Visa Free to Hong Kong and Macau

When you reach Hong Kong, your guide is waiting for you with a pick-up card that reads your name. Then you will be transferred to a hotel for a good rest. Hong Kong is your first stop for your Visa Free Tour to Hong Kong.

In the morning, you will visit Wong Tai Sin Temple which was built in 1945. Covering more than 18,000 square meters, it is one of the most distinguished temples in Hong Kong. Owing to its fame, people come here to worship the god, Wong Tai Sin, in an endless stream. Every year on the first day of the Lunar New Year, citizens have to compete for the first pillar incense. Legend has it that the Wong Tai Sin enshrined in the temple is "responsive". It is also the only Taoist temple in Hong Kong where Taoist weddings can be held. It is said that Wong Tai Sin is renowned for his philanthropy to cure diseases and save patients. Wong Tai Sin, whose autonym is Huang Chuping, used to follow a Taoist to practice Kungfu of Tao in a cave when he was herding sheep. His elder brother could not find him anywhere. Forty years later, they met each other outside the cave while the sheep had become white stones spreading all over the mountain. The minute Huang shouted at the white stones, they turned into sheep immediately. Astonished by this, his elder brother decided to learn the Kungfu of Tao. Day after day, they eventually became gods and helped people with their powers. Thus, people built a temple to enshrine them, which is the origin of the Wong Tai Sin Temple.

Then you will go to Victoria Peak by Peak Tram. When you get to the top you will see a building named Peak Tower. There are many viewing platforms on the peak where you can have a clear view of Victoria Harbour and Kowloon. There is a Peak Post Office on the peak where you can send a postcard to your families, friends, or yourself. You can buy a stamp that costs about HK $3 in a coin-operated vending machine.

After lunch, you will visit Repulse Bay, located on the south side of Victoria Peak. The bay is in the shape of a crescent, known as the "first bay in the world", and has a reputation of "Oriental Hawaii". The water is as clear as a mirror. With the beautiful surrounding scenery, Repulse Bay has become one of the most famous upscale residential areas on Hong Kong Island where you can see many luxurious villas. There is a Tin Hau Temple in Repulse Bay, built in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). In the temple stand statues of the goddess of Heaven, the goddess of mercy, the goddess of the beast, and many tablets of praying for blessings.

Then you will visit Stanley Market where many Chinese tenements stand. When you enjoy your leisure time on the market, you could buy some souvenirs, Chinese clothes, and handicrafts for your family as gifts. On the second weekend of every month, the Stanley Art market is held at Stanley Square for artists to display their works. If you are lucky enough, you may have a chance to see the artists’ works.

Finally, you will be sent to the hotel.

Option: In the evening, you can go to Lan Kwai Fong for a visit, since there are a variety of bars, including Dragon-I, Brickhouse, Kee Club, and so on. Each bar has its distinctive atmosphere and that is why a lot of youths and foreigners come to these bars.

Wong Tai Sin Temple

Repulse Bay

In the morning, you will be driven to Lantau Island located on the west side of Hong Kong Island. It will take you about half an hour by car. When you reach Ngong Ping Cable Car Station, you will get to the peak by Ngong Ping 360 Cable car with standard cabin. The scenery you will see while you are on the cable car is beautiful and you can enjoy a panorama of Lantau South Country Park, South China Sea, Big Buddha, and even Po Lin Monastery.

Then you will reach Ngong Ping Village, covering 1.34 hectares. There are many restaurants, shopping stores, and entertainment facilities. You can enjoy authentic Hong Kong snacks, such as Bowl Rice Pudding, beancurd jelly, Hand-pulled noodles, and so on. Taking Bowl Rice Pudding for example. It is cooked with tapioca. The final product is sweet and sticky. There are a variety of flavors to choose from, including the flavor of ormosia, strawberry, pineapple, and apple.

Next, you will visit Big Buddha standing on the top of Lantau Mountain, which is the largest open-air bronze sitting statue in the world. It is made of 202 bronze parts, weighing 250 tons. Covering 6,567 square meters, it is 26.4 meters tall and is nearly 34 meters tall when counting in the height of the Big Buddha base. Ten meters away from the front of the Giant Buddha, there are six graceful bronze statues in dancing posture, named the Offering of the Six Devas. The offerings were flowers, incense, lamps, tu (in Chinese, tu means refinement), fruit, and music, representing the six practicing ways (alms, precepts, humiliation, refinement, meditation, and wisdom). It is said that a person who practices such six ways can ascend to the other shore of nirvana in the sea of life and death.

