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I will be in Hong Kong in May and would like to spend some time enjoying spa treatments.Last trip I found everything was so expensive.I imagine there is a layer down from the 5 star hotels that is more agreeable to my wallet.I am staying at the GH and have been there before and it was excellent but so expensive.There have to be other places like BKK where they are upstairs, in doorways and all over the place, but they are still very good.
Desperate to hear from others experiences.
BTW this trip I will be using the Cityflyer bus from the airport.Can anyone confirm it is the A12 that I need to catch to get to the GH? Many Thanks Bkklover

Yes, it's A12 from the airport.

http://www.nwstbus.com.hk/routes/rou...pe=D&company=5

Get off at Stop #7 "Immigration Tower, Gloucester Road". The Grand Hyatt is across from the Wanchai District Court Tower that's next to the Immigration Tower.

Do note that this stop comes very very quickly after Stop #6, "Academy of Performing Arts". And there may not be anybody getting on and off at Stop #6. Don't wait until you hear the announcement for your stop, as you may already miss your stop. Stop #7 usually has people getting on and off.

Thanks rkkwan. Can you advise me how to get an Octopus Card at the airport and can I pay the Cityflyer with the card? Such everyday advice I know, but this will be the first time I will be using the Octopus card and would like to get it correct from the start. Thanks for your prompt reply, love reading your posts. Many Thanks,bkklover.

On the Hong Kong side, at this point my only recco would be one of the spas operated by Frederique, who is well-known and has been in business in Hong Kong for more than 20 years, see http://www.paua.com.hk/. The Elmis Day Spa may be a good choice. You may find this to be just a bit cheaper than hotels, but perhaps not a lot, but you are getting well-trained people and a clean place, which cannot always be said for the “upstairs over doorways” kind of places (which are sometimes massage parlours if you know what I mean). I would say the above qualifies as one layer down from 5 star hotels.

There used to be quite a good spa called The Firm up in the Hollywood Road area, however this was recently sold and most of the staff have gone to a place called ii Salon. I have not been so can’t give any details, but it is conveniently located in Prince’s Building (it may have prices to match however.)

ii Salon by IL COLPO GROUP
Shop G3A
Ground Floor
Prince's Building
10 Chater Road
Tel: 2155 5151

The building is across the street from the Mandarin Hotel. The entrance to the salon is on Dex Veoux Road (the street with the tram).

There is a Bliss Spa in the W hotel on the Kowloon side, don’t know if their treatments are cheaper than other hotels in Hong Kong, but try them at http://www.blissworld.com/category/s...s+hong+kong.do. Also the spa at the Langham Palace hotel may be a good choice, this is a bit of a trip out to Mongkok, but their prices are pretty good for a hotel spa, see. On a clear day, they have a marvelous view of the Hong Kong skyline from their spa lounge area. See http://hongkong.langhamplacehotels.c...itness/spa.htm.

While I don’t think it would be cheaper than the Grand Hyatt, I have been going for a few years to the Landmark Mandarin spa, and think they are quite good. I would recommend either Jacqueline or Ruby. The Four Seasons has an excellent spa as well, I would recommend Rubina there. But this may be just as expensive as the Grand Hyatt.

1. Get cash from an ATM. There are various ones at the airport, including a few in the arrivals hall if you walk towards the Airport Express train.

2. Turn around and walk back to the circular Airport Express ticket counter that's directly across from the customs exit. You can get your Octopus card there. Cash only. Minimum amount to start a card is HK$150 (which includes $100 of spendable money and $43 of deposit that you can get back at the end of your trip). But if you'll be in HK for a few days, just start with a bit more money in it.

Now, just want to mention that Citybus has roundtrip tickets for its Cityflyer services. It's $65 for a r/t on A11/12 to HK Island. If you are planning to take the bus back to the airport, that's a better deal than using the Octopus, which is $45 each way on the A12. You can only buy that roundtrip tickets at the Citybus' service counter at the airport which is down close to the actual bus stop, but not on the bus.

You can use the Octopus for all transportation in Hong Kong except for taxis and the red 16-seat public light bus (which you shouldn't be on anyways). And for buying stuff at supermarkets and convenience stores, vending machines, etc. You can recharge it at any MTR station and convenience store. Men usually stick their card in their wallet, and just hold the wallet against the reader. Women usually put theirs in the bottom of their purse. You don't need to hold the card out to use it.

Thanks for all the suggestions Cicerone, I will follow them up. Checked out the Langham Hotel and the treatments/prices similiar to GH. Coming into HKK from BKK and DPS certainly shows the difference. Have been spoilt by these countries for so many years now. Paris is always a challenge too !
Great tips and advice rkkwan, as always .

I had a rub at the Elemis spa (the one in Central, if there's more than 1), and I wasn't terribly impressed. Nothing close to the ambience or facilities [or, price] of the hotel spas in HK.

I can strongly recommend the spa at the InterContinental in TST. Great facilities, very pleasant rooms (some/all have private jacuzzi or hot tub and sauna), nice extras lsuch as ginger-lemon tea.