Seeing as it's lashing it down and no sightseeing can be done, it's time for the first of LostInHK's practical guides - how to get around town on the MTR.
The MTR is the city's underground system, as is good to get you around the northern side of Hong Kong Island (Central, Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, etc), most of Kowloon, as far as Tung Chung on Lantau, plus out into the New Territories.
If you're making a trip out to this latter area the MTR is a great way to travel. A lot of the lines are new, it's quick and it's dirt cheap - for the price of just a couple of GBP or USD you can get from Hong Kong Island right out to towns and villages up near the border with China.
The main problem with the MTR however is the stations are quite spread out, and sometimes not in the centre of a given place. The stations are also vast and sprawling. However, their location is signposted all over town, and you just need to look for the symbol shown on the right here.
As a tourist you have a number of options when it comes to tickets:
1) Get a day pass - this will cost you $55 and gives you 24 hours unlimited travel on the MTR from the minute you first use it. If you want to be gadding about Kowloon or the New Territories one day this is well worth it, but not such a good bet for a day out knocking around HK Island. A child day pass costs $25.
2) Airport Express Pass - this will cost either $220 or $300 depending on whether you buy a card with one or two journeys on the Airport Express train (well worth it as a one-way trip on this is $100 anyway, and it is probably the best way to travel to and from the airport). As well as these two trips you then also get three days unlimited travel on the MTR.
3) Get an Octopus Card - this is what the locals use, it's a top-up card which you can use on pretty much any form of transport around Hong Kong (MTR, bus, tram, light rail). It costs $150, $100 of which is credit for transport and the other $50 you usually get back when you return the card in fully-working condition. However, if you return it within three months of buying it there's a $7 fee, so you still get $43 back. This card you just top up when you need to and you get discounted rates on the MTR. It saves having to scramble for change and can just be swiped on all the forms of transport mentioned. To top it up, either go to the machines in the MTR, insert it, then insert multiples of $50 or $100, or go to a Customer Service station in the MTR or even a 7Eleven store! Another good thing about this card is it can be used to pay for things other than transport. You can use it to pay in places like 7Elevens, bakeries, some restaurants, McDonald's, Cafe de Coral, etc, which comes in quite useful when you want that sneaky McDos strawberry milkshake! Also if you use Octopus there are machines dotted around town where you can swipe your card and get further discounts from certain stations. There's one for Wan Chai in the Causeway Centre near the ferry pier (at the top of some escalators near to the "Al Dente" restaurant) and one for Central and Sheung Wan on the mid-levels escalator. It is LostInHK's mission to find more, and we'll post a more in depth report at a later date.
These three items can be bought in the airport or at MTR stations - just go to the Customer Service Desk - while the first two can be bought online here: http://www.mtr.com.hk/eng/oticketing/intro.html.
If you pay for the trip on an individual basis it will cost a lot more and can be a real pain. There are ticket machines in the stations which take notes and coins and will often give change. You have to select your destination, pay the fare, then get a ticket which you need to enter the paid area of the station and will need again to get out at the other end. The price of a trip changes depending on the distance.
Trains run from around 6am to midnight, but it changes depending on the station so be sure to check.
One more thing...all the stations have all manner of cafes and shops selling food and drink in them (some even have designer stores, but that's another matter) but eating and drinking on the trains and in the paid part of stations is forbidden. You may see locals doing it, but don't copy them! There can be an on-the-spot fine of anything up to $2000 dollars!
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