Finally, you will go to Po Lin Monastery for a visit. Built in 1906, it has a history of more than a hundred years. The overall architecture of the Po Lin Monastery is magnificent and resplendent, with red gates and yellow tiles, surrounded by lush woods. There are many scenic spots in it, such as the Grand Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas, Main Shrine Hall of Buddha, Skanda Hall, and so on. As a sacred place for worshiping Buddha, the food here are naturally mainly light and simple vegetarian dishes. If you are used to non-veg meals, it will be a special experience for you to enjoy vegetarian dishes occasionally. The vegetarian dishes are various, such as colorful tofu, beancurd jelly, fried mushrooms, and so on. However, it is worth noting that visitors who want to eat vegetarian food must purchase a meal voucher before going up the mountain so that they can eat directly after the Buddha worship.

After visiting all these spots, you will take the cable car to the foot of the mountain and then will be transferred to the hotel.

Big Buddha

Po Lin Monastery

After breakfast, you will go to Macau from a pier in Hong Kong by ferry, which will take you about an hour.

At first, you will go to the Ruins of St. Paul’s built in 1632. There are 68 stone steps in front of the archway. The front wall site is 23 meters wide and 25.5 meters high. It is built of granite in baroque style and divided into five layers, on which there are rich stone engravings and bronze statues. The Ruins of St. Paul’s used to be Paul Cathedral which was burnt down in 1835. The Paul Cathedral was originally a Jesuit school, attached to St. Paul's College, built with bamboo, wood, and thatch at the end of 1565. As the first Western-style university in China, it had a department of grammar, a department of humanities, and a department of Ethical Theology. Many missionaries graduating from the university went to Japan, China, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, and other places to preach.

Your next destination is Mont Fortress, built in 1636. It was built to protect the priests of St. Paul's Church from pirates and later turned into a military installation. As the largest and oldest among many forts in Macao, there are huge cannons around the Mont Fortress, which is an ancient cultural relic and historical witness of Macao. Covering an area of about 10,000 square meters, the fort was an irregular quadrilateral with the length of each side being about 100 meters. Four corners protrude from the fortress.

Then you will visit Senado Square, which is named after the predecessor of Macau City Hall, covering 3,700 square meters. It was originally the place where the Ming Dynasty officials discussed trade with Macao Portuguese and dealt with residence matters. Every year in June, the Macau Lotus Festival is held here. At the opening ceremony, there will be 3,000 pots of more than 60 varieties of lotus displaying, which is very spectacular.

Afterwards, you will go to A-Ma Temple. Built in 1488, it has a history of over 500 years. The Taoist goddess Mazu is worshiped in the A-Ma Temple. The gate of A-Ma Temple is an archway-style granite building, being 4.5 meters wide. The top of the lintel is a corniced ridge, gorgeous and beautiful. At the gate of the temple is a pair of stone lions, exquisitely carved and lifelike, which were the masterpieces of the Qing Dynasty 300 years ago. There is a ship carving stone in the temple, on which an ancient ship is carved. It is said that a businessman from Fujian province encountered rough seas on his way to Macao by ship and fortunately was saved by Mazu 400 years ago. The Ship Carve Stone is the embodiment of the benevolence of Mazu.

In the afternoon, you will visit Macau Tower, covering 13,363 square meters. As the eighth highest tour tower in the world, it is the tallest tour steel tower in Southeast Asia, with a height of 338 meters, surpassing the Eiffel Tower in Paris. On its observation deck, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery of Macao. Besides, there are various recreation activities, such as Bungy Jump, Sky Jump, skywalk, and so on.

Are you interested in casinos? Casino in the Venetian Macau Resort Hotel is an absolutely good place to experience the local culture. It is a must-visit place where there are various gambling ways.

Afterwards, you will take the ferry to Kowloon Ferry Terminal in Hong Kong from Taipa Terminal, which will take you about an hour. Your guide will pick you up at Kowloon Ferry Terminal in Hong Kong and send you to the hotel.

Ruins of St. Paul’s

Venetian Macau Resort Hotel

All of services end here. Hope to see you next time.

Author: Wang Chongchong

Proofreader: Lexie