Hong Kong Itinerary
16–19 September 2026 · Rosewood Hong Kong · breakfast included
| Travelers | Scott Lockett (AA #1B1BE58) and Deborah Lockett (AA #851HTM8) |
|---|---|
| Hotel | Rosewood Hong Kong — Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, TST. +852 3891 8888. Breakfast included at Holt’s Café only — all other meals are local / street food. |
| HSR inbound | Wed 16 Sep · G381 · Beijing West 10:00 → Hong Kong West Kowloon 18:12 (8h 12m). Car 15, seats 1A (Scott) / 1C (Deborah), 1st Class. |
| Depart | Sat 19 Sep · AA 8887 operated by Cathay Pacific · HKG 09:25 → ICN 14:05 · then ICN → DFW → TYS |
| PNR / CX | American HCXMBB · Cathay DJ2SEJ |
| Must-do | Big Bus 48-hour Explore Ticket with Peak add-on (activate Thu 17 Sep) + guided Peak / Central half-day Thursday |
| Weather | Hot and humid, highs ~31°C / 88°F. September is peak typhoon month — pack a light rain shell |
Book at home — before you leave Tennessee
- Guided half-day, Thursday 17 Sep, 09:00 start. Book a Peak Tram + Sky Terrace 428 + Tai Kwun / Man Mo / Star Ferry tour with Rosewood Hong Kong pickup at 08:40. Search Klook or Viator for “Tai Kwun and Victoria Peak Half-Day” or a private “Peaks to Piers.” Confirm the voucher names Scott and Deborah Lockett and the hotel address. If the operator will not pick up at Rosewood, meet at the Tsim Sha Tsui Clock Tower at 08:50 (5-minute walk).
- Big Bus Explore Ticket, 48 hours, Peak option. Two adult tickets, first day Thursday 17 Sep. Includes Red + Green + Blue routes, two Star Ferry returns, and one add-on — choose Peak Tram Special Combo + Sky Terrace 428 only if the guided tour does not already include both. Buy at bigbustours.com/en/hong-kong. Download the Big Bus app. Activate at K11 MUSEA (next door) Thursday afternoon.
- M+ Friday morning session. Two adult timed tickets for Fri 18 Sep, 10:00–12:00 session, ~HK$190 each. Buy at mplus.org.hk/en/get-tickets/. Skip the Palace Museum unless you prefer imperial art — you will not do both.
- Cathay / American apps. Save PNR HCXMBB and CX DJ2SEJ. Online check-in opens Friday ~09:25. Screenshot both boarding passes Friday night.
- Saturday breakfast boxes. Call Rosewood +852 3891 8888 now. Holt’s Café weekend breakfast starts at 07:00 — too late. Ask for two boxes delivered to the room at 05:00 and a 05:25 taxi to Kowloon Station.
- Octopus cards + small cash. Buy two Octopus on arrival. Street stalls and cha chaan tengs often want cash (HK$100 notes). Australia Dairy Company is cash only.
- Do not pre-buy a separate Peak Tram ticket, a second Star Ferry pass, or Sky100. Do not book hotel restaurants. Do not book Friday dining that starts after 19:30.
Day 1 · Wednesday 16 September
G381 18:12 · taxi · check-in · Haiphong Road dinnerG381 departs Beijing West
You are already on the train. Car 15, seats 1A and 1C, 1st Class.
Arrive Hong Kong West Kowloon Station
Clear Hong Kong immigration inside the station (allow 15–25 minutes after 18:12). Collect bags. Exit ticket gate 1. Do not walk to the hotel.
Taxi to Rosewood Hong Kong
Official taxi rank outside the station. 2.5 km, 8–12 minutes, about HK$40–60. Tell the driver: Rosewood Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Road, Victoria Dockside, next to K11 MUSEA. Backup only if bags are light: Tuen Ma Line Austin → East Tsim Sha Tsui (one stop, ~HK$5 Octopus) + 6-minute walk.
Check in · confirm Saturday
Standard check-in from 15:00. At the desk: (1) breakfast is on the rate at Holt’s Café; (2) two Saturday boxes at 05:00; (3) 05:25 taxi to Kowloon Station for Airport Express. Do not book a hotel restaurant.
Dinner — Haiphong Road cooked-food bazaar
Walk 8 minutes: west on Salisbury, right on Nathan Road, left on Haiphong Road to No. 30 (under the flyover). Dai pai dong stalls: Tak Fat beef balls, Wah Heung Yuen pork chop, satay beef noodles, milk tea. Cash / Octopus. No reservations. Street-cart backup on Ashley Road: egg waffle, fishballs.
