Originally posted by sexpert at 6-3-2010 13:23
I've never stayed in one of these places, can you describe how it is here? Usually I end up paying for a 400-500 mediocre hotel prebooked from NYC.
Well, I have good news for you: there's a whole market being served at the $150-$350 per night price bracket, and you can find good quality.
If you find you need "hotel" type amenities, like a big reception area, bars, restaurants, room service, an empty business centre, etc. stick with the hotels, that's what they charge for. But if you don't need all that, and you just want a comfortable room with privacy and security, you can definitely save $$$ that would be better spent on
and
There are lots of guest-houses, and quite frankly a lot of them are pretty terrible - they tend to be sub-divided apartment units in the big residential blocks, and can be quite dirty dark and damp. But you can find good ones.
I myself stayed in New Lucky Guest House when I first arrived in HK - that was a LONG time ago but I guess it's still there - was on the 3rd floor. It was clean, well run, and had everything I needed at the time:-
Twin or double bed
Ensuite bathroom
Aircon
TV
Telephone
24hr access
all for the very reasonable price of HK$250. Probably gone up since, but you never know what deal you can get at offpeak times.
Ginza hotel is very similar quality, at a similar budget.
If you're motivated to get the best-best deal you can find it simply by looking around. Allocate (say) half a day, leave your luggage somewhere, and knock on doors. Don't be afraid to walk away, since you can find nice places without difficulty (e.g. the cheapest places are in Chunking Mansions ... but I've never even dared to look at those).
Jordan is a good area as it's so close to everything you want (there's even a minibus from Wanchai if that's your inclination) but there are also some in Causeway Bay that cost a bit more for the same quality.
