Climate
Climate:
Hong Kong experiences four distinct seasons, with the climate influenced in winter by the north-northeast monsoon and in summer by the south-southwest monsoon. Summers are very hot, with the rainy season running from June to August. Spring and autumn are warm with occasional rain and cooler evenings. Winter can be cold, but most days are mild. There is a risk of typhoons and tropical storms from April to October, although direct hits are rare.
Required clothing:
Lightweight cottons and linens are worn during warmer months, with warmer clothes for spring and autumn evenings.
Airports
Hong Kong International Airport (HKG)
(Chek Lap Kok) is located on Lantau Island, 34 km (21 miles) from central Hong Kong.
Departure tax: None.
Travel Times
The following chart gives approximate travel times (in hours and minutes) from Hong Kong Island to main tourist districts and outlying islands.
| City |
Road |
Metro |
Sea |
| Kai Tak |
0.35 |
- |
- |
| Kowloon |
0.20 |
0.04 |
0.10 |
| Causeway Bay |
0.10 |
- |
- |
| Lantau Is. |
- |
- |
1.00 |
| Cheung Chau |
- |
- |
1.00 |
Public Holidays 2005
Public Holidays 2005:
Jan 1 New Year’s Day.
Feb 9-11 Chinese New Year.
Mar 25 Good Friday.
Mar 28 Easter Monday.
Apr 5 Ching Ming Festival.
May 1 Labour Day.
May 16 Lord Buddha’s Birthday.
Jun 11 Tuen Ng (Dragon Boat) Festival.
Jul 1 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day.
Sep 19 Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival.
Oct 1 National Day.
Oct 11 Chung Yeung Festival.
Dec 25 Christmas Day.
Dec 26 Boxing Day.
Passport/Visa
Passport
Valid passport required by all.
Visas
Passport valid for at least 6 months after the period of intended visit required by all:
(a) 1. British Citizens for stays of up to 180 days (British Overseas Citizens, British Subjects, British Protected Persons and nationals of British Dependent Territories may stay for up to 90 days);
(b) 2. nationals of Commonwealth countries for stays of up to 90 days (except nationals of Samoa, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Uganda for stays of up to 30 days, and nationals of Bangladesh, Cameroon, India, Lesotho and Mozambique for stays up to 14 days): nationals of Grenada, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sierra Leone and the Solomon Islands do require a visa;
(c) 3. nationals of EU countries for stays of up to 90 days (except 1. British citizens for stays of up to 180 days);
(d) 4. nationals of Andorra, Anguilla, Bermuda, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Egypt, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Korea (Rep), Liechtenstein, Monaco, Montserrat, Norway, Romania, St Helena and Dependencies, San Marino, Switzerland, Turkey, Turks and Caicos Islands, USA, Venezuela and Zimbabwe for stays of up to 90 days;
(e) nationals of Argentina, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Costa Rica (except holders of a provisional passport and holders of ‘Documento de Identidad Y Viaje’ issued by the Costa Rican Government, who do require a visa), Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Morocco, Paraguay, Peru (except for holders of Peruvian special resident’s passports, who do require a visa), Thailand, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay (except holders of passports issued under decree 289/90, who do require a visa) and Yemen for stays of up to 30 days;
(f) nationals of Algeria, Angola, Bahrain, Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoro Islands, Congo (Dem Rep), Congo (Rep), Côte d’Ivoire, Croatia, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Jordan, Kuwait, Macedonia (Former Yugoslav Republic of), Madagascar, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, (Federated States of) Micronesia, Mongolia, Niger, Oman, Palau, The Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, São Tomé e Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Surinam, Togo and Vatican City for stays of up to 14 days;
(g) People in transit not leaving the airport transit area except for nationals of Eritrea, Iraq, Liberia, Pakistan (except holders of Diplomatic and Official passports) and Sierra Leone who do require a transit visa;
(h) all other nationals for stays of up to 7 days (except for nationals of Eritrea, Iraq, Liberia, Pakistan (except holders of Diplomatic and Official passports) and Sierra Leone who do require a visa at all times).