Harbour walk — Avenue of Stars
Exit the hotel onto the promenade. Bruce Lee statue is outside. Clock Tower and Star Ferry TST are a 5-minute walk west on Salisbury Road. Street dessert on the way back: egg waffle or mango sago from a TST cart.
Hotel
Sleep. Set one alarm for 07:00 Thursday. Buy Octopus at the concierge tonight if you skipped the station.
Day 2 · Thursday 17 September
Included breakfast · guided Peak tour · Blue Bus · Temple StreetBreakfast at Holt’s Café, 2/F — included
Opens 06:30 weekdays / 07:00 weekends. Eat a full plate. Pack water, sunscreen, a hat, a compact rain layer, passports, both phones, and HK$ cash for lunch queues. Wear walking shoes.
Transfer to the tour
If the voucher says hotel pickup: be in the Rosewood lobby at 08:35. If it says Clock Tower meet: walk west on Salisbury Road 5 minutes (0.4 km) and be there at 08:50.
GUIDED TOUR — Peak + Central heritage
Peak Tram Lower Terminus, 33 Garden Road (priority lane if the operator provides it) → Sky Terrace 428 → walk Central / Sheung Wan (Man Mo Temple, Tai Kwun) → Star Ferry back to TST or drop in Central. Do not buy a second Peak combo today.
Lunch — cha chaan teng / noodle shop
If the tour ends in Central / Sheung Wan: walk 8–10 minutes to Kau Kee, 21 Gough Street (beef brisket noodles, cash, queue moves fast) or Lan Fong Yuen, 2 Gage Street (silk-stocking milk tea + pork-chop bun; kitchen closes 18:00). If it ends at TST Clock Tower: walk 8 minutes to Haiphong Road bazaar. Then return to the hotel to drop bags.
Activate Big Bus at K11 MUSEA
Walk 2 minutes from the Rosewood driveway to the K11 MUSEA / Donut Playhouse stop on Salisbury Road. Show the Explore Ticket QR. First Blue Route bus after 14:30 is usually :00 or :05 past the hour — confirm in the app.
Big Bus Blue Route — Kowloon loop
Stay on for one full circuit (~80 minutes, hourly 10:00–17:00). Hop off back at K11 / Avenue of Stars. Sit downstairs if the sun or spray is hard.
Hotel — shower, change, rest
Two-minute walk. This is the last easy pause of the day.
Transfer to Temple Street
Taxi from the Rosewood driveway, 8–10 minutes, ~HK$40, to 134 Temple Street (Hing Kee). Backup: East TST MTR → Tuen Ma Line two stops to Jordan, Exit A, 6-minute walk.
Dinner + night market
Eat first at Hing Kee (charcoal claypot rice) or the Woosung Street cooked-food bazaar (Wing Fat seafood, typhoon-shelter crab). Then walk the stalls north toward Yau Ma Tei. Carry cash and an Octopus. No reservations. Australia Dairy Company is closed Thursday — do not go there tonight.
Return to Rosewood
Taxi from Temple Street / Jordan Road, 8–10 minutes. MTR Jordan → East TST if you want the air-conditioning.
Hotel
Lights out by 22:30. Friday starts at 07:15.
Day 3 · Friday 18 September
M+ morning ticket · Star Ferry · Red then Green · packBreakfast at Holt’s Café — included
Tell the desk again: Saturday boxes at 05:00 and a 05:25 taxi to Kowloon Station. Screenshot Cathay check-in if the 24-hour window has opened (it opens ~09:25).
Transfer to M+
Taxi from the driveway, 8–10 minutes, ~HK$45, to M+, 38 Museum Drive. Backup: walk 2 minutes to K11 MUSEA and take the first Blue Bus — only if the app shows a bus before 08:45.
M+ free floors, then 10:00 session
Roof Garden, Found Space and B1/B2 are free and open before the ticketed galleries. Show the 10:00–12:00 timed tickets at 10:00. Two hours is enough.
Transfer back to TST
Taxi 8–10 minutes to Rosewood, or Blue Bus if one is at the M+ stop. Drop any museum shop bags at the hotel.
Lunch — Haiphong Road bazaar
8-minute walk from the hotel. Beef balls, pork-chop rice, milk tea. Be walking toward Star Ferry by 13:15.
Walk + Star Ferry TST → Central Pier 7
5-minute walk west on Salisbury Road to the TST Star Ferry pier. Use a Big Bus Star Ferry coupon. Crossing 8–10 minutes. Upper deck.
Big Bus Red Route — Hong Kong Island
Board at Central Pier 7. Loop ~75 minutes, every 45 minutes, 10:00–17:00. Stay on past the Peak Tram stop unless you still need to redeem the Peak add-on. Hop off back at Pier 7.
