Visit Hong Kong with kids.
Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People’s Republic of China.
It is located on the east coast of China. Despite its size it is a very accesssible place to visit, as it is an enormous hub for connecting flight to other countries. We have flown to Hong Kong twice, once for a stop off whilst travelling to Australia, and the other time to New Zealand.
The airport is situated on Lantau airport, which is very useful if you are visiting with your family, as it’s the same island that Hong Hong Disneyland is situated on! This makes Hong Kong even more more of fantastic place to stop off when you decide to visit with kids. Both times we have visited Hong Kong we have stayed on Hong Kong island and Kowloon on the first layover and then stayed at Disneyland on the return leg, great for if you visit with kids.
From the airport when you land, you can take the MTR or a taxi to get to your chosen destination. The taxis have separate queues depending which island you are headed to.
The MTR is pretty good and cheap way of getting round, but with luggage, prams and children it can be quite daunting. The lifts aren’t always easy to access and it’s extremely busy. So for travel to and from the airport I would probably suggest getting a taxi for convenience.
Kong Hong island itself is the main ‘district’ with the financial hub and also a selection of enourmous shopping malls, places to dine at and many other tourist attractions.
The top sights to see with kids are the night time show ‘Symphony of Lights’ which takes place at 8pm nightly. The best view of this is from Kowloon, which is across the river from Hong Kong island. Or if you are staying on Kowloon itself, then a short walk to the waterfront. There are a few ways to travel between the two and probably the most famous and fun for a child is to take the Star Ferry, which is a very short trip across the water. Alternatively take the MTR across.
From the Kowloon side you have the Avenue of Stars. The promenade features handprints and statues of famous Hong Kong film celebrities, similar to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles. Visitors can see imprints of stars such as Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee.
This really is a great view of the free nighttime show which lasts approximately 10-15 minutes. Then take the Star Ferry back across the water. Another great sight on the Kowloon side is the observation deck, providing you and your kids with great views of Hong Kong.
On the Hong Kong island side of the river there is the giant observation wheel, a must do for kids particularly during the evening when all the buildings are lit up.
Moving away from the waterfront and the hustle and bustle of the financial hub. Hong Kong has a few green spaces proving you and your kids some time out. Some of these easy to access places are the Hong Kong Wetland park, and the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical gardens. This is quite a small space but is a nice little area to walk around with fountains, statues of animals to spot for the kids, and also animals, including monkeys, birds, and reptiles.
Finally on Hong Kong island is the world famous Victoria Peak. The steep furnicular ride is a great thrill for kids with huge glass windows providing a wonderful view from all areas. At the top there are a selection of restaurants (with panoramic views) shops, great hikes and even a Madam Tussauds. However there is a high chance that it will be cloudy when you visit and therefore the views may not be all that wonderful. Each time we have attempted it it been impossible to see anything more than a few feet in front of you. For kids though, the funicular ride is definately worth it and the food options are great.
From this initial platform there is the option to carry on up to the highest point the Sky Terrace 428, the highest viewing platform in Hong Kong. This is bookable as a package before you start your journey or available to book once you reach the first stop. We were advised not to head up, as the weather was so foggy it would have been impossible to have seen anything.
Heading further out of the city centre is Ocean park. A wonderful theme park with kid friendly rides and many animal exhibits. These vary from seeing pandas up close and watching the food demonstrations with them, to the arctic exhibits with arctic foxes as well as many more.
Ocean park is accessible on the MTR with only a few stops, and is a really good day out for both young children and teenagers. Probably the highlight is the cable car ride from the main entry area of the park to the upper platform featuring the thrill rides. The views from the open air cable cars are genuinely spectacular giving you 360 views of the sea and beach areas of the islands. The views are fantastic and the cable cars really make this park unique. Especially the upper level (the Summit) with its array of rides which really do make you feel that you are riding a roller coaster off the top of a cliff (which you are really!)
In this area, the hotels close to Ocean Park are far more spacious than the ones in the city centre. We really struggled to find ones that had more than one double bed or two singles even though we searched for a family of three. The basic rooms are tiny. So unless you upgrade to a bigger one a it can be difficult to find one with enough beds to suit the whole family. So just be aware when booking your room to ensure there is enough space. We stayed at Eco Tree Hotel which was larger than the average sized hotel room in Hong Kong and had a separate single bed for Teddy and a double for us. https://booking.tp.st/mbNRYL9E
For the second part of our trip in Hong Kong we went straight to Disney from the airport. We got a taxi again as we had mountains of luggage. With it being on the same island as the airport, the taxi was much cheaper and a lot quicker in getting to the desination. We did a Disney package and stayed at the Explorers Lodge. The hotel was fantastic, on the same level as a Walt Disney Resort deluxe hotel and very similar to the Wilderness Lodge. www.hongkongdisneyland.com
The hotel was closely situated to the park, about a 15 minute walk, or there are shuttle buses available. The food wasn’t wonderful, there was one quick service restaurant, but with a very limited option and only one shop to buy any snacks. I would recommend going to the Starbucks in Disneyland the night before and grabbing some muffins and snacks for a quick breakfast the next morning unless you want a full cooked breakfast which is available at the other two restaurants.
There are no other shops or restaurants anywhere in the vicinity, including the MTR station.
One benefit to staying at one of the three Disneyland hotels is there is an option to pay for early morning entry, which is an hour before the park opens. This enabled us to do both of the Frozen rides, and many of the Fantasyland rides within the hour and with no queue at any of the rides. Be warned that not all of the lands open at the same time. For example Toy Story didn’t open until well after the main park opening, but it’s worth going to get the extra time when queues are virtually nothing.
The park itself is smaller than the other Disney parks so much quieter. It’s actually a great Disney park to take little ones to. The lines are far shorter than any of the other I have been to (all of them) and it features many of the family favourites and two fantastic lands in Frozen and Toy Story. Great for families of all ages and the food options are pretty good. With a huge variety of different flavours, asian cuisine but also the word famous turkey thighs!
Disneyland has some of the well known shows, such as Mickeys Philarmagic, but also some very different ones to what you may have experienced at other parks. The evening is ended with ‘Harmonious’ the night time fireworks show. This is an excellent show and features some of the less well known Disney films.
Overall Hong Kong Disneyland is a wonderful place with kids and it’s such an easy layover with it being located so closely to the airport.
Hong Kong Island/Kowloon I don’t think are the most child friendly places due to the built up nature of the city (limited open space to roam) and the MTR not being the easiest form of transport when travelling with a pram or even a younger child without one. The small sized hotel rooms mean the price if you wanted a bigger room with more bed can really bump the price up when you visit Hong Kong with kids.
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