Last November our family had our major travel for 2016. We had our 3-day Hong Kong and
1-day Macau tour. This blog post will be
a 4-part series. The trip, of course, was
DIY and was planned for almost a year (haha!).
Well I’m just saying “almost a year” because our air tickets were bought
around the beginning of 2016 and yes they were promo fares (thank you Cebu Pacific!). Other preparations were done at
the 2nd half of 2016. I
already had a tour in HK once and twice in Macau way back so planning the DIY
wasn’t entirely difficult.
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| Only 3 bags for the 5 of us for 4 nights? |
This wasn’t the first airplane ride for our kids either so
we already knew how to prepare for it especially for our special one with the
autism. I will however give some tips on
air travel for autism families based on our experience in our first flight
(domestic) a few years back. The kids
were still excited to get on the plane because I guess they anticipated that
whenever a plane ride is involved, the destination will be something
special. BTW, we didn’t tell the kids
where exactly we were going and what our plan was because the Disneyland (2nd part in this blog series) was a
surprise so we just told them we were going to their tita (my sister) in
Macau. We still got our usual seating
arrangement of getting seats at 2 consecutive rows with the kids in the window
seat. We also booked for the morning
flights so the kids can get to see the view.
This is important for children with autism in their first few
flights because night time flights, without the sunny view outside the window,
might give a feeling of being inside a cramped space (feeling of
claustrophobia). The flight to Hong Kong
was a notch longer than our previous flights so my wife and I still took the
necessary precautions.
Contrary to several negative feedback we read before, our
flight with Cebu Pacific were on time both ways. Even my flight from Doha going to Manila last
October was 20 minutes earlier than scheduled.
Their service, even by that of their ground personnel, was also quite
satisfactory and their cabin crew were friendly most especially to our young
ones. I admit that we had our doubts, we
even read some articles about passengers with mental challenges being denied to
board. However, what we experienced were
contrary to our fears. We were delighted
by how friendly and courteous they were to us.
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| Happy mood on board the plane! |
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| Kids enjoying the flight |
At Hong Kong airport, we already exchanged some money at
Travelex, although some would say there are other places where we could
exchange with better rates, our mindset was to have less hassle since we were
with our kids. We also already bought
Octopus cards for all of us before leaving the airport. For first timers in Hong Kong, remember that
prices for kids are different from adult rates so make sure you tell the
counter how many adults and how many kids.
This applies to almost anything in Hong Kong – fares, tickets to
attractions, packaged meals, etc. Another
tip for first timers is that the Octopus card is an essential in Hong
Kong. You will use it for your fares
(MTR, bus, trams, some ferries, etc.) and you can also use it to pay in some
shops (fast food, convenience stores, etc.).
I would recommend getting the Octopus card rather than the tourist card
(unlimited rides in bus and MTR) primarily because the Octopus card may end up
a lot cheaper than the tourist card. You
can also refund any unused balance in the Octopus card once you leave HK. Another recommendation is to take the
Airport Express going to the city because it is more convenient and fast. It will take you to either Tsing Yi, Kowloon
or Hong Kong areas and there will be free shuttle buses at Kowloon & Hong
Kong that will take you to or near most hotels.
The kids, especially our special one, enjoyed the train ride with greens and views in most part of the trip.
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| Inside the Airport Express (because they saw a sign at the airport encouraging the use of face masks) |
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| The boys enjoyed the view on board the Airport Express |
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| The stops of Airport Express (inside the train) |
We booked our accommodation at CHI Residences 314 along Nathan
Road in Jordan. We are aware that there
are a number of other cheaper accommodations, hostels and guest houses around
HK but we chose CHI 314 primarily for the comfort of the kids without having to
shell out a lot (we are a family of 5 😊). We alighted at Kowloon MTR station
then took the K1 shuttle bus that would go around Jordan area. We got off Eaton and just walked a few steps
to Chi. Lesson learned: We should have
gotten off Jordan Station (Austin Road) and just walked the few extra steps
because it was the 1st stop of the shuttle rather than go through
traffic before reaching Eaton (6th stop). We could’ve saved some time.
