Hong Kong Fever | Getting In and Out of Hong Kong International Airport
It was our first time in Hong Kong this December 2011 so the first and foremost fear we had is getting lost. Once we're out of the airplane, we're on our own. So our first adventure practically began at the Hong Kong International Airport.
It was almost a week since we left for Hong Kong and I can absolutely say that Hong Kong International Airport is very tourist-friendly. We just walked and walked, followed the signs and got out hassle-free. Everything was a smooth process. So from experience, I will list down the important procedures upon touch down at Hong Kong International Airport.
Hong Kong International Airport to City
We rode Cebu Pacific Flight 5J 110 which left Manila at exactly 7:55am. We arrived at Hong Kong International Airport in 2 hours. We deplaned and walk towards the Immigration counters. The immigration counter was our first destination.
The best way not to get lost is to follow where everyone goes. Most likely, they are heading to the Immigration counters. In any case, there are always plenty of signs inside the airport.
The signs to the Immigration led us to the Automatic People Mover (train). The train regularly transfers passengers from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 and vice-versa.
Following the directions, we easily saw the immigration counters. We lined up and waited for our turn. The immigration officer asked for our travel documents (passport and arrival card). By the way, the cabin crew of Cebu Pacific distributed the arrival cards while on board the plane. Also, I think Hong Kong immigration officers are more friendly than the immigration officers in the Philippines. They give out smiles to the tourists.
After clearing with the immigration, we exited to the door behind them. You can get your check-in luggages from the luggage counter announced by the cabin crew. In our case, we don't have check-in luggage so we didn't have to go through this process.
We saw the exit door that says "Nothing to Declare" and went out. Along the way, we saw the Airport Express counters where we bought Octopus cards. You can also buy single journey tickets here. Then we looked for signs that say Buses to City since we'll be taking the A21 bus to the city. For those who are planning on taking the Airport Express, I won't be much of a help here. Sorry.
Outside the airport, there are designated stops for the different buses. We looked for the A21 bus sign and lined up. Almost all people here are Filipinos. It didn't feel much like a foreign country because you'll hear people speaking Tagalog all the time. The weather was the only thing that spelled the difference, or maybe the buses.
The A21 bus came in in a little while. We tapped our Octopus cards on the machine beside the driver's seat. Remember: you only tap once. Always remember to either buy single journey tickets or even Octopus cards. Don't pay large bills because the driver will not give you change. If you're paying cash, be sure you pay an exact amount. The fare for the A21 bus from the airport to the city is HKD 33.
One important note. Know your bus stop. In our case, we stayed at Golden Crown Guesthouse at Tsim Sha Tsui so we got out at the 13th stop. Landmark is the Muslim Mosque.
City to Hong Kong International Airport
From the Golden Crown Court building, we walked to the other side of the road. We looked for the bus stop under the big ROLEX sign. The A21 bus stop is located in front of the entrance to the Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion. We lined up and in a few minutes, the bus came.
Again, we tapped our Octopus card and was charged HKD 33. We put our luggages on the luggage racks in front and found a seat near them. The bus ride to the airport is very smooth because there's practically no traffic. The bus only stopped when the red traffic light is on. How efficient! By the way, we don't need to count to 13th stop because the airport is the first and last stop of the A21 bus.
We got out of the bus in front of Hong Kong International Airport's Terminal 1 Building. This is where the check-in counter of Cebu Pacific is found. We found Aisle D where the Cebu Pacific counter is located right in front of the entrance to the Terminal 1 building.
Checking in at Hong Kong International Airport is quick because we're quite early for our flight. After that, we passed through an X-ray machine inspection. Then we headed to the Immigration counters. We filled out our Departure cards before lining up. The lines are quite long but we were lucky to be accommodated quickly by a newly opened counter. The immigration officer did not ask anything. They just typed our information on their computer and put a stamp on our passport.
After that, we looked for the large TV monitors to find our boarding gate number since our boarding passes didn't have our boarding gate number in it. We're boarding at Gate #48.
The signs to the boarding gates are everywhere. On our way to Gate #48, we were again led to the Automated People Mover. We followed the signs to Gate #48 which is located at the very far end of the terminal. We had to use the walkalators to reach it.
At exactly 7:30 in the evening, we boarded the plane bound for Manila.
Hope this helps!
