3 Day – Hong Kong and Macau Itinerary (Part 1)
Welcome to another itinerary of mine. This time around, we will be covering Hong Kong and Macau on a super packed itinerary that is perfect for that short getaway. Why such a tight itinerary you may ask. Costs, costs and costs. Hong Kong is a costly destination where a decent sized hotel will set you back by S$100-150 per night. Of course, if money is no issue, feel free to stretch it out over a few more days and cover more attractions. But for the cash strapped, this is one way to maximise your trip to Hong Kong and Macau and get the best bang for your buck.
Hong Kong Itinerary Planning
In order for this to work, your itinerary should ideally be three full days long and should exclude travelling time into and out of Hong Kong. This can be done by flying red eye flights into and out of Hong Kong. For those flying from Singapore, consider flying Cathay Pacific’s 1:20 AM – 5:10 AM flight from Singapore and 1:45 AM – 5:30 AM flight from Hong Kong. If flying from other destinations, do check out ITA matrix to see what flights fit such a schedule.
Okay, assuming flights have been settled, the next most pressing item on the agenda would be your accommodations. My suggestion is for you to pick accommodations close to either Hong Kong Macau ferry terminal (in Sheung Wan) or China Ferry Terminal (Tsim Sha Tsui/Austin). This will not only help facilitate travelling when headed to Macau but also but you somewhere central conducive for sightseeing. I stayed in Ramada Hong Kong Harbour View during my last trip which is just 1 MTR stop/ 3 tram stops away from Hong Kong Macau ferry terminal and just 2 MTR stops away from Central Station.
Macau or Hong Kong first?
The answer depends on your arrival day. If you are visiting on weekdays, it shouldn’t matter. However, if you are timing it to be close to a public holiday or a weekend, my suggestion is you should time Macau to be on a weekday. One, it would be easier to get ferry tickets.; during peak periods you might have to wait an hour or two to catch the next available ferry. Two, from my experience, it may be a nightmarish experience in Macau with long queues at the customs and also free shuttle bus queues if you visit on a weekend.
For my last trip, I timed it on my very first day (i.e. Thursday) to avoid the Good Friday holiday and the weekend.
Getting from HKIA to Macau
Ordinarily, I would advise you to just travel directly via ferry from HKIA and so avoid going through HK customs twice. However, as we are travelling on a red eye flight, we will arrive too early to catch the first ferry at around 11am. Instead you will have to go through customs. You have two options thereafter. You can either go via the new land bridge connecting HK to Macau or by ferry.
Either way, the bus to take will be A11. If by land bridge, you get off at the Port (the very next stop). If by ferry, you can drop off at Hong Kong Macau ferry terminal (about 40 mins bus ride away). While it may be faster to go via the Airport Express to Hong Kong Station, it will be costlier and you still have to lug your luggage all the way over to Sheung Wan. We went with the ferry option for two main reasons. One, this route is more established. Two, as the terminal is close to my hotel, I can easily drop off our luggage there for free. It is quite costly depositing your luggage at the ferry terminal’s left luggage facility (at 30HKD per hour per luggage).
For the record, we managed to board the 9.15am ferry from Hong Kong Macau ferry terminal and hit the ground running in Macau at 10.15am (i.e. around 3+ hours to clear customs, wait for A11 bus, travel to Sheung Wan before leaving our luggage at the hotel and returning back to the terminal to purchase our tickets).
1 Day Macau (Food) Itinerary
Once you cleared customs at the Macau Outer Ferry terminal, look out for the signage directing you to the shuttle buses to the many different casinos in Macau. Yes, transport around Macau can be usually done for free.
For the gamblers, pick whichever you want to gamble at. For the ordinary folks like us, I suggest Hotel Lisboa’s shuttle or Wynn Macau’s shuttle. These hotels are located close to the historic town center and their shuttles make for the perfect mode of transport.