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| Their usual practice in hotels: (Upon getting inside) Drop anywhere whatever they're carrying and start jumping on the bed/sofa! |
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| Our bedroom with the nice comfy queen bed |
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| The kitchen/pantry in our room |
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| Our living room (with the extra bed) |
Here are several things we liked most about CHI. One, it is a serviced apartment so aside from
the basic hotel supplies (complimentary coffee, tea, water, toiletries, towels,
etc.) you get everything else a normal flat would have – bedroom (for
non-studio units) with big and very comfy bed, kitchen (yes!) with electric
stove, microwave, pans and pots, plates, utensils & other dinner wares,
kitchen wares, flat iron with iron board, tv, sofa, and all the other stuff you
would need. Two is its proximity to essential places – a 7-11 just about in
front of the building, pharmacies, restaurants, a Park N’ Shop a few steps away
(where you can buy fresh produce, meats, and other grocery items), Jordan MTR
station which was a lot nearer than what we expected. Three, you get to use their mobile phone
(with mobile internet) for free so you wouldn’t have to buy a temporary HK sim
or spend on roaming charges. And yes you
can take the phone out with you anywhere as long as you’re checked in, just
make sure to take care of the phone or you’ll pay for any damage or lost
phone. You can reset the phone and wipe
out all data once you check out so if you’ve logged in to your email or SNS
accounts, traces of your log in will be gone.
And by the way, our room even had a coffee machine with
complimentary coffee capsules! More review of CHI Residences
314 can be found in my TripAdvisor post here: CHI Residences 314.
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| Electric stove, a pan, dinnerware |
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| Pots, a pan, bread toaster, coffee machine, water heater |
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| Knives, complimentary water, coffee, tea, sugar |
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| Bowls, cups, saucers, glasses |
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| Ladle, spatula, chopping board |
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| Kitchen towels, trivets |
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| Full sized fridge, microwave oven |
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| TV in the bedroom |
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| Umbrella, flat iron, ironing board |
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| Safe, eco bag, laundry bag |
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| The bathroom (the shower area is actually quite spacious in reality) |
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| Lavatory with toiletries |
Once we got to our room, while the kids rested, I searched
for discounted tickets to our first day itinerary: The Peak Tram, Sky Terrace 428
and Madame Tussaud’s. I forgot to do
this one before leaving Manila but a tip for those planning, you might get
cheaper tickets if you purchase at least a day earlier. I purchased the discounted tickets from Klook and it was a package ticket consisting of round trip The Peak Tram ride, access to Sky Terrace 428 and Madame Tussaud’s.
I would recommend buying these packaged tickets because it will get you
through fast lane when getting on the tram on the way up. Although you will still have to fall in line
(fast lane has a separate line), it is still a lot faster than the line for
those who just purchased the Tram tickets on the spot, or those who are using
the Octopus card. However, on the way down, everybody gets to fall in a single
line so make sure to avoid the “rush hour” on the way down. Also, see to it that you get to the meeting
place on time as instructed in the voucher.
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| (At Nathan Road) Those double decker buses caught the eye of the kids because they're new to them. Our special one had been pulling me, wanting to ride one of those! |
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| That's our Klook group on the way to The Peak Tram |
We met the Klook staff at exit K of MTR Central Station. If you buy the ticket from Klook, you will go
to the Peak Tram as a group (together with others who booked for the same time
slot as you did). On the way to the tram
station, the Klook staff will give some short background on some notable
buildings and landmarks you will pass by, it’s like a mini city tour. When we arrived at the tram station, we were
led to the fast lane and as mentioned earlier, it wasn’t totally “wait free”
but the queue was much faster than the regular lane. We were surprised by the volume of tourists queued
for the tram ride considering it was a lazy Monday afternoon so we were glad we
bought the packaged ticket from Klook, otherwise our little ones would
certainly be throwing tantrums while waiting for a long time at the crowded
regular lane. The Klook staff gave us
our tickets for the tram, which they instructed us to keep safe because we
would be using the same ticket on the way down.
