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- Business culture is generally very formal. Customary attire is suits and ties.
- Meetings almost always begin with the exchange of business cards.
- Business cards are very important. Be sure to bring an adequate supply.
- Meetings should be scheduled in advance and adhered to. Punctuality is important.
- Banquet-style meals are often the setting of business entertainment. Chinese business associates will usually be the hosts at such meals and take responsibility for ordering all the dishes.
- The party that extends an invitation is responsible for organizing the meal and paying for it.
- As most Hong Kong residences are small, invitations to homes are rarely extended. If you are invited to someone's home, bring a small gift like chocolates, flowers or wine.
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Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce 22/F, United Centre, 95 Queensway; Tel.: +852 2529-9229 ; www.chamber.org.hk Chinese General Chamber of Commerce 4/F, 24-25 Connaught Road C; Tel.: +852 2525 6385 ; www.tdctrade.com Germany 3601 Tower One, Lippo Centre, 89 Queensway; Tel.: +852 2526-5481 ; www.china.ahk.de France Unit 702-03, 7/F Ruttonjee House, Ruttonjee Centre, 11 Duddell Street; Tel.: +852 2523-6818 ; www.uccife.org Italy Room 903, Wilson House, 19-27 Wyndham Street, Central; Tel.: +852 2521-8837 ; www.icc.org.hk Korean Chamber of Commerce Room 302 Blissful Building, 243-247 Des Voeux Road, Central; Tel.: +852 2544 1713 ; www.kochamhk.org Japan 38/F, Hennessy Centre, 500 Hennessy Rd., Causeway Bay; Tel.: +852 2577-6129 ; www.hkjcci.com.hk U.K. Room 1201, Emperor Group Centre, 288 Hennessy Road, WanChai; Tel.: +852 2824-2211 ; www.britcham.com U.S. 1904 Bank of America Tower, 12 Harcourt Road; Tel.: +852 2526-0165 ; www.amcham.org.hk
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Russia Rooms 2106 - 2123, 21/F, Sun Hung Kai Centre, 30 Harbour Road Wan Chai; Tel : + 852 2877 7188 France 18 Harcourt Rd., Admiralty, Hong Kong; Tel.: +852 319 66 100 Germany 95 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong; Tel.: + 852 21 05 87 77 ; www.auswaertiges-amt.de Italy Rm 3203-6, 32/F Asia Pacific Finance Tower, 3 Garden Road Central; Tel. : + 852 2522 0033 Brazil Rooms 2014-2021, Sun Hung Kai Centre, 30 Harbour Road Wan Chai ; Tel. : + 852 2525 7002 Korea Room 4007, 40/F, China Resources Building, 26 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong ; Tel. : + 852 2803 4447 Mexico , 1304 Great Eagle Centre, 23 Harbour Rd., Kowloon, Tel.: +852 2511-3318 Japan 8 Connaught Place; Tel.: +852 2522-1184 U.K. 1 Supreme Court Rd.; Tel.: +852 2901-3000 ; www.fco.gov.uk U.S. 26 Garden Rd., Hong Kong; Tel.: +852 2523-9011
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Business centers provide a range of services that include secretarial, translation/interpretation, and office services, including computer rentals, audio/visual equipment rentals, cellular phone rentals, copy and printing services, and temporary office space and staff. The Executive Centre 16/F Cheung Kong Center, 2 Queen's Road, Central ; Tel. : + 852 2297 0222 ; www.executivecentre.com The Executive Centre 29-32/F, 30 Queen's Road, Central ; Tel. : + 852 2168 0888 ; www.executivecentre.com The Executive Centre 8 F, Bank of America Tower, 12 Harcourt Road, Central ; Tel. : + 852 2584 6222 ; www.executivecentre.com The Executive Centre 1805 Wheelock House, 20 Pedder Street, Central ; Tel. : + 852 2293 2293 ; www.executivecentre.com Hong Kong One International Finance Centre 18 & 19th Floors, 1 Harbour View Street, Central; Tel.: +852 2166-8888 ; www.hq.com Hong Kong Pacific Place 39th Floor, One Pacific Place, 88 Queensway; Tel.: +852 2273-5888 ; www.hq.com Hong Kong Shui On Centre 2nd Floor, Shui On Centre, 6-8 Harbour Road, Wanchai; Tel.: +852 2824-8888 ; www.hq.com Most large hotels also have business centers that offer many of the same services that independent centers provide.