Largo do Senado Area
Getting off at the hotel, make your way to Largo do Senado. Make sure to make a foodie stop at Margaret’s Café e Nata for their Portugese Egg Tart (open daily except Wednesday). You will see a prominent sign while walking towards Largo do Senado.
We did a pit stop at Wong Chi Kei for their bamboo made wanton noodles. An item on the menu that is worth a mention would be their Crab Congee. Their shrimp roe noodles are decent but somehow lacking maybe for want of any gravy or sauce.
If St Dominic’s Church is open, feel free to go in for a look. Entrance is free.
Now this is the tough part. Depending on how full you are after Wong Chi Kei, you can either continue with the sightseeing and allow your stomach a rest or head over to 義順鮮奶 (just across from the Church, you will see a neon sign with that same name) for a steamed milk/egg dessert. I suggest going for the steamed milk unless you really like eggs.
Follow the signs towards the Ruins of St Paul’s. Feel free to jump into the many pastry shops along the way for free samples. Leave any shopping towards the end to avoid lugging it around. When at St Paul’s do note that there is a hidden basement chamber to the rear that leads to a mini museum and a crypt. Entrance is free.
If your legs are still holding, consider popping by to the Monte Fort just beside the Ruins. It offers decent sights of the city.
Head back towards St Dominic’s Church and follow the signs to the Cathedral of Macau and Casa de Lou Lau. Both are free to enter. Casa de Lou Lau or Lou Lau Mansion was built around 1889 and belonged to a wealthy local merchant. It offers visitors an opportunity to see a typical Chinese style courtyard house that incorporates elements of traditional Chinese architecture and decorative plasterwork.
I hope by now your stomach is well rested for we have yet another food item to check off our list: Beef Offal. For those who do not eat offal, no worries as the stalls along Tv. da Se offer the option of non-offal type comfort food like meatballs, fishballs and mushrooms that go equally well with their awesome curry gravy. While others may recommend 恆友魚蛋 (i.e. the stall closest towards R. da Palha), I personally feel that there is not much difference between the stalls there. So unless you are the purest of foodies, I suggest just going for any stall and avoid waiting.
The Venetian and Wynn Palace
With your stomach again full, its time to leave the Largo do Senado area. You have two options. One, you can either take a taxi to our next main destination The Venetian or you can take the free option – Shuttle Buses. For us, we decided to go the cheap route.
This cheapness has its own pros and cons.
Cons: There are not many buses going in between casinos (which casino owner would want to “deliver” customers to their rivals, right?). So, any travel to The Venetian would likely require transits either at the Ferry Terminal or some walking. If you have no interest in exploring Macau any further, just take a shuttle from Hotel Lisboa or Wynn Macau or any nearby casinos back to the ferry terminal before swapping for a Venetian shuttle bus.
Pros: However, if you still wish to explore, consider doing this alternative: take the shuttle from Wynn Macau to Wynn Palace. This gives you a chance to actually walk the “strip” (sort of). From the Wynn Palace make your way to The Venetian (approx. 18-20 mins walk). Feel free to make detours to visit the different Casinos. Plenty to see along the way:
Once at The Venetian, explore the Canals and the many shops there. Do visit Lord Stow’s for his egg tarts. We felt that the tarts there were the best. Try to grab a table by the canal while munching down your egg tart and maybe you will be entertained by the Gondoliers who may decide to sing or play a musical instrument or two:
You can finish the day by visiting the food court (if your budget is slightly limited) or visit a restaurant for dinner. Both are okay options and offer a wide variety of food choices. I decided to splurge and go for Siu Mei at the food court (really juicy and rich):
Going back to Hong Kong from Macau
Free shuttle buses! Thou shall not pay a dime to travel in Macau! Once you get back to the Outer Ferry Terminal, depending on your hotel location, purchase the tickets for Kowloon or for Hong Kong Island. Keep an eye out for the standby queues of earlier ferries. If the queues are short and there are available seats, you may be able to catch an earlier ferry.
Okay that is all for now. Part 2 on Hong Kong will be coming right up. �