Green Route to Stanley — street snacks
Same Pier 7 stop. Ride to Stanley Market (about 40 minutes). 35–40 minutes on the ground: market stalls, egg waffle, fishballs, a cold drink. Not a sit-down lunch. Be on a return Green by 16:20.
Star Ferry Central → TST · walk to hotel
Coupon or Octopus. Two-minute walk from the TST pier to Rosewood.
Shower, pack both suitcases
Lay out Saturday clothes, passports, phones, Octopus, cash, CX/AA apps, liquids bag. Set two alarms for 05:00.
Early dinner — Australia Dairy Company
Taxi 8 minutes to 47 Parkes Street, Jordan. Scrambled eggs, toast, milk tea, milk pudding. Cash only, share tables, no reservations. Open Friday 07:30–22:00 (closed Thursday). Backup: Haiphong Road bazaar again, 8-minute walk.
Lights out
Confirm the 05:25 taxi with the night desk before you sleep.
Day 4 · Saturday 19 September
05:00 boxes · Kowloon Station · HKG 09:25Wake · breakfast boxes in the room
Included breakfast cannot be eaten at Holt’s — weekend service starts 07:00. Eat the boxes. Passports and phones in pockets.
Checkout · taxi to Kowloon Station
Bell desk taxi. 8–12 minutes to Kowloon Airport Express / Elements, under ICC. ~HK$45–60.
Cathay in-town bag drop, then Airport Express
Desks open 06:00, latest 07:55 for this flight. Use DJ2SEJ first. If the codeshare kiosk refuses it, keep the bags and check them at HKG. Better train 06:10–06:20. 22 minutes, ~HK$105 Octopus / HK$115 ticket.
Hong Kong International Airport
Immigration and security. Cathay gates close 15 minutes before departure. Be at the gate by 09:00. Do not shop landside.
AA 8887 / Cathay Pacific departs
HKG 09:25 → ICN 14:05. Then 3h 45m connection ICN → DFW → TYS on HCXMBB.
Directory A · Attractions and tickets
Buy the first four items at home. Everything else can wait until you are in Hong Kong. Place names open Google Maps.
| Place | Address / ticket | Web / phone |
|---|---|---|
| Rosewood Hong Kong | Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Rd, TST. Check-in 15:00 / out 12:00. Breakfast included at Holt’s Café 2/F — no other hotel meals on this plan. | rosewoodhotels.com +852 3891 8888 |
| Hong Kong West Kowloon Station | 3 Austin Road West. G381 arrives 18:12 Wed. Exit ticket gate 1. Taxi rank outside. | highspeed.mtr.com.hk |
| Big Bus Explore 48-hr + Peak | Activate at K11 MUSEA, Salisbury Rd (next to hotel). Red 10:00–17:00 / 45 min. Green 10:30–16:30 / 30 min. Blue 10:00–17:00 / 60 min. | bigbustours.com +852 2167 8995 |
| Guided Peak + Central tour | Book at home for Thu 09:00. Hotel lobby 08:35 or Clock Tower 08:50. Must include Peak Tram + Sky Terrace 428. | klook.com — search “Tai Kwun Victoria Peak” or Viator private Peak pickup |
| Peak Tram Lower Terminus | 33 Garden Road, Central. 07:30–23:00. Redeem Big Bus Peak combo at the Big Bus desk here only if the guided tour did not include it. | thepeak.com.hk +852 2522 0922 |
| Sky Terrace 428 | The Peak Tower. Included on the guided tour or the Big Bus Peak add-on — never buy a third ticket. | thepeak.com.hk |
| M+ Museum | 38 Museum Drive, West Kowloon. Fri 10:00–22:00. Buy 10:00–12:00 timed tickets at home, ~HK$190 adult. Taxi 8–10 min from hotel. | mplus.org.hk/en/get-tickets/ |
| Hong Kong Palace Museum | 8 Museum Drive, West Kowloon. Fri 10:00–20:00. Only if you skip M+. | hkpm.org.hk |
| Star Ferry TST ↔ Central Pier 7 | TST pier on Salisbury Rd, 5-min walk from hotel. 8–10 min crossing. Use Big Bus coupons first. | starferry.com.hk |
| Avenue of Stars / Clock Tower | Salisbury Road promenade. Bruce Lee statue at the hotel door. Clock Tower is the usual tour meeting point. | discoverhongkong.com |
| Man Mo Temple | 124–126 Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan. Free. Thursday guided-tour stop. | Free; no ticket |
| Tai Kwun | 10 Hollywood Road, Central. Free courtyards. Thursday tour stop. | taikwun.hk |
| Stanley Market | Stanley Main St, south Island. Friday Green Route hop-off. Street snacks only, 35–40 minutes on the ground. | discoverhongkong.com |
| Temple Street Night Market | Temple Street, Jordan / Yau Ma Tei. Stalls from ~16:00; best 19:00–21:00. Taxi 8–10 min from hotel. | discoverhongkong.com |
| K11 MUSEA | 18 Salisbury Road. Big Bus Blue stop only on this plan — not a meal stop. | k11musea.com |
| Kowloon Airport Express | Kowloon Station under Elements / ICC. CX in-town 06:00–15:00. Sat taxi from hotel 05:25. | mtr.com.hk · use CX PNR DJ2SEJ |
| Hong Kong International Airport | Chek Lap Kok. AA 8887 / CX, HKG 09:25 → ICN 14:05. Gates close 15 min prior. | hongkongairport.com |
Directory B · Local and street food
Holt’s Café is breakfast only (included). Every other meal is a cha chaan teng, dai pai dong, noodle shop, or stall. Most want cash. No reservations.