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Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre 1 Expo Dr.; Tel.: +852 2582-8888 ; www.hkcec.com.hk
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TransPerfect Translations Ltd Tel : + 852 2251 1945 ; www.transperfect.com Multilingual Translation Services (MTS) ; Tel.: + 852 2581 9099 ; www.multilingual.com.hk Polyglot Tel.: +852 2851-7232 ; www.polyglot.com.hk Translingual Professional Communications Ltd Tel.: + 852 2581-1155 ; www.translingualhk.com
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DHL Tel.: +852 2400-3388 ; www.dhl.com FedEx Admiralty Center ; www.fedex.com FedEx Ocean Centre ; www.fedex.com TNT Tel.: + 852 2331 2663 ; www.tnt.com
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All upper-range and most medium-priced hotels are equipped with dataports that allow guests to use laptop computers. Many hotels also offer business centers equipped with computers and Internet access. Outside hotels, cyber cafes are available including: Pacific Coffee Company - Citibank Plaza Tel: +852 2878-7040 ; www.pacificcoffee.com Pacific Coffee Company - Dorset House Tel.: +852 2968-4125 ; www.pacificcoffee.com Pacific Coffee Company - International Finance Centre Tel.: + 852 2868 5100 ; www.pacificcoffee.com Shadowman Tel.: +852 2366-5262 ; www.wcities.com
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Citizens of the U.K. can stay in Hong Kong for up to 6 months with a valid passport, while citizens of Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea can stay up to 3 months. U.S. and Mexican citizens need can with up to 1 months with only a valid passport. For the most part, with a valid passport, travelers can stay between 14 days and 3 months. Duty-free allowances are 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 250 grams of tobacco, 1 liter of alcohol, and 60 ml of perfume. You can bring in an unlimited amount of money, as well as almost any non-hazardous goods.
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Country code 852. All phone numbers are eight digits, beginning with 2.
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Emergency police, fire, ambulance : 999 Police : 2860-2000 Free ambulance service : 2576-6555 Taxi complaint and crime hotline : 2527-7177 (english)
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All local calls are free, and you can usually use any phones in hotel lobbies and restaurants for no charge. Payphones require HK$1 for five minutes. For IDD calls, use a payphone or go to a Hong Kong Telecom offices. Dial 10010 for operator-assisted calls to most countries, including France, Korea, the United States, and the U.K. Dial 10011 for credit-card, collect, and international conference calls. For directory inquiries in English call 1081 for local numbers and 10013 for international inquiries. You can dial direct from many hotel and business centers, but always with a hefty surcharge. The cheapest and most convenient method of making international calls is to use PhoneCards. You can also make cashless international calls from any telephone in Hong Kong by using Home Direct, which provides immediate and direct access to an operator in the country you are calling.
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If you choose to bring your cellular phone abroad, be sure to check with your home cellular service provider to establish compatibility of your phone with systems in Hong Kong. Hong Kong uses GSM, TACS, CDMA, TDMA, and ETACS. Rental of a locally compatible cellular phone before you arrive to obtain reasonable rates and reliable service.
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Units of currency are the Hong Kong dollar (HK$) and the cent. Bills come in denominations of 1,000, 500, 100, 50, 20, and 10 dollars. Coins are 10, 5, 2, and 1 dollar and 50, 20, and 10 cents.
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Restaurants : 10% is automatically added. It is customary to leave an additional 5-10% tip for the waiter. Taxi : Round up your bill to the nearest HK$1 or add a HK$1 (15¢) tip. Barbershop/beauty shop : 5 to 10%. Bellhops : HK$10 to HK$20, depending on the number of bags. Chambermaids and room attendants : 2% of the room charge.
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Hong Kong standard time is eight hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time. Hong Kong does not observe Daylight Savings Time.
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No VAT or sales tax. Hotels will add a 10% service charge and a 3% government tax. Restaurants and bars will automatically add a 10% service charge. There's an airport departure tax of HK$50 for adults and children older than 12.
