Hong Kong, Milliennium Boarding Time

[ronbetty2001]

We arrive Hong Kong on Saturday. Ship boards Sunday at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal. I know the official boarding time is usually stated as 12:00 to 1:00pm. Is this correct or can we board earlier?

As we want to tour the City Sunday, can we go to Kai Tak early and drop off luggage at the ship (not check in) and come back later in the day to check in?

Don't know if it helps but we are Elite status with Celebrity. Just trying to make the most of Sunday without the hassle of checking in at 12:00 and then returning to the City and touring around. I figure 2 hours total for getting to the ship, checking in and then leaving the terminal. I understand the terminal is really large and involves a lot of walking to get from the Taxi drop off to the ship, is this true?

Our hotel is in Kowloon, Regal Oriental and is a little far out, maybe should have booked a better location, to late now, per-paid.

Any advise from past travelers having done the Hong Kong to Singapore itinerary before would be very helpful.

Thank you,

Capt. Ron

[blrabbit]

We arrive Hong Kong on Saturday. Ship boards Sunday at the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal. I know the official boarding time is usually stated as 12:00 to 1:00pm. Is this correct or can we board earlier?

As we want to tour the City Sunday, can we go to Kai Tak early and drop off luggage at the ship (not check in) and come back later in the day to check in?

Don't know if it helps but we are Elite status with Celebrity. Just trying to make the most of Sunday without the hassle of checking in at 12:00 and then returning to the City and touring around. I figure 2 hours total for getting to the ship, checking in and then leaving the terminal. I understand the terminal is really large and involves a lot of walking to get from the Taxi drop off to the ship, is this true?

Our hotel is in Kowloon, Regal Oriental and is a little far out, maybe should have booked a better location, to late now, per-paid.

Any advise from past travelers having done the Hong Kong to Singapore itinerary before would be very helpful.

Thank you,

Capt. Ron

 

You can leave you luggage in the hotel (they will hold that for you free) on Sunday then tour the city before go back to hotel to get your luggage to cruise terminal. The taxis drop off is next to the terminal (we did that on 2014 when they just open), thing may got better now. They use to have bus station in front of the terminal to go to city & in front of subway terminal. You can call Celebrity & ask them the possible of drop off your luggage early. :), we also planning the similar cruise during holiday (12/21-1/2) but haven't book yet.

Bob :)

[temani]

Hi Capt. Ron

We did this cruise last November. Our hotel was also in Kowloon pre-cruise and our taxi took approx. 20 minutes to get from the hotel to the terminal which is in a fairly isolated area. At some stage there will be infrastructure built which will make it much easier for cruise passengers to get around (really needed is a ferry stop/MTR station), but we were aware of the situation. We arrived at 11.30am on the Sunday and by 12 midday we were on the ship, having passed through security and check-in without delay. We do not have status with Celebrity but were really pleased with the ease of embarkation procedures. We believe also that our online check-in some weeks before leaving home speeded things up. There were many people there also who help "channel" passengers through as quickly as possible.

We thought that Monday would be a fairly free day before we sailed away from Hong Kong but we were told to be back on the ship for Customs and Immigration inspection of passports etc. in the Cosmos Lounge on Deck 11 between 3pm and 7pm. Muster drill was in the theatre at 7.30pm which didn't last too long. Then it was up to the pool deck to watch our sail away from the spectacular Victoria Harbour.

Hope some of this helps. It was our experience of course and we did have more time than you to see the sights of Hong Kong.

Best Wishes

Temani

[tacrum43]

Hi Capt. Ron

We did this cruise last November. Our hotel was also in Kowloon pre-cruise and our taxi took approx. 20 minutes to get from the hotel to the terminal which is in a fairly isolated area. At some stage there will be infrastructure built which will make it much easier for cruise passengers to get around (really needed is a ferry stop/MTR station), but we were aware of the situation. We arrived at 11.30am on the Sunday and by 12 midday we were on the ship, having passed through security and check-in without delay. We do not have status with Celebrity but were really pleased with the ease of embarkation procedures. We believe also that our online check-in some weeks before leaving home speeded things up. There were many people there also who help "channel" passengers through as quickly as possible.

We thought that Monday would be a fairly free day before we sailed away from Hong Kong but we were told to be back on the ship for Customs and Immigration inspection of passports etc. in the Cosmos Lounge on Deck 11 between 3pm and 7pm. Muster drill was in the theatre at 7.30pm which didn't last too long. Then it was up to the pool deck to watch our sail away from the spectacular Victoria Harbour.

Hope some of this helps. It was our experience of course and we did have more time than you to see the sights of Hong Kong.

Best Wishes

Temani

 

So the cruise terminal is on the Kowloon side? Would it be difficult to get there if you are staying on Hong Kong island?

[temani]

So the cruise terminal is on the Kowloon side? Would it be difficult to get there if you are staying on Hong Kong island?

 

Yes the cruise terminal is on the Kowloon side, on the site of the old Kai Tak airport. Kong Kong has a wonderful transport system and it should not be any problem to get there if you are staying on Hong Kong Island. Easiest route I would imagine would be by taxi via cross-harbour tunnel. Perhaps you could ask your hotel to advise you of approx. taxi fare and allow appropriate time.