It was almost a week since we left for Hong Kong and I can absolutely say that Hong Kong International Airport is very tourist-friendly. We just walked and walked, followed the signs and got out hassle-free. Everything was a smooth process. So from experience, I will list down the important procedures upon touch down at Hong Kong International Airport.
Hong Kong International Airport to City
We rode Cebu Pacific Flight 5J 110 which left Manila at exactly 7:55am. We arrived at Hong Kong International Airport in 2 hours. We deplaned and walk towards the Immigration counters. The immigration counter was our first destination.
The best way not to get lost is to follow where everyone goes. Most likely, they are heading to the Immigration counters. In any case, there are always plenty of signs inside the airport.
The signs to the Immigration led us to the Automatic People Mover (train). The train regularly transfers passengers from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 and vice-versa.
Automated People Mover
Following the directions, we easily saw the immigration counters. We lined up and waited for our turn. The immigration officer asked for our travel documents (passport and arrival card). By the way, the cabin crew of Cebu Pacific distributed the arrival cards while on board the plane. Also, I think Hong Kong immigration officers are more friendly than the immigration officers in the Philippines. They give out smiles to the tourists.
After clearing with the immigration, we exited to the door behind them. You can get your check-in luggages from the luggage counter announced by the cabin crew. In our case, we don't have check-in luggage so we didn't have to go through this process.
We saw the exit door that says "Nothing to Declare" and went out. Along the way, we saw the Airport Express counters where we bought Octopus cards. You can also buy single journey tickets here. Then we looked for signs that say Buses to City since we'll be taking the A21 bus to the city. For those who are planning on taking the Airport Express, I won't be much of a help here. Sorry.
Outside the airport, there are designated stops for the different buses. We looked for the A21 bus sign and lined up. Almost all people here are Filipinos. It didn't feel much like a foreign country because you'll hear people speaking Tagalog all the time. The weather was the only thing that spelled the difference, or maybe the buses.
The A21 bus came in in a little while. We tapped our Octopus cards on the machine beside the driver's seat. Remember: you only tap once. Always remember to either buy single journey tickets or even Octopus cards. Don't pay large bills because the driver will not give you change. If you're paying cash, be sure you pay an exact amount. The fare for the A21 bus from the airport to the city is HKD 33.
One important note. Know your bus stop. In our case, we stayed at Golden Crown Guesthouse at Tsim Sha Tsui so we got out at the 13th stop. Landmark is the Muslim Mosque.
City to Hong Kong International Airport
From the Golden Crown Court building, we walked to the other side of the road. We looked for the bus stop under the big ROLEX sign. The A21 bus stop is located in front of the entrance to the Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion. We lined up and in a few minutes, the bus came.
Again, we tapped our Octopus card and was charged HKD 33. We put our luggages on the luggage racks in front and found a seat near them. The bus ride to the airport is very smooth because there's practically no traffic. The bus only stopped when the red traffic light is on. How efficient! By the way, we don't need to count to 13th stop because the airport is the first and last stop of the A21 bus.
We got out of the bus in front of Hong Kong International Airport's Terminal 1 Building. This is where the check-in counter of Cebu Pacific is found. We found Aisle D where the Cebu Pacific counter is located right in front of the entrance to the Terminal 1 building.
Checking in at Hong Kong International Airport is quick because we're quite early for our flight. After that, we passed through an X-ray machine inspection. Then we headed to the Immigration counters. We filled out our Departure cards before lining up. The lines are quite long but we were lucky to be accommodated quickly by a newly opened counter. The immigration officer did not ask anything. They just typed our information on their computer and put a stamp on our passport.
After that, we looked for the large TV monitors to find our boarding gate number since our boarding passes didn't have our boarding gate number in it. We're boarding at Gate #48.
The signs to the boarding gates are everywhere. On our way to Gate #48, we were again led to the Automated People Mover. We followed the signs to Gate #48 which is located at the very far end of the terminal. We had to use the walkalators to reach it.
At exactly 7:30 in the evening, we boarded the plane bound for Manila.
Hope this helps!
Categories:
Hong Kong
I remember my first out of the country trip in Hong Kong through your post. :) I agree that their airport is very nice. We had time to explore it on our flight back home and it was like a mall! :D
ReplyDelete@karla: true! it was very huge. I just hope I can come back again to check out the shops. :-)
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