Hong Kong travel info

Pay a few Hong Kong dollars at the Tsim Sha Tsui pier, take a wooden bench on the Star Ferry's upper deck, and from the moment the boat lurches off, the whole city is laid out in front of you. Across the water, IFC and the Bank of China Tower lead a wall of towers that climbs halfway up the mountain, with the green ridge of Victoria Peak behind. The sea breeze carries a hint of diesel, and you're at Central pier in under ten minutes.

Step off and a double-decker tram rattles past, ringing its bell. In a cha chaan teng you'll be squeezed in at a stranger's table to eat a pineapple bun with a slab of cold butter and a strong milk tea; lunch is glossy roast goose over rice, dinner a stack of steaming bamboo baskets of dim sum. Sheung Wan's lanes are lined with dried abalone and fish-maw shops, and on Mong Kok's streets, curry fish balls scent the air under the neon.

The Airport Express gets you to the middle of Hong Kong Island in 24 minutes, one Octopus card covers the metro, buses, ferries and convenience stores, and on the MTR you can simply tap the credit card you already carry. After dark, head to the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront. Watching the island's towers light up across the harbour never gets old, and you'll take the photo again anyway.

Hong Kong International Airport (Chek Lap Kok) (HKG)