Northeast Asia: Round-the-World Travel Destinations

Budget Scale: 1-5

1-least expensive; 5-most expensive
3.5– Hong Kong can be extremely expensive, but if you can find and book cheaper accommodations and eat fast food from the street, you can get by on a smaller budget. But it’s also easy to blow it up and spend as much as you would in New York or Tokyo.

Indie Travel Scale: 1-5

1-not a good Indie Travel destination; 5-a great Indie Travel destination
4– Just going to a place like Hong Kong can be quite the indie travel experience. Wandering around its streets and markets is an assault on the senses that you don’t find in many other places in the world.

Indie Travel Tips

• Wander around the city streets and check out the mix of west and Asian cultures. It’s quite the dichotomy.
• Take a boat ride on the harbor to check out the breathtaking views of the city with mountains in the background.
• Take a tram to the top of the mountain to get an equally spectacular view.
• If you enjoy pure chaos in the form of a city, then head to Kowloon, the peninsula to the north of Hong Kong Island. It’s one of the most densely populated areas in the world and has a multitude of places to sleep, eat, and shop.
• Head to the New Territories just north of Kowloon. You can actually get away from the crowds and into a little bit of nature.
• Go to Lantau and check out some great beaches (along with Disneyland).
• Pick up an Octopus Card for all your transport needs (they can also be used in many convenience stores, vending machines, and even chain restaurants (though eating at a McDonald’s while in Hong Kong should be considered a crime.
• If you’re a foodie, there’s no shortage of culinary tours to take.
• For an interesting cultural experience, check out horse racing from September to June. You can go to either Shatin in the New Territories or Happy Valley.

Why you should add to your RTW travel list

• The gateway to China, but explore HK good first
• Floating restaurant, Big Buddha, dragon boat races – and that’s after the good stuff
• Wander bustling streets, check the latest gadgets and eat noodles at a street vendor
• Make friends with 6 million locals
• See how the world’s most free-wheeling economy deals with being communist?
• Take your pick: Cantonese food, moonlight horse races, ancient templates, relentless nightlife…
• Make a pit stop in Hong Kong to recharge your traveling batteries. It makes for a great stopover on RTW flights.

Why you should not add to your RTW travel list

• Hong Kong can be completely overwhelming if you’re not into big cities.
• While Hong Kong can be done on a budget, spending can also spiral out of control pretty quickly.

Are you heading to Hong Kong? What do you need to do?

• Buy an international plane ticket to/from Hong Kong
• Book a Hong Kong hostel
• Book a Hong Kong hotel
• Talk to travelers on the Asia message boards
• Read travel articles on Hong Kong

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