| Place | When / address / what to order | Web / phone |
|---|---|---|
| Holt’s Café — breakfast only | Thu + Fri 07:15, included. 2/F Rosewood. Weekday 06:30–10:30; weekend 07:00–11:00 (too late Saturday — use boxes). Do not dine here at lunch or dinner. | rosewoodhotels.com +852 3891 8732 |
| Haiphong Road Cooked Food Bazaar | Wed 19:30 dinner and Fri 12:30 lunch. 30 Haiphong Road, TST — 8-min walk from Rosewood, under the flyover. Tak Fat beef balls, Wah Heung Yuen pork chop, satay beef noodles, milk tea. Cash / Octopus. | discoverhongkong.com — search Haiphong Road |
| Kau Kee Restaurant | Thu 13:10 lunch if the tour ends in Central. G/F, 21 Gough Street, Central. Beef brisket noodles or curry brisket yi-mein. Cash, no reservations, queue. Closed Sunday. | OpenRice “Kau Kee Restaurant” +852 2850 5967 |
| Lan Fong Yuen | Thu lunch alternative in Central. G/F, 2 Gage Street, Central. Silk-stocking milk tea, yuenyeung, pork-chop bun. Kitchen 07:30–18:00; closed Sunday. Cash. | discoverhongkong.com — Lan Fong Yuen +852 2544 3895 |
| Hing Kee Restaurant | Thu 18:40 dinner before the stalls. Shops 12–19, G/F Temple Street, Yau Ma Tei. Charcoal claypot rice (60+ versions) and fried oyster pancake. Open ~13:30–24:00. | No booking site +852 2384 3647 |
| Woosung Street Cooked Food Bazaar | Thu dinner alternative. Woosung Street at Temple Street, Jordan. Wing Fat Seafood: typhoon-shelter crab, salt-and-pepper squid. Cash. Dai pai dong tables. | discoverhongkong.com — Temple Street food |
| Australia Dairy Company | Fri 19:00 early dinner. 47 Parkes Street, Jordan. Scrambled eggs, toast, milk tea, milk pudding. Cash only, share tables. 07:30–22:00. Closed Thursday. | OpenRice / Facebook page +852 2730 1356 |
| Stanley Market stalls | Fri 15:30 snacks only, not a sit-down meal. Stanley Main Street. Egg waffle, fishballs, a cold drink. Be on the Green bus by 16:20. | discoverhongkong.com — Stanley |
| Ashley Road / TST carts | Wed night backup or a walk-back dessert. Ashley Road and the TST promenade. Egg waffle, fishballs, curry fishballs, mango sago. | Street carts — no website |
| Central Market food stalls | Thu lunch overflow if Kau Kee / Lan Fong Yuen queues are long. 80 Des Voeux Road Central, 3 min from Pier 7. Food hall, no booking. | centralmarket.hk |
Transfers in one line
West Kowloon → Rosewood: taxi 8–12 min, HK$40–60. Rosewood → Haiphong Road bazaar: walk 8 min via Nathan. Rosewood → Clock Tower / Star Ferry: walk 5 min west on Salisbury. Rosewood → K11 Big Bus: walk 2 min. Rosewood → M+: taxi 8–10 min, HK$45. Rosewood → Temple Street / Hing Kee: taxi 8–10 min, HK$40. Rosewood → Australia Dairy Company: taxi 8 min to 47 Parkes St, Jordan. TST ↔ Central: Star Ferry 8–10 min. Rosewood → Kowloon Station (Sat): taxi 8–12 min. Rosewood → HKG direct: taxi 30–40 min.