremely convenient. You take the ferry/ cruise from HK/ Macau to HK/ Macau, it is very convenient as well.

Instead of Shenzhen/Guangzhou, you could fly an hour to Guilin/Yangshou, totally different experience than Macau and HK, do a search on this board.

I assume you know that while most passport holders can get a visa on arrival at Hong Kong and Macau, in order to enter the rest of China you need a visa in advance, which is rather expensive.

Frankly, Guangzhou and Shenzen are highly industrialized cities. Neither has much to recommend it it terms of scenery or culture. Guangzhou does have an interesting museum built upon an Han dynasty tomb, but I wouldn't go out of my way to visit Guangzhou.

With just 8 days, I'd recommend spending most of your time in Hong Kong. It is, however, quite an expensive city to visit.

US citizens don't need a visa to visit Hong Kong or Macau at all.

Oops - you are so right, Ray, it's visa-free entry. You simply get a passport stamp.