Is it worth stopping over in Hong Kong?

Sharing is caring!

Breaking up long haul travel with stop overs

Stopping over in Hong Kong when flying from the UK is a valid option to far flung destinations.

Please understand my trip to Hong Kong was back in November 2013 long before the recent issues with China. This piece was written back in 2019 and edited in 2024. I’m sharing it today as I feel it still has some valid information however obviously looking in at Hong Kong now from the UK it is an unknown quantity how much has changed.

Whilst, after visiting the first time, I always thought I would return I am now unsure. Both human and animal rights are incredibly important to me and I would never put my own pleasure above the pain of others. Thank you.

Is a stop over in Hong Kong, and a trip to Disneyland, a good option when flying to New Zealand?

Are you considering visiting Hong Kong and Hong Kong Disneyland? Perhaps you are flying long haul to New Zealand, Australia or elsewhere and considering your options? Maybe you are thinking about whether its worth the flight just to get your Disney fix?! 

I personally loved the experience of visiting Hong Kong as well as Hong Kong Disneyland as it is such an experience. A blend of east meets west, old meets new, Disney meets China. 

Hong Kong Basics

Hong Kong was once a small area of fishing villages but is now one of the most densely populated area in the world.

For part of its history it was a under British Rule before being handed back to the Peoples Republic of China in 1997; although many of its inhabitants still see it as a separate state and, during our visit at least, separate visa rules applied to UK visitors to Hong Kong and mainland China.

At one point the UK was seen as high risk area with relation Covid 19 so only returning Hong Kong nationals were able to enter. There is still unrest and protests in the city. Be sure to keep an eye on the Gov website if you want to visit.

Stopping over in Hong Kong. When is it an option when flying from the UK?

Hong Kong is a around a 11-12 hour flight from London. It is a stop over option if you are flying with Air New Zealand to New Zealand or to Australia. This leads to a slightly shorter flight on to New Zealand as well, of just under 11 hours!

When we visited New Zealand in 2013 we chose to spend a couple of days stopping over in Hong Kong. We spent a couple of days Hong Kong on the mainland, visiting Hong Kong island and visiting Hong Kong Disneyland whilst there.

If you can, when flying long haul, I always recommend spending a couple of days in the stopover country. For one you get two trips for the same flight. Secondly I think it makes long flights more bearable than a layover in an airport.

There are lots of things to do in Hong Kong for a wide range of interests. 

What to do in Hong Kong?

We had a couple of days stopping over in Hong Kong. Whilst we could of spent longer this still gave us plenty of times to see the sights without getting too fatigued.

Whilst we were there we visited many shopping areas, we took the tram to the top of The Peak to enjoy beautiful panoramic views (we also had our favourite meal up here). We also visited lots of the garden parks on both the island and the mainland which really shows the contrast of wealth in such a small area.

Shopping

There are plenty of shopping opportunities, as you would expect. From cheap markets to the cutting edge selling everything from technology to different foods to unique skin treatments (think snail, snake and bees) to Jade and other traditional items. Places to check out for these include Ladies Market, Temple Market, the Jade Market and even The Peak.

Architecture

Immersing yourself in the high rise office buildings and outside escalators of Hong Kong Island makes for an amazing contrast with Old Town and the neon lights of West Kowloon all accessible via boat, taxi or train.

Food

Another way to immerse yourself in the culture on a quick stopover is to try lots of traditional food something Kowloon provides great opportunities for.

We personally struggled with finding options as lots of foods contained pork including the “vegetarian” options, and frogs legs do not appeal to us!

Nature

For a sense of nature in the big city there are multiple gardens on both sides of the river.

Personally we loved the ones over on Hong Kong Island. But you will often find a moment of tranquillity tucked down an unsuspecting street in Kowloon.

A great place to visit to admire the combination of natural beauty and human created is “The Big Buddha” which you access via cable car over on Lantau Island. We didn’t have the chance to visit this but next time!

A visit to Hong Kong Disneyland is also a big draw!

If you are after even more reasons to visit check out my top 5 here.

Hong Kong Disneyland

We, of course, also spent a day in Disneyland taking the Disney train, complete with Mickey windows, from the city centre.

It has just the one park at the moment. A traditional Disney park with an Asian twist so you can do it mostly in one day.

It is very clever what they achieve here and you can really feel the Chinese influence. The parade was amazing, full of great dancers and acrobatics, as were the shows. There is a whole mystical Chinese themed land with mysterious house and gardens designed for photographs!

The food and snacks here were great, once we found things that didn’t contain pork which as vegetarians we had issues with everywhere in Hong Kong.

There were even references to the Chinese obsession with blonde hair including great big plastic wigs on the parade performers and Tinkerbell everywhere. Whilst in the park I had several people asking to take photos with me which was an experience-but a lot more polite than the people on the street on the main land who pulled/cut my hair as I walked past.

As you would expect there are lots of great souvenirs to buy which were fun to look at and the Chinese area-Mystic Point-was truly unique but when we went there wasn’t tons to do and it was quite small. However we didn’t get a chance to ride the Mystic Manor, something I regret, so we are keen to return and I feel (especially since opening Shanghai park) that there has been an increase in interest and activity at the park that will hopefully lead to some exciting expansions!

Currently as it stands from my visit I would rate it as the third best resort behind Florida and California respectively.

So in summary is it worth stopping over in Hong Kong?

Disneyland and Hong Kong are well worth a visit if you have the opportunity. With a 3 day stopover, you can really get a feel for the place or explore more if you have longer. A stopover is also a great idea if you don’t cope well in humidity as this whole area can be quite hot, humid and oppressive.

Whether I would take a risk with stopping over in Hong Kong right now, I’m not sure about truthfully. But all I can do is hope for a better future.