Visiting
Guides
Arrival
Please
inform the receiving units of the arrival date and time. Please refer to
“Airport” and “MTR East Rail” for information about how to get to CUHK
if the receiving units do not meet you at the airport.
The
regular office hours of CUHK are Monday-Thursday from 8:45 am to 5:30
pm, and Friday from 8:45 am to 5:45 pm. If receiving units are not able
to arrange accommodation upon arrival, please reserve rooms through the
University Guest House System at a rate of HK$300-500 a night. The rate of hotels near to the
University is approximately HK$800 per night. Meals at a moderately
priced restaurant should cost about HK$100 per day.
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Accommodation
On
campus: Delegations and scholars should contact host departments at an
early stage for advice on accommodation.
The
University Guest House System offers room and board facilities for visitors. For longer stays, there
are a limited number of apartments set aside for visiting faculty and
staff. These need to be booked through host departments.
Off
campus: There are three hotels in Shatin: the Hyatt Regency Shatin, the
Royal Park Hotel and the
Regal Riverside Hotel.
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Transport at the Hong Kong International Airport
The
Hong Kong International Airport
is located in Chek Lap Kok, on Lantau Island. Visitors can travel to The
Chinese University of Hong Kong by taxi or by bus and train. Taxi is the
best transport means for visitors who visit Hong Kong for the first
time.
-
By Taxi:
The fare
is about HK$320 from the Airport to the University and the trip takes
about 45 minutes. Most taxi drivers in Hong Kong know some English.
The following text may help just in case.
香港中文大學
"The Chinese University of Hong Kong" in Chinese.
-
By
Airport Bus and
MTR East Rail :
Take
the Airport Bus route A41 from the Airport to Shatin Station (fare:
exactly HK$20 payable on boarding the bus). The bus runs from 06:00 to
24:00 at 20-minute intervals. Shatin Station is not the terminal stop
for the bus, so please ask the driver where to get off. The bus ride
takes 50-70 minutes depending on traffic.
沙田火車站
"Shatin Train Station" in Chinese.
From
Shatin Station, take the trains towards Lo Wu, Tai Po Market or Sheung
Shui and get off at University Station (the second stop from Shatin).
The trains run every 5 to 10 minutes from 06:00 to 24:00. The train ride
from the Shatin Train Station to University Station takes about 8
minutes (fare: HK$4).
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Transportation from
Shenzhen
Visitors may arrive at Hong Kong via Shenzhen. After crossing the border
at the Lo Wu Immigration Control Point, please take a train at the Lo Wu
MTR station to University Station. The train ride takes about 20 minutes
and it runs from 06:38-00:30 (fare: HK$23).
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Bank
Accounts
Hang
Seng Bank has a branch on the CUHK campus. Visitors will need to bring
along their passport and visa to open a bank account. If their initial
deposit is over HK$5,000, there is no surcharge for opening the account.
They can also apply for a "Bank-in-One" card (free of charge), which
will provide access to the ATM machines. Banks in Hong Kong are
generally open on Monday to Friday, between 09.00 and 17.00.
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Climate
November and December are pleasant months with plenty of sunshine and
comfortable temperatures (16-23oC). January and February are
nice too, but the temperature can drop to below 10oC. March
and April are warm and humid. Most families in Hong Kong have a
dehumidifier for keeping the air fresh and drying their clothes. Summer
is very hot (over 30oC) and rainy, with occasional tropical
cyclones. For more information, please click
here.
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Cost of
Living
The
cost of living is quite high in Hong Kong. The prices for services and
goods, particularly anything imported from abroad, can equal or surpass
those in any other major metropolitan areas of the world, but good buys
are also available through careful shopping, plus a little bargaining in
Cantonese. Some indicative prices are as follows.
| |
Item |
Expenditure (HK$) |
|
1. |
Train fare from CUHK to downtown Kowloon |
9.00 |
|
2. |
Bus fare from CUHK to Hong Kong |
18.20 - 25.00 |
|
3. |
A
McDonald's Extra Value Meal |
24.00 |
|
4. |
Movie ticket |
30.00 - 70.00 |
|
5. |
Dinner at a moderately priced Chinese restaurant |
50.00 - 100.00 |
|
6. |
Levi's Jeans |
700.00 |
|
7. |
Newspaper |
6.00 - 7.00 |
|
8. |
An opera ticket |
200.00 - 600.00 |
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Driver's License
Visitors will need to have an international driving licence to be
eligible to drive in Hong Kong.
