Earliest route HKG to ADL with time constraints

[Chatswood]

I've booked my hotels and have decided to visit Macau whilst there as well (as I as in HK earlier this year) - so will be sleeping in both Macau and HK. I believe that I'll need to clear security/immigration for Macau as it's separately run to HK. I think there's a way you can do this by getting on a particular bus and only clearing immigration once on that day. This means that I'll need to clear immigration when entering Macau, then clear again when I transfer over to HK.

Correct, the Macanese have their own border controls too. I don’t believe there’s anywhere where you can clear immigration just once, unless you’re going straight to HKIA from Macau.

If travelling between Macau and HK, I still think the ferry is a better deal than the bus over the HZMB because it’s still an hour each way but you get to arrive/depart from the city centres instead of having to catch a bus out on the HK side.

 

[cambriamarsh]

An update on this (my apologies for the delay - I was away).

After taking into consideration what was said, I agreed that getting to Australia as easy as possible would be the best path to take. So, I ended up picking the 00:55 CX flight to SYD in Premium Economy (not sure if this will be worth the extra amount for no extra QF SCs (according to their tables (am happy to be corrected))).
(The prices of the 00:30 MEL and the 00:55 SYD flights only differed by a few dollars, so, I opted for the later one for extra protection.)

When I booked the flight, it failed at the payment screen, which is never fun. I rang them (from overseas) and they told me that I needed to re-purchase the ticket. Luckily, while I was on the phone to them, the ticket credited (phew). They did inform me, that I have access to the CX F lounge due to my QF status, so, let's hope that I'm there with enough time to enjoy it (it will be tight though).

My crazy routing for that day now goes HKG-SYD-ADL-SYD (as it wasn't cost-effective to remove the first part of the my next trip - it was going to cost me more to re-cost the trip with fewer flights (and therefore fewer SCs (and therefore fewer DSCs))). Unfortunately, the SYD-ADL leg is a CX codeshare of a QF flight (they wanted almost triple the amount to buy the flight with a QF number).

Live and learn (next time, I'll purchase my complex itineraries as separate trips and cancel as required.

Keep trip protection in mind, separate tickets aren't protected whereas all flights on one ticket should be.

 

[MG1]

Correct, the Macanese have their own border controls too. I don’t believe there’s anywhere where you can clear immigration just once, unless you’re going straight to HKIA from Macau.

If travelling between Macau and HK, I still think the ferry is a better deal than the bus over the HZMB because it’s still an hour each way but you get to arrive/depart from the city centres instead of having to catch a bus out on the HK side.

My flight arrives in the evening - I'd be keen on getting from HKG to my accommodation in Macau (Cotai) as soon as possible. I did read that there's a special bus service that limits it to one clearing of immigration (on the Macau side) but need to investigate this further.

Keep trip protection in mind, separate tickets aren't protected whereas all flights on one ticket should be.

The layover time in-between the tickets, in ADL (smaller airport with one terminal - domestic-to-domestic transfer as well), is a few hours. Even with an hour or so delay, I should still have plenty of time to start the next ticket. If the delay stretches past two hours, then I'll start to stress a little.

 

[cwd]

My flight arrives in the evening - I'd be keen on getting from HKG to my accommodation in Macau (Cotai) as soon as possible. I did read that there's a special bus service that limits it to one clearing of immigration (on the Macau side) but need to investigate this further.

Yes, there is a bus to Macau from HKG that doesn't require passing through HK immigration. You might even get a ticket for free if you're travelling before the end of the year: Free Direct Bus from Hong Kong International Airport to Macau is Back! Sign the Passenger Declaration to Start Your Free Journey! - Macau HK Airport Direct

Cathay have some information about it on their site: https://www.cathaypacific.com/cx/en...cao-port-hong-kong-international-airport.html

 

[elanshin]

My flight arrives in the evening - I'd be keen on getting from HKG to my accommodation in Macau (Cotai) as soon as possible. I did read that there's a special bus service that limits it to one clearing of immigration (on the Macau side) but need to investigate this further.

There's a HZMB bus, depending on your arrival time. Its free one way to Macau.

You go to the E2 transfer desk and then they'll check you in and go looking for your bags. You then transfer over to the sky pier, pick up luggage hop on the bus and get driven to the Macau port. Go through immigration and you'll be in Macau.

I believe you can then probably take a free casino shuttle bus to Cotai if you're staying near one of the casinos.

We did something similar last month although we were staying elsewhere so just took a uber taxi. Also they take HKD at 1:1 so don't get any MOP out. You can't use MOP in HK but you can use HKD in Macau.

 

[MG1]

Yes, there is a bus to Macau from HKG that doesn't require passing through HK immigration. You might even get a ticket for free if you're travelling before the end of the year: Free Direct Bus from Hong Kong International Airport to Macau is Back! Sign the Passenger Declaration to Start Your Free Journey! - Macau HK Airport Direct

Cathay have some information about it on their site: https://www.cathaypacific.com/cx/en...cao-port-hong-kong-international-airport.html

Very interesting - I will check these out. Thank you.

 

[MG1]

There's a HZMB bus, depending on your arrival time. Its free one way to Macau.

You go to the E2 transfer desk and then they'll check you in and go looking for your bags. You then transfer over to the sky pier, pick up luggage hop on the bus and get driven to the Macau port. Go through immigration and you'll be in Macau.

I believe you can then probably take a free casino shuttle bus to Cotai if you're staying near one of the casinos.

We did something similar last month although we were staying elsewhere so just took a uber taxi. Also they take HKD at 1:1 so don't get any MOP out. You can't use MOP in HK but you can use HKD in Macau.

This is also very interesting.

I'll be staying at the end of the Cotai strip - do you know which casinos offer this? It looks like The Venetian and The Londoner would be close to where I'm staying.

Does this need to be pre-booked or do I go straight to the E2 desk?

I've read that MOP are 1:1 with HKD but can't be used in HK. What's card use like in Macau (I've read that it could be limited outside of the accommodation)?

 

[Sprucegoose]

The e-visa is easiest purchased as part of the pre-arrival customs declaration for indonesia. That can’t be completed until within three days of arrival.

I think there may be some confusion between the two. You can purchase the e-VOA more than three days before arrival, and you must use it within 90 days of issue. The Indonesian arrival card, however, can only be completed within three days of arrival.

I have found the online e-VOA process virtually impossible, with my banks repeatedly flagging the payment as potential fraud. On my last three trips through Jakarta, I simply purchased the Visa on Arrival at the airport and was through in about 10 minutes each time.

I have not used the Visa on Arrival process in Bali, though, so I cannot comment on what the queues or processing times are like there.

 

[Sprucegoose]

Yes, there are quite a few other hotel shuttles from the Macau bridge terminal. The Parisian, Galaxy, Studio City, City of Dreams and some of the Wynn and Lisboa properties also appear to offer services.

After clearing immigration, just follow the signs for the casino shuttle area, generally in Zone C. I would check the schedules again before travelling, as the routes and operating hours can change.

For the end of the Cotai Strip, The Londoner, The Parisian or Studio City would probably be the easiest options.