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Business Travel in Hong Kong

Hong Kong, with its population of 7 million, has long been considered one of the world’s most vibrant and energetic cities and an international business and financial centre in Asia.

Hong Kong’s key areas of financial activity are predominately in Northern Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon areas. Though separated by a short stretch of water, it is only a five minute commute between the two via the subway. The key areas of commerce along the Hong Kong strip seldom stray from the Central to Causeway Bay areas.

Serving as a bridge linking Asia and the western world for many generations resulted in the rapid development of Hong Kong’s logistics industry, which has fed off the flow of wealth and goods between China and the West.

Accommodation

Hong Kong has more than 600 registered hotels and guest houses offering more than 50,000 rooms, but choosing the right hotel is not as easy as the numbers might indicate. In Hong Kong, travel distances must be considered.

The best and worst thing about Hong Kong is its size. Since it is small, land comes at a premium; so accommodation costs are higher. Yet, if you pick the right hotel, you can minimize your travel distances. If your business activity takes place in the Central area of Hong Kong Island, you will have hundreds of hotels to choose from with a wide price range.

Getting a hotel and room close to an underground metro station and to the sea should be considered, especially when you are on Hong Kong Island or Kowloon, since both have coastlines. Some of the most attractive, sub-luxury locations of the city are older waterfront locations such as those in Repulse Bay, Stanley and Aberdeen Harbour. Ensuring that your room has a harbour view is a good idea. Requests for such rooms during the low season will not incur additional costs for business travellers. Victoria Harbour’s night view is one of the most famous and beautiful in the world.

Some of the oldest retreats in Hong Kong are those built during the earlier colonial times, such as the Peninsula Hotel, the Mandarin Oriental and the Grand Hyatt. However, meeting the needs of tourists in recent years has resulted in the development of many four- and five-star star hotels that follow mainstream trends. You may even want to experience one of many theme-park-orientated resorts during your stay, such as the Disneyland Resort.

Exhibition and Convention Centres

Hong Kong’s conventions and exhibitions are respected across Asia. And now, with the increasingly efficient communications and transportation means between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, many global exhibition organizers choose Hong Kong for its value as a window on China and to test marketing ideas before directly plunging into mainland markets. The iconic Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center (HKCEC) is the best known venue for such events in the city.

Originally built in 1988 and reconstructed in 1994, the HKCEC features more than 28,000 square metres (sq.m) of internal exhibition space, yet it is only one of two major exhibition centres in Hong Kong.

The second is the AsiaWorld-Expo that opened in December 2006 after an investment of more than HK$ 2.64 billion, offering more than 70,000 sq.m of rentable space. AsiaWorld-Expo has ten exhibition halls and can seat up to 13,500 people. Located adjacent to the Hong Kong International airport, this centre is conveniently located, making getting there and away easy to do.

Transportation in Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s small size, combined with its convenient public transportation system, makes it easy to navigate the entire city. More than 90 percent of the daily journeys in the city are via public transportation, the highest rate of use in the world.

But first, if you are planning to travel by public transport, you may want to purchase an “Octopus Card,” also known as the electronic money system, which is accepted on all methods of public transportation in Hong Kong. Today these systems can also be used for convenience in supermarkets, at fast-food chains and convenience stores.

The most advanced method of public transportation is the Mass Transport Railway (MTR). This railway went into service in 1979; it has 150 operating stations located along 211 kilometres of track. The vast majority of commercial locations in Hong Kong were constructed around this system; so if you get lost, look for the nearest MTR station for your rescue.

All locations mentioned above are easily reachable via MTR services, including a number of stations on Hong Kong Island located along the “Island Line,” one of the many train channels available depending on your destination.

In addition to the metro, Hong Kong also has developed large and light bus services and almost all such transportation means offer bilingual instruction for their proper and most efficient use. For business travellers, taking the Hong Kong Tramways, which have been in service since 1904, is as much a tourist outing as a mode of transportation.

A little research can go a long way in helping you avoid excessive taxi expenses; still, taxis in Hong Kong are readily available and will print receipts upon request. Always pick the correct colour of taxi, a decision determined by your travel destination. In addition to price differences depending on the types of taxis, usually drivers will only know their assigned service areas well enough to ensure the best service.

香港——国际会展之都

文/胡瑶

享有“东方明珠”美誉的香港曾被喻为世界三大天然海港之一。这座人口只有700万的城市，长期以来一直被认为是亚洲最具活力、经济最发达和生活水准最高的地区之一。

同时，做为历史上从东方通向西方的门户，香港还被看成是中国大陆与西方国家的中转站，物流业在此迅速展，而中国大陆则是香港转口货物的最主要来源地兼最大的市场。

香港具备周边许多国家和地区不可替代的优越条件，与中国大陆以及其它东南亚经济体系联系紧密，是连接北美洲与欧洲时差的桥梁，又与世界各地建立了良好的通讯网络，因此成为重要的国际金融中心。其中，金融、旅游、物流和商业服务是香港的4大支柱产业。