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Electricity
The
voltage is 220 V in Hong Kong. The shape of the socket is:
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Emergencies
In case
of a major emergency, dial 999 and ask for police, ambulance, fire
brigade or poison information.
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Groceries
The
major food store chains are Park'n Shop, Wellcome, Circle K and Seven Eleven. There are also a number
of specialist stores, e.g. Watson's, Mannings (for health and skin care), Pricerite, IKEA (for furniture, beddings, etc.), Japan Home Centre (for cheap groceries).
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Identity Card
Every
person aged 11 and above who enters and is permitted to stay in Hong
Kong for more than 180 days must apply to register for an identity card
within 30 days of arrival.
Visitors
can go to the Registration of Persons Office on the 8th Floor of the
Immigration Tower, 7 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong or at its
branch office; the nearest one is the Immigration – Fotan Office.
To save
time waiting, applicants are encouraged to make an appointment by phone:
2653 3116 (Immigration – Fotan Office).
To
obtain your HKID card, you need to bring along your passport. The first HKID card is free.
Carry
your HKID card if you have one, or a photocopy of your passport all the
times. Police make occasional checks and failure to produce the above
documents may result in a fine of HK$1,000. For details, please click here to visit the Immigration Department website.
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Language Courses
The New Asia-Yale-in-China Chinese Language Centre offers small group, intensive Putonghua/Cantonese training at six levels
throughout the year. There is also a three-month special course for
University staff and staff spouses held in the evening.
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Health
Insurance
Visitors are encouraged to carry valid accident and health insurance
(including hospitalisation) coverage with provisions for emergency
evacuation/rescuer's expenses and repatriation for the duration of their
visit to Hong Kong. Visitors can contact us for
advice on joining private insurance schemes.
In case
hospitalisation is required, visiting researchers or faculty who have
HKID cards are eligible for treatment in general wards at Hong Kong
public hospitals and to receive medical treatment. Semi-private and
private rooms are considerably more expensive, as are the corresponding
charges for medical treatment and operations. If coverage for
semi-private and private hospital accommodation in Hong Kong is needed,
please arrange for private insurance protection.
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Medical
Advice/Treatment
The University Health Service (UHS) provides outpatient service for visiting scholars. The minimum charge is
HK$150, including 3 days of medication. The office hours are Monday to
Thursday: 08:00-17:30 and Friday 08:45 -17:45. The UHS is closed on
Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Please make appointments by
telephoning 2609 6439.
As the
UHS is not equipped fully for serious accidents and emergencies, all
SERIOUS ILLNESS/INJURY or EMERGENCY cases must seek attention and
treatment from the Accident and Emergency Department of a hospital (the
closest hospital is the Prince of Wales Hospital).
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Newspapers
The two
English daily newspapers are the South China Morning Post and the
Standard. Major Chinese newspapers include the Apple Daily, the Oriental
the Daily News, the Sun and Mingpao. Foreign newspapers are available in
the University Main Library, and can be
bought from some newspaper kiosks.
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Post
Offices
There
is a Post Office on the CUHK campus. Hong Kong Post Offices are generally open from Monday to Friday 09.00-17.00 and on
Saturday 09.00-13.00.
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General Public Holidays
Please
refer to this website.
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Schools for Accompanying Children
The
primary and junior secondary (up to Secondary 3) classes in public
sector schools are free of charge, the fees for Secondary 4 and 5 are at
present HK$6,020 per annum and for Secondary 6 and 7 are HK$8,750 per
annum. For further information on schools for non-Chinese speaking
children, please refer to the
Education
Bureau website.
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Telephone
Housing
a population that is one of the world's highest per capita users of
cellular phones and radio pagers, Hong Kong thrives on efficient
telecommunications. Local calls from public coin phones cost HK$1 for
five minutes. Cellular phone and IDD cards are available at convenience
stores and telecommunication shops.
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Useful Numbers
Phone
Directory Enquiries: 1081
Time: 18501
Weather: 187 8066
Collect Calls: 10010
Overseas IDD and Cardphone Enquiries: 10013
Emergency Service (Police, Fire, Ambulance): 999
English Newsline: 900 0038 7177
Hong Kong Tourism Board Visitor Hotline: 2508 1234
To have
a telephone installed, please contact one of the fixed
telecommunications network service providers. The cost of the first line
is about HK$500. Another alternative is to buy a new or used mobile
phone and a pre-paid card.
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TV/Radio
Hong
Kong's television viewers have access to over 40 domestic and
non-domestic television programme service channels in various languages.
These include four free-to-air terrestrial TV channels, over 30 pay TV
channels and a variety of free-to-air satellite channels.
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