Hong Kong trip – Prologue

I'll be going to Hong Kong and Macau again. This time, I'll be going with my mom as my mom has not been abroad before other than Malaysia and Batam. My sis will not be joining us as she want to reserve her leave for her exams. I booked the airtix early in Dec when there was promotion and since I quitted my job in Feb so I do not have to worry about my leave. The Jetstar return tix inclusive of tax cost S$289. The airtix I booked are normally cheap cos I booked early.

I plan a day trip to Macau and will be staying for a night in Shenzhen while the rest of the days will be in HK. Below is my tentative itinerary:

Day 1 - Tsim Sha Tsui, Star Ferry, The Peak

Day 2 - Macau

Day 3 - Disneyland

Day 4 - Ngong Ping 360, Giant Buddha, A Symphony of Lights

Day 5 - Shenzhen

Day 6 - Shenzhen

Day 7 - Wong Tai Sin, Chi Lin Nunnery

Since I have been to Hong Kong and Macau before, planning is a breeze for me. I did quite a bit of research on Shenzhen from the Tripadvisor Shenzhen forum: http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g297415-i7681-Shenzhen_Guangdong.html and wikipedia: http://wikitravel.org/en/Shenzhen

I booked 5 nights of accomodation with Ah Shan Hostel (Website: http://home.netvigator.com/~dragoninn/ENG/www.dragoninnhk.com/eng/index.html) as it is located at Mong Kong Sincere House which is quite accessible. Initially I wanted to book with Dragon Hostel which I had research on the internet but they didn't reply my email. When they finally replied me that there is no available room on the days I wanted. I booked a twin ensuite bedroom with Ah Shan Hostel.. It cost HK$278 which is among the cheapest I can find. There is a 10% deposit to be paid online when booking.

For Shenzhen accomodation, I booked with Shenzhen Guest House 深圳迎宾馆 (Website: http://www.shenzhenguesthouse.com/) which is located at LaoJie. I choose this hotel cos LaoJie is the shopping paradise in Shenzhen. A twin bed accomodation cost RMB298 per night and a 10% deposit to be paid online when booking.

The purpose of this trip is mainly sight seeing of the places of interest in Hong Kong since this is my mom first visit to Hong Kong, visiting casino and St Paul ruins in Macau, eat Pork Chop bun and egg tarts in Macau and visiting Shenzhen since I had not been there before.

My budget for spending in HK & Macau is S$750:
- Accommodation $280
- Transport & Admission fees $250
- Meals $150
- Shopping $200 

Budget for Shenzhen is S$400:
- Accommodation $30
- Transport & Admission fees $70 
- Meals $50
- Shopping $250

>> Day 1: 8 Mar 09