住在香港

香港主要的金融中心集中在北部和九龙岛地区，二者被一段水域所隔，乘坐地铁从过海隧道穿行只需要5分钟的时间。商业中心依水而立，主要分布在从中环到铜锣湾一带。

根据香港官方的统计数据显示，香港目前有600多家注册酒店和宾馆，客房数量多达5万余间，从简朴廉价的宾馆到豪华昂贵的星级酒店，在此寻找一个住处绝非难事，关键在于出行距离。

香港狭小的面积有时是她最大的优势，但有时也是其最大的劣势。有限的土地资源使这里的地价居高不下，但同时也缩短了本地出行的距离。如果工作范围主要集中在香港岛的中心区域，可供选择的酒店不论价格、类型都是很多的。

同时靠近地铁站和海岸的酒店可以在此轻松找到，特别是在香港岛和九龙这两个同时拥有海岸线的岛屿。浅水湾、赤柱以及香港仔湾等一带老区虽然算不上摩登时髦，但也仍保有自已鲜明的特色。在这里选择一间可以观赏到海景的房间将会是个明智的选择，特别是在淡季，海景房可能并不会为商务旅行人士增加额外费用，还可以饱览窗外世界闻名的维多利亚湾的美丽夜景。

在香港，诸如半岛酒店、东方文华酒店和君悦酒店这些知名品牌饭店都具有悠久的历史。随着近些年来，香港政府对旅游业的重视，一大批新建的四、五星级酒店为游客提供了更多的选择。除此之外，还可以考虑注重景观设计、风景优美的度假村酒店，如迪士尼乐园度假村酒店。

会展之都

香港，凭借其便利的交通、丰富和公开的信息、完善的服务体系以及亚洲首屈一指的展览及会议设施，成为举办国际会议及展览的热门地方，享有着“国际会展之都”的美誉。同时，香港庞大的市场需求——15万家贸易公司和800多家跨国企业，也为参展商提供了大量的商贸机会。

作为一项系统工程，香港目前已经建成了较为完善的支持会展业发展的服务体系，为各界参展商提供从入港到住宿，再到各参展环节的优质酒店、餐饮及交通服务。

与香港毗邻，有“世界工厂”之称的珠江三角洲，云集着各类生产厂家。世界各国的贸易客商还可以从香港顺道到珠江三角洲参观。

此外，中国大陆经济的高速发展使得香港还跃升为采购高档商品的首选地。有大陆生产的高档消费品为支撑，结合香港的优势产业，香港的会展业定位为中高档消费品展览，参展商可通过展会接触到有实力的商家，这是亚洲其它城市举办展览会所无法比拟的。

展览公司是联系买家和卖家的纽带，香港的展览公司通过对买家和卖家提供专业到位的服务，成为促进香港会展业发展的中坚力量。随着香港会展业的不断提升，香港会展公司也日趋走向国际化、专业化。如今，随着内地与香港间旅行限制条件的日益放宽，许多国际会展机构在进军中国大陆市场前都会先登陆香港，将此做为对大陆投资的窗口或试验地。

香港综合会展的举办地要首推香港会展中心，它于1988年竣工，在1994年时被重新翻修，是亚洲首个专为展览会议而兴建的大型设施。其中，室内展区的面积达到2.8万平方米，是香港面积最大的会展场所之一。会展中心大片的落地玻璃窗正对着湾仔码头，造型设计犹如一只展翅飞翔的巨鸟，不仅成为香港的标志性建筑之一，成为游客观光的新景点。

2006年12月开业的亚洲国际博览馆是香港第二大会展场所，位于香港国际中心，耗资26.4亿港币建成的亚洲博览中心共设有10个展区，可出租区域的面积为7万余平方米，最多能容纳13500人。

行在香港

香港拥有高度发达的交通网路，人们的出行十分便捷。公共运输的主要组成部分包括铁路、巴士、小巴、的士及渡轮等，由这些组成的运输网几乎伸展到港内的每一个角落，公共运输系统的使用率在占到香港日常出行率的90％以上，居世界第一。

如果选择乘坐公共交通工具，要做的第一件事就是买一张八达通卡，这种名为八达通的电子车票兼货币系统除了可以在香港的各种公共交通工具上使用，还可以在超市，快餐店和便利店等日常消费场所使用。

地铁是香港最主要的公共交通工具。香港地铁从1979年开始运营，现在已经发展成为拥有150个地铁站，运营里程超过211千米的庞大地下交通体系。大部分商业点附近都设有地铁站，如果在城市中不小心迷路的话，只要找到最近的地铁站就能找回方向。

除地铁外，香港的巴士系统也非常发达，有公共小巴、新巴、城巴、大屿山巴士等。所有巴士上都有中英文双语指示，票价每程2元左右起价，有些路线兼有或只有空调车服务，收费则略高。行驶在香港岛北岸的电车更是世界惟一使用两层电车的车队。位于香港中环至半山的自动扶梯系统，是世界最长的半封闭自动行人电梯系统。

如果选择乘坐出租车，出行前了解一下路线可以节省不少费用，不同颜色的出租车收费标准不同，上车时最好根据目的地选对出租车的颜色，下车时记得向司机索要发票。另外，通常司机们也只熟悉他们经常活动范围内的道路，问清楚再上车才能确保能安全抵达。