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The electrical current in Hong Kong is 220 volts, 50 cycles alternating current (AC); in Macau it's also 220 volts, 50 cycles. Some outlets in Hong Kong take plugs with three round prongs, while others use plugs with two square prongs.
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It is not recommended to rent a car in Hong Kong, due to terrible traffic congestion and difficult navigation. In addition, Hong Kong's public transportation is extensive and convenient. Hong Kong's subway system is among the best in the world; however it closes at 12:30 am. Fares range from HK$4 to HK$26. Taxi is widely available. Most taxi drivers understand little English. It is advisable to carry a map or the destination name written in Chinese characters. Fares are HK$14 for the first two kilometers and HK$1.20 for each additional 0.2 kilometers after that. Tunnel charges are additional. The public bus system is widely used and extends to almost all destinations in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. Buses generally run from 6 am to midnight. Exact change is required. Double-decker buses and maxicabs (green tops) have predetermined stops. Mini-buses are waved down by passengers who want to climb aboard. Star Ferry offers spectacular views and is the cheapest crossing method. You can ride upper deck (HK$2.20) or lower deck (HK$1.70). Ferries run every few minutes between Tsim Sha Tsui and Central (a 7-minute ride; daily 6:30 am-11:30 pm) and between Tsim Sha Tsui and Wanchai.
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Hong Kong has comparable health standards as other major international cities and does not pose any special health hazards.
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- New Year's Day January 1
- Chinese New Year or Spring Festival Late January to mid-February
- Spring Lantern Festival 15th day of the first moon, at the end of Chinese New Year
- Good Friday Friday before Easter
- Easter Sunday in mid-March or early April
- Ching Ming or Remembrance of the Dead April 5
- Dragon Boat Festival Fifth day of the fifth moon, June
- SAR Establishment Day July 1
- Sino-Japanese War Victory Day August 17
- National Day October 1-2
- Mid-Autumn Festival 15th day of the eighth moon, in September or early October
- Chung Yeung Festival October
- Christmas December 25
- Boxing Day December 26
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The Jumbo Floating Restaurant in Aberdeen Harbour is a floating seafood house where you can pick your own meal out from a selection swimming in a tank. Café Gypsy is a great venue to eat light, delightful French cuisine. The Hunan Garden is a friendly restaurant, where live Chinese music accompanies a range of mostly spicy dishes from the Hunan province. A supremely refined Italian dining experience, Gaia Ristorante has one of Hong Kong's best open-air dining areas. Located in the basement of the Langham Hotel, The Bostonian American Bar & Restaurant offers fresh oysters and lobsters all year round, and an award winning collection of Californian wines. The Luk Yu Teahouse is one of Hong Kong's gastronomic temples. For a special treat, go to the Indochine 1929, where the colonial setting evokes the breezy veranda of a Franco-Viet plantation house.
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Hong Kong is renowned as a shopping destination. You can often find designer apparel and custom-made clothes at factory-outlet prices. Distinctive Hong Kong gifts include Chinese goods like porcelain, silk crafts and garments, jade, hand-embroidered items, jewelry and artwork. You may find bargains on quality Chinese antiques, furniture, leather goods, luggage and briefcases, handbags, shoes, jewelry, watches, eyeglasses and toys.
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SoHo is a stylish area featuring numerous cafés and bars. The world's longest escalator, the Mid-Levels escalator, at 800 meters (2622 ft), offers a vantage point on the area's streets and many people-watching opportunities. The New Territories is the site of beautiful parks and trails like Plove Cove Reservoir and MacLehose Trail, and a tribute to traditional Chinese life. The Hong Kong Tourist Association organizes tours that allow you to visit some of the smaller, traditional villages. The area of Lan Kwai Fong and the adjoining area of SoHo feature some of Hong Kong's most vibrant nightlife. A quieter evening activity is taking a walk along Victoria Peak or Tsim Sha Tsui harbor waterfront. A visit to the Temple Street Night Market can also be an interesting experience. The most popular sporting event in Hong Kong is horse racing. The only legalized form of gambling, races are held on Wednesday evenings and some Saturday and Sunday afternoons between September and mid-June.
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