I figured I might as well post on our Hongkong getaway before the novelty wears off. We flew back a few days ago and I know if I put off blogging about this travel, I might just end up scratching it off like I did our previous Davao and Bohol trips.
Because I booked this Hongkong trip exactly a year ago, I totally forgot that we failed to have our intended date of coming back, which was originally set on Dec.9. It turned out, the only available date during that time was December 8.
It was only when we have boarded the plane and I was filling out these Hongkong Immigration forms which were handed out by the flight attendant that I saw the e-ticket and it reads December 8. Imagine my dismay! I immediately confessed as I showed the e-ticket to my dear hubby and he solved the problem in an instant. If it were not for December 8 being our official anniversary date, then it would have been okay for us to head back home to Manila. But husband sweetly solved the problem by assuring us that we can head on over to a hotel in Subic where we can extend our 10th anniversary celebration when we arrive DMIA on December 8. How can I not feel so blessed to have such a sweet husband?
My son and I at the plush Hongkong International Airport
Since it was my responsibility to take care of our flights and travel itineraries, I have somehow expected a slight show of disappointment on the husband’s face. He spared me that and instead assured me that this “unexpected” early flight back should not make our 10th anniversary less fun. I knew right there that it was going to be a a lovely 10th anniversary celebration! 😉
This was handed to us before we rode the cab to our hotel.
We took an Urban cab which has a flag down of HK$20. Lantau cab has HK$15 and N.T., HK$16.5. I have learned in our previous travels not to have a lot of dollars exchanged for the local currency at the airport. Exchange rates at the airports are considerably lower than currency changers around town, wherever part of the world you go.
I was right. US$1 to HK$7.08. Compared to the exchange rate we got later that day around the corner of the hotel where we stayed in Kowloon, which was HK$7.60 to a dollar. We learned a few more things along the way.
One is that we could have saved a whole lot of moolah (read: HK$850), had we chosen to take the train and ferry during our first two days of stay in Hongkong. With our 6 year old in tow, we were hesitant to take the mtr and ferries. We thought it would be such inconvenience. We cannot be more wrong.
The mtr system of Hongkong is perfectly mapped out, packed with efficiency in mind that makes it so convenient to go around the city by just taking the train. Even executives use the train. I cannot help but hope that our mrt and lrt will be like that someday. It’s a long shot, I know, but whoever says that we cannot dream and hope, right?
One of the first trains we hopped on from Disneyland
The ferry we took from Kowloon Island to Central Station. The cheapest of all rides, I should say. HK$2/adult and HK$1/child.
Did I mention that we bought our tickets via Cebu Pacific last year when they offered the Piso fare? We only paid around P3,500 for round trip tickets for the three of us. It was a steal, right? I think that will be it for our low fare getaways. Because recently, even with the promos, the bookings we did for our 2012 travels were all pretty pricey. The cheapest of which is P15,000 for our South Korea trip in time for our 11th anniversary.
We also paid the following before we were able to board the plane to Hongkong.
Travel tax: P4,250 (1,620/person, 1,010/child)
Terminal fee: P1,800 (600/person)
Up next, a review of the hotel where we stayed in Kowloon, Hongkong – West Hotel.