Taking the MTR would probably be too inconvenient as the terminal does not have a nearby MTR station and no doubt you would not want to heave luggage around.

[villauk]

Temani,

 

Did the shopping malls offer a free bus from the ship to their mall? Wondered if this was an option for sailing day? Additionally, if they do offer transport, is it possible to board the MTR at the mall (not considering this to initially get to the ship on embarkation day, but as an alternative to reaching the MTR to access other sightseeing options on sailing day)?

 

TIA :)

[temani]

Temani,

 

Did the shopping malls offer a free bus from the ship to their mall? Wondered if this was an option for sailing day? Additionally, if they do offer transport, is it possible to board the MTR at the mall (not considering this to initially get to the ship on embarkation day, but as an alternative to reaching the MTR to access other sightseeing options on sailing day)?

 

TIA :)

 

Hi Villauk

Back last November, two shopping malls (probably nearest to Kai Tak terminal) put on shuttle buses from the parking area of the terminal. These were free for cruise passengers for a round trip. We chose the bus to Kwun Tong mall which turned out to be a bad choice as we found nothing of interest there. The better choice would have been the other option - Hollywood Plaza mall at Diamond Hill. Here you can use the Diamond Hill MTR station on the Green Line and go just about anywhere of interest with a few train changes.

For instance if you connect with the Red Line at either Mong Kok or Yau Ma Tei stations, you can get off at Tsim Sha Tsui for some shopping, then take the Star Ferry across the harbour to Central on Hong Kong Island, or just stay on the Red Line which then travels under the harbour to Admiralty station and then Hong Kong station. If you get an MTR map you will see how easy it is to get around. The MTR is spotlessly clean, safe, cheap and on-time.

Another plus at Diamond Hill is that the mall is only a short walk away from the beautiful Nan Lian Gardens and adjoining Chi Lin Nunnery, an oasis right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of H.K.

Take bottles of water wherever you go.

Hope this has been of help to you.

Temani

[villauk]

Hi Villauk

Back last November, two shopping malls (probably nearest to Kai Tak terminal) put on shuttle buses from the parking area of the terminal. These were free for cruise passengers for a round trip. We chose the bus to Kwun Tong mall which turned out to be a bad choice as we found nothing of interest there. The better choice would have been the other option - Hollywood Plaza mall at Diamond Hill. Here you can use the Diamond Hill MTR station on the Green Line and go just about anywhere of interest with a few train changes.

For instance if you connect with the Red Line at either Mong Kok or Yau Ma Tei stations, you can get off at Tsim Sha Tsui for some shopping, then take the Star Ferry across the harbour to Central on Hong Kong Island, or just stay on the Red Line which then travels under the harbour to Admiralty station and then Hong Kong station. If you get an MTR map you will see how easy it is to get around. The MTR is spotlessly clean, safe, cheap and on-time.

Another plus at Diamond Hill is that the mall is only a short walk away from the beautiful Nan Lian Gardens and adjoining Chi Lin Nunnery, an oasis right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of H.K.

Take bottles of water wherever you go.

Hope this has been of help to you.

Temani

 

Great, thank you. We are staying pre cruise in the Tsim Sha Tsui area, so plan to take the Star ferry across to Hong Kong Island while we're residing in that area. The Nunnery and gardens sound perfect on actual sailing day, especially if we can take the free shuttle to the mall ;).

 

Thanks for taking the time to reply :).

[temani]

Villauk, you're welcome. Hong Kong is one of our favourite places.

If I can be of any further help, please let me know.

Temani

[ronbetty2001]

Hi Capt. Ron

We did this cruise last November. Our hotel was also in Kowloon pre-cruise and our taxi took approx. 20 minutes to get from the hotel to the terminal which is in a fairly isolated area. At some stage there will be infrastructure built which will make it much easier for cruise passengers to get around (really needed is a ferry stop/MTR station), but we were aware of the situation. We arrived at 11.30am on the Sunday and by 12 midday we were on the ship, having passed through security and check-in without delay. We do not have status with Celebrity but were really pleased with the ease of embarkation procedures. We believe also that our online check-in some weeks before leaving home speeded things up. There were many people there also who help "channel" passengers through as quickly as possible.

We thought that Monday would be a fairly free day before we sailed away from Hong Kong but we were told to be back on the ship for Customs and Immigration inspection of passports etc. in the Cosmos Lounge on Deck 11 between 3pm and 7pm. Muster drill was in the theatre at 7.30pm which didn't last too long. Then it was up to the pool deck to watch our sail away from the spectacular Victoria Harbour.

Hope some of this helps. It was our experience of course and we did have more time than you to see the sights of Hong Kong.

Best Wishes

Temani

Thank you this helps a lot,

 

Capt. Ron

[tacrum43]

Yes the cruise terminal is on the Kowloon side, on the site of the old Kai Tak airport. Kong Kong has a wonderful transport system and it should not be any problem to get there if you are staying on Hong Kong Island. Easiest route I would imagine would be by taxi via cross-harbour tunnel. Perhaps you could ask your hotel to advise you of approx. taxi fare and allow appropriate time.

Taking the MTR would probably be too inconvenient as the terminal does not have a nearby MTR station and no doubt you would not want to heave luggage around.

 

Great, thank you for the info