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| Here it comes (Oh, the look on the children's faces)! |
The kids were excited about the tram ride and they enjoyed
it (of course kids will almost always be excited about anything new that you
could ride on!). We got a glimpse of the
harbor at certain points along the way.
The view will mostly be on the right hand side of the tram on the way up
then on the left hand side on the way down so make sure you know where you want
to sit even before boarding the tram because everyone will be scrambling to get
seated as soon as the tram doors open.
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| Inside the tram. We got the seat with the view. |
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| A glimpse of the skyline on the way up |
Once we reached the top, we were on our own - we got to
manage our own time and go where we want to.
The Klook staff gave us the directions on how to get to Sky Terrace 428
and Madame Tussaud’s then gave us our tickets to Madame Tussaud’s before
leaving.
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| There's an open space between Peak Tower & Peak Galleria |
After recharging, we
went up to Madame Tussaud’s. We didn’t expect that the kids would enjoy Madame Tussaud’s
that much considering that a lot of the models displayed are of personalities
not easily recognized by kids. Maybe it
was because of the life like quality of the models that got them
interested. They looked so real that the
kids wanted to take photos with each one of them, imitating the models’ pose or
doing poses that complimented the scenery.
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| Capping the night off with a play of lights at Hong Kong's skyline |
When we got back to the hotel we bought some rice meals at
7-11 downstairs because we were too tired to prepare some meals. Then after dinner, I got out alone to the
nearby Park N’ Shop to buy supplies and food that we could cook for the rest of
our stay.
Tips:
Travel means: Car (to NAIA 3): Good news to those who will be
away for a short period and fly via NAIA Terminal 3. The multi-level parking at the side of
the airport is already open and as of this writing, you can leave your car
there for several days for about PHP 300 per night. Just make sure to tell the parking attendant
when you plan to come back for your car.
You won’t have to walk that far if you use this facility because the
parking has access to and from the airport building itself.)
Airplane: We will post air
travel tips especially for autism families as a separate post, update it as we
learn new things and maybe find a way to make it a “sticky”. We will also include some advice we learned
in availing promo fares. Link can be
found here as soon as I upload it within this month (January 2017)
Kidsentials and advise
for autism families:
- This has become our swiss army knife: Headphones and
gadgets (tablet, portable gaming console or mobile phone) in case of
sensory overload or tantrums. If
your special one has other means to calm down, bring it with you.
- Enough time. Kids
will need rest from time to time, so it’s better not to force yourselves
to do a lot in one go. Best if you
could rest & have refreshments at the same time.
- People, especially in MTR trains, might give a curious
stare at your special one. This isn’t the first time we’ve experienced
this but it seems this happened more often during our tour. What we usually do is to just casually
hug him and sometimes kiss him on the head. Just subtly give a hint on how
you love your special one and that you’re not ashamed to show it.
- Long queues might be too much for the kids. Plan how
you can avoid “rush hours” and avail of packaged tickets that will get you
to fast lanes. If you want to see
the skyline at night, you might want to consider taking the taxi (or bus)
on the way down, it won’t be faster but it will be a lot more convenient
for everyone.
Other general tips:
- Get the octopus card and load it up with your budget for the whole trip. You can download the fare charts from the MTR site. Don’t worry about any excess because you will be able to refund the unused values at the airport or airport express stations.
- The Avenue of the Stars is currently under construction and will re-open on 2018. Go somewhere else.
- Navigating Hong Kong isn’t really difficult. Signs are all around and conspicuous.
- Eating out might involve a lot of finger pointing at the menu, even at fast foods like McDonald’s because some might not be good at speaking English. Just be patient and use very simple English words and you’ll get what you want eventually.
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