Getting Around
The best public transport system in the world. Learn it in a week.
You will not need a car, a bicycle, or a driving licence. Around 90% of daily journeys in Hong Kong are made on public transport, the highest share of any city on earth, and the whole network runs on one card in your pocket.
The network
| Mode | Use it for | Fare with Octopus |
|---|---|---|
| MTR (Mass Transit Railway) | The spine of the city. Fast, air-conditioned, punctual to the minute, and covers everywhere you routinely need to be | HK$4.50–26 per trip · half with Student Octopus |
| Bus (KMB, Citybus) | Where the MTR does not reach, and cross-harbour routes. Sit upstairs at the front once, as a treat | HK$4–25, distance-based |
| Tram ('ding ding') | Hong Kong Island's north shore only. Slow, 120 years old, open windows, and the best HK$3.20 you will ever spend | HK$3.20 flat, any distance |
| Green minibus | Fixed routes into residential areas and up hills the big buses cannot climb. Fixed stops | HK$4–23 |
| Red minibus | No fixed timetable, semi-flexible stops. You shout to get off. Runs all night on key routes | HK$5–25, cash or Octopus |
| Star Ferry | Tsim Sha Tsui to Central or Wan Chai. A 9-minute crossing and the finest cheap view in Asia | HK$3.70–5.60 |
| Outlying island ferries | Lamma, Cheung Chau, Peng Chau, Mui Wo, Discovery Bay. Weekend escapes | HK$14–40 each way |
| Taxi | Late nights, heavy luggage, or 3–4 people splitting. Red = urban, green = New Territories, blue = Lantau | Flag HK$29, then ~HK$2 per 200 m |
| Peak Tram / cable cars | Victoria Peak and Ngong Ping. Tourist infrastructure, but worth doing once | HK$62–88 · HK$235 return |
How to use the MTR
- 1Tap in
Touch your Octopus to the reader on the gate. It beeps and shows your remaining balance. No ticket, no zones to work out.
- 2Find your platform
Follow the coloured line signs. Every platform tells you the terminus station, not the direction, so learn the two ends of your line.
- 3Stand behind the doors
Platform screen doors mean you queue at the marked arrows and let people off first. Trains come every 2–5 minutes; there is no reason to push.
- 4Watch the exit letters
Big stations have exits A through F with numbered sub-exits. Picking the right exit saves 10 minutes of walking underground. The MTR Mobile app maps every one.
- 5Tap out
The gate deducts your distance-based fare on the way out. Forget to tap out and you are charged the maximum fare for that line.
No eating or drinking anywhere inside the paid area, including water. The fine is HK$2,000 and staff do enforce it. Stand on the right of escalators and let people walk past on the left. Priority seats go to the elderly, pregnant passengers and anyone with a disability, without being asked. Keep phone calls short and quiet. Let passengers off before you board.
Peak, off-peak, and what it costs you
Weekday peaks are 07:30–09:30 and 17:30–19:30. Admiralty, Central, Mong Kok and Kowloon Tong get genuinely crowded, occasionally to the point of waiting for a second train. If your timetable is flexible, a 09:45 lecture is a materially better life than an 08:30 one. The MTR also runs a small early-bird discount before 07:15 on weekdays at selected stations.
Typical monthly transport spend
| Your situation | Monthly cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Living in halls on campus | HK$150–350 | You walk to lectures. This is just weekend trips into town |
| Off-campus, 15 min commute, Student Octopus | HK$250–400 | The half-price fare doing its work |
| Off-campus, 40 min commute, Student Octopus | HK$400–600 | Still cheaper than almost any comparable city |
| Off-campus, same commute, standard Octopus | HK$700–1,000 | This is what not filling in the form costs you |
| Bus-only commuter | HK$400–700 | Buses have no student discount, but MTR Fare Saver kiosks give small rebates |
Getting home at night
- Last MTR trains leave terminals between roughly 00:00 and 01:00, arriving at the far ends by 01:15. Check the exact time for your line in MTR Mobile before a night out, because the last train is earlier than you think.
- Night buses (N-routes) run all night on all major corridors, every 15–30 minutes. Reliable, cheap, and full of people in the same situation as you.
- Red minibuses run 24 hours on popular routes such as Mong Kok–Tsuen Wan and Causeway Bay–Sai Kung. Faster than a night bus, and you tell the driver where to stop.
- Taxis are metered, plentiful and safe at all hours. Add HK$8–25 for a harbour tunnel and HK$6 per large bag. A cross-harbour ride at 3 a.m. runs HK$150–250.
- Apps: HKTaxi and Uber both work well. Uber occupies a legal grey area here but is used constantly by students; HKTaxi hails licensed cabs.
- Safety at night is genuinely not a major concern in Hong Kong, including for women travelling alone. Ordinary urban awareness is enough.
You can go up to HK$50 into negative once. So if you tap in with HK$3 left, the gate will still let you out at the other end. Then top up. This will save your evening at some point in your first month.
Beyond Hong Kong
| Destination | How | Time & cost | Need |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shenzhen | MTR East Rail to Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau, walk across the border | 40–60 min · HK$50–70 + metro | Valid mainland China visa |
| Guangzhou | High-speed rail from West Kowloon | 48 min · from HK$215 | Mainland visa, arrive 45 min early |
| Macau | Ferry from Sheung Wan or TST, or shuttle bus over the HZM Bridge | 60 min · HK$175 · or 45 min · HK$65 | Passport. Most nationalities visa-free |
| Asia generally | Budget carriers from HKIA: HK Express, AirAsia, Scoot, Cebu Pacific | Taipei 1h50 · Bangkok 2h45 · Tokyo 4h30 | Return flights from HK$800–2,500 if booked early |
Note that Octopus does not work on mainland transport. For Shenzhen and Guangzhou you want Alipay or WeChat Pay set up with a working payment method before you cross, because most mainland transport and shops are now effectively cashless.
Hikes, beaches and ferries at Station 10.