Every once a while I get Pm’d or phoned by guys wanting information on travel to/from Chang Ping, (Dongguan City, Guangdong Province) and Hong Kong.
Not that I am any expert on this, but I do travel this corridor quite a bit and thus would like to now just re-cap such information for posterity…and of course for me to just refer whoever asks, to go to this post.
First –
travel to/from Hung Hom train station in Hong Kong where a lot of travels to CP start/end at;
Taxis in Hong Kong are always good and reasonably cheap, and the MTR does take you to HungHom - but to save a bit of $$ AND more importantly, a bit of time I suggest that you travel by bus to and from the Hung Hom train station, as buses in Hong Kong have special lanes etc to make travel to/from Hung Hom FAST! From any points in Hong Kong, just look for ANY buses with 3 numbers as a route with the number “1” as the first digit. All of these buses are cross harbor tunnel buses and the FIRST stop after you exit the tunnel (if from Hong Kong side) or the LAST one before entering the tunnel (You’ll see the tunnel coming up if you’re from Kowloon) is where the Hung Hom train station is at. Go up on the overhead walk-way towards the station and if you’re going to go on the MTR to Lowu (Luohu), just enter on the same level but if you’re going to go on the Direct Train to CP/Guangzhou, go up one level to the main concourse to buy your ticket.
If you’re coming to/from Hong Kong Chek Lap Kok Airport, there is also a bus #A21 that for HK$33 will take you to Hung Hom directly. In fact, this route to HKIA is a very viable alternative to the Bus from/to the Miraton CP, which costs RB 200 and routinely takes a bit over two and half hours. Bus Hung Hom - HKIA should only be 40 minutes max.
OK, next I’ll outline travel on the various modes between Hong Kong and Chang Ping:
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Travel on the Direct train to/from CP –
Travel time station to station – not more than 75 minutes, HK$145 or RMB 120 ( please note you have to add approx 5 minutes each immigration and at least 15 mins prior to Train departure to be at the station - so station to station, it will be approx 95 minutes)
PROS – VERY comfortable as you’re on the train the whole time,; you can surf the web (paid WIFI) even “Dine” on board (BTW, the Chinese trains have pretty good food sets.), Immigration/custom is a breeze on both ends (TIP – Do like what most frequent travelers on these trains do – be the first to rush out of the train as soon as the doors open – save you LOTS of time!). These trains are usually quite empty and thus you usually can “stretch out.”
I’ve also “met” a few gals on the way out or back into China – as somehow chatting on a train just seems natural!
CONS – Sort of infrequent schedule and when you may want to go on this direct train, there may NOT be one for a while – Check out the schedule on
http://www.it3.mtr.com.hk/B2C/fr ... ong.asp?strLang=Eng
Sometimes – especially week-ends, you may NOT be able to buy a ticket on the next train – to avoid getting there and being disappointed, you can either pre-book on the internet (HK$6 service charge) OR go to 42 MTR station with an eInstant Bonus terminals. Locations and instructions etc on
http://www.mtr.com.hk/eng/getting_around/eib.html.
In CP, you can buy your ticket at the Hui Mei Hotel Lobby for the regular price or else just go to your hotel concierge and they’ll get you your ticket for a small handling fee i.e. approx RMB 2 - 5.
And oh, of course you also can just go to the CP/Dongguan train station and buy the ticket on the G/F before proceeding upstairs to the departure lounge.
You can phone them for more info (852) 2947 7888.
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Travel on the MTR to/from Lowu, cross the Lowu border, take the CRH train to CP
Optimum travel times and fares: Hunghom – Lowu 43 minutes and HK$31.80, crossing the 2 borders – 20 minutes, Lowu – to CP: RMB 45 (RMB 50 1st class), 27 minutes. NOTE: these times are the best I've been able to achieve myself and was station to station in approx95 minutes.
PROS: You can go by this method anytime prior to the Lowu border closing at Midnight/don’t have to wait for their schedule as the MTR is every 5 – 10 minutes. Thus if you leave/will need to arrive CP later, this is the only feasible method.
CONS: Since they initiated that law that one must show identification to buy a CRH ticket, the wait lines at the Lowu station can be horrendous; I’ve lined up in the sweltering heat for as long as 45 minutes just to get to the ticket counter. Tickets CP – Lowu is not bad anytime and will usually entail a short line if any. The immigration lines can also be quirky/pretty bad - both ways - and thus I’d suggest most travelers to go this route only if its not peak travel times i.e. 4- 8 pm on week days and afternoons of week-end days and there’s no other choice.
Also, please note that Lowu station and surrounds is NOT the most pleasant of places.
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Travel by direct bus to/from CP
From CP, you go to the Hui Mei Hotel lobby to get your ticket/board the bus – RMB 70 to Hong Kong side, RMB 60 Kowloon side. From Hong Kong side, from Times square (ticket counter at the basement) starting from 14:30 and every hour on the half hour, and from Shun Tak centre (Macau Ferry Terminal), ground floor on the hour every hour (08:00 to 19:00) Fare HK$70
From Kowloon - Tsimshatsui at Harbour city (7:10 to 18:40) and at Mongkok, Prince Edward Rd. a block away from Nathan Road (07:30 to 19:00) HK$60.
These buses go via the Shenzhen bay border crossing (which is quite convenient as its just one big building where both side’s immigration/custom counters are located) and takes a bit less than an hour from Shun Tak Centre to reach.
Here again I’d advise you also rush to the immigration counter and sometimes there can be pretty bad delays…and you want to catch the bus to CP (which consolidates passengers from various lines including the HKI airport to CP) which leaves at 20 minutes after each hour, so you only have maximum 25 minutes to clear both sides customs/immigration or have to wait for the next bus at 20 past the next hour. Comng out from China is a bit better as buses to Hong Kong leaves the border crossing every 20 minutes or so.
Travel time SZ bay - CP a bit less than an hour and the whole journey is anywhere from 2-1/2 hours to as long as 4 hours when I seemed to have missed every single connection from getting bogged down in immigration and full buses!
(852)2261-0296 (HKG) and 86-769-8599-8450 (CP)
PROS: Quite comfortable ride and the cheapest way to get to/from CP, most times these buses are NOT full and so you can stretch out. Tip – try to get the second last seat next to the emergency exits – you can really stretch/lots of leg room on these seats.
Also, the bus will drop you off/pick you up in front of the Hui Mei - and thus you do not have to contend with the Taxi mafia at the CP train station. And let me assure you, those bums at the train stations are really....BUMS!
CONS: Travel by bus in China can be rather adventurous as the highways AND the quality of driving in China leaves a lot to be desired. Also, it probably is the slowest method and will take at least 2-1/2 hours even if you’re very lucky. On the other hand, if you need to be/are in Hong Kong side, then this mode of travel should be considered as you will save the time required to cross the harbour.
SEAJ
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Last edited by SEAJ at 22-8-2011 00:21 ]
