This guide will give you a run through of how I did two of the most famous sightseeing spots on Lantau Island in Hong Kong. 

Tai O, Hong Kong

Ngong Ping, Hong Kong

Lantau Island, Hong Kong

Hong Kong

China

A Day in Ngong Ping & Tai O (Hong Kong)

Welcome to this 1-day adventure you'll be embarking in Hong Kong! Before we start the journey, let's start off with some disclaimers and tips that might help you. And hopefully get you thinking about your own trip too.

⚠️ There will be a lot of walking, and as I'm sure you're aware already - some attractions are simply not accessible if you have mobility issues

⚠️ This is a plan based on what I personally did that one day I was there. I will throw in additional spots (if any) that maybe I didn't get to see that might be of interest to you. This means that if you do plan to pursue these extra activities, you may not have time to complete other activities. Time is of the essence here as we are in the mercy of limited public transport and their hours of operation. Please be aware.

⚠️I recommend doing this trip on a weekday, and avoid going during the weekends and national holidays. Please make sure you research when these national holidays may lie. Hong Kong and China don't always share the same national holidays, and if China has a holiday (but Hong Kong doesn't), this will affect crowding too.

Ok, now that's out of the way - let's start!

Today we'll be starting our journey in Tung Chung Station

This is the MTR station that connects to the airport line. Wherever you may be, please find your way to this station. For some, the MTR may be the quickest, but there are also a lot of E-route airport buses that will get you quite close to the station.

Now, you can buy same day tickets - but I highly recommend buying them ONLINE. 

Make your way to the Cable Car Terminus just a short walk from the MTR station. You will need to take an escalator up, cross the foot bridge - where all the ticket booths will be. There is a misleading sign on ground level that makes you think the ticket booths for same day tickets are at ground level. It's not. Just head up the escalators!

You can buy them in advance, but if you have a credit card on hand, you can also buy it on the spot when you're there too. But I recommend getting them in advance Why is that?

The same day ticket line when I got there on a normal weekday at 11:00AM was absolutely INSANE. Another thing I noticed was that buying on the spot online only gave me limited options, specifically only this one: 

Whilst if you check the website, there are some special packages you can get for Tai O too.

Round Trip Cable Car (“Crystal+” And Standard Cabin) - Tung Chung To Ngong Ping

The package with Tai O is quite affordable. The downside being that you cannot take the Crystal Cabin (glass floor). The line for the Crystal Cabins are significantly shorter, so paying extra for at least one trip of Crystal Cabin might be worth it.

https://webstore.np360.com.hk/en/c/tickets

So yes, bottom line - buy your tickets online!

This is a 25 minute cable car that takes you up to the village of Ngong Ping. I highly recommend this trip as it does give you a ton of scenic views of the nature that exists in Hong Kong and a slightly different offering of skyscapes as you ascend into the mountains. You also have unobstructed views of the airport!

The crystal cabin gives you a view of the water and hiking trails below your feet as you make your way up. Overall a great experience!

Each car fits about 8 people, and they will group strangers together if it gets busy. So please be prepared to share a car with someone! These are cable cars so they run one next to another, which makes the waiting less daunting.

⚠️ The cable car operation hours are from 10:00 to 18:00

(this means if you are doing the round trip, you need to plan to get back around 17:00)

Well, here we are. The village of Ngong Ping.

From here, you have some choices to make. You can either 

1) take the bus down to Tai O first and spend some time there, or 

2) stay in the village before going to Tai O.

I personally stayed in the village to climb the Buddha first, as I had missed the bus that runs only hourly into Tai O by mere minutes. If you are physically healthy and decently fