Quick layover in Hong Kong: Eat, eat, eat and shop!

On the flight I booked to Sri Lanka this spring, the layover happened to be in Hong Kong. Although I had already visited Hong Kong a few years ago, I thought why not stretch the stop a little longer for a full eat-and-shop session. So we ended up staying two days and enjoyed the stay very much. Here are a few spots I recommend not to miss if you have a few hours to spare in HK.

Eating

Din Tai Fung (Hong Kong, Tsim Sha Tsui, L4,FoodLoft,Mira Place One,132 Nathan Road Shop 407)

Tasty Xiao Long Bao, spicy marinated cucumber salad, druken chicken

Honeymoon Dessert (G/F, Western Market, 323 Des Voeux Rd Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong)

Serving a large varieties of traditional Chinese and Western desserts. Pictured here: Mango-pomelo, grass jelly and tapioca in coconut milk/ Sticky rice and fresh durian in vanilla shaved ice

Top Grade Hotpot (5-11 Tsing Fung St, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong)

Too excited and forgot to take more pictures, but razor clams are the freshest I’ve ever tasted. Also recommend the handmade cuttlefish balls, high grade beef slices in their tasty tomato-beef soup base.

Hong Lin Cha Chang Teng (Hong Kong, Mong Kok, Tung Choi St, 143-145號號地下)

Flaky melt-in-your-mouth egg tarts (best just out of the oven), buttery pineapple bun and creamy HK style milk tea for breakfast

Accommodation

Auberge Discovery Bay (88 Siena Avenue, Discovery Bay, Lantau Island, Hong Kong)

Located a 20 min taxi ride or bus ride away from the HKG airport, this is a comfortable accommodation for those on a very short layover and want to stay close to the airport. We booked this once because the hotels on the airport premises were more than double the price!

Auberge Discovery Bay is a waterfront hotel and has very large rooms by Hong Kong standards with well-maintained facilities. The rooms are stylish and clean. The view on the beach and mountains are also very pretty (we were upgraded to a corner room).

Love the brightness of the room. The view is not bad either!

Little square a block away from hotel with coffeeshops, convenience stores and restaurants

Page 148 (148 Austin Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong)

Alternatively, for stay closer to town, Page148 is a newly opened hipster hotel in Kowloon. It is less than 10 min walk away from either Jordan or Tsim Sha Tshui MTR, making accessible all the spots you want to visit. The neighbourhood is safe, lively without being too noisy, even in the evening.

I love trying out new hotels because cleanliness is never a problem and the staff is always more than courteous. Sometimes lack of experience can make the check-in process more arduous but it wasn’t the case for Page148. The process took less than 5 minutes and we were also given a portable internet pod free of charge for the duration of our stay. Although the speed of the connection was frustrating sometimes, it was still very convenient to have it to research reviews on the multiple eating joints we wanted to sample.