paolo12345

As some of you may know by my posts, I'm planning to relocate to Hong Kong, and I'm deciding in witch area to find house.

My needs are:
- Transport:
a) need to go to Airport (early fly, 7,40 AM)
b) my office in HK is in Kowloon (ICC)
c) school for my son could be in Hong Kong Island or Discovery Bay

- Type of house:
I would prefer an European stile home , ideally a duplex / flat
1100+ S Ft with 3 badrooms and 2 bathrooms
budget: 30.000 /60.000 HK$ per year

I am considering
1) Discovery Bay,
2) HK Island Tai Tam
3) HK Island Stanley
4) HK Repulse Bay

but I'm warried about transportation: do you have experience on that? is it well connected or you would need a car?

Do you have any additional hints?

thanks
Paolo

hong_konger

Hello Paolo, its me again ! You find that there are only a few participants on this HK forum and so those same people will likely reply to you. Sorry about that.

ICC is nicely situated right above the airport express / Tung Chung line MTRs. Literally the train station is in your basement ! From there you have very easy access to Olympic, Tsing Yi, Tung Chung and the Airport.

There are a number of apartment complexes in and around the ICC. Ideally if you could find somewhere there that would be perfect for you and work and travel.

I'm not a fan of Discovery Bay but many people love living there and it is convenient for the Airport. The other locations you mentioned are on HK Island south side. they are expensive and less convenient for ICC and the Airport, but of course a lovely place to live.

Your main concern will be your child's schooling. Places are scarce and as Penguinsix said in your other thread you need to act now ! The location of your child's school / kindergarden maybe the deciding factor on where you decide to live.

Its a bit of a juggling exercise choosing where to live in HK !

paolo12345

Thanks, what about transportation? I have read that from repulse bay to central it takes 20 minutes, what about Tai tam or Stanley? Also transportations are 24 hours?

Thanks again
Paolo

hong_konger

Paolo, I not too familiar with public transport on HK Island and perhaps Penguinsix can help you. 20 mins from Repulse Bay to Central sounds ok if there is no traffic ! However, the traffic on the Island can get quite bad. I have seen traffic jams in Central at 3am in the morning ! Check out the following transport department web site which gives the GMB mini bus routes and timings.

Transport Department - Hong Kong Island GMB Routes

penguinsix

20 minutes from Repulse Bay to Central with NO TRAFFIC is possible. During rush hour it will be longer. 30-40 minutes, or worse. Bus and minibuses will sometimes be 'full' and taxis are hard to find during the rush hours. Stanley and Tai Tam would add 5-15 minutes to Repulse Bay, depending on where you live.

And god forbid two buses sideswipe each other on that narrow road (as they seem to do nearly every few weeks). All bets are off then.

But as mentioned, SCHOOLS FIRST then housing. Seriously. You'll need to sort out the schooling arrangements and then look for housing, or at least have a general idea of where you will be going to school so you don't end up with a 45 minute bus ride each way for your 4-year-old. Some expats refuse assignments to Hong Kong because of the schooling issue, others will 'split the family' having the child remain in one country until a school place is secured while the salary-earner moves to Hong Kong to establish residency.

Also worth noting that your budget will not go as far on the South Side as it will in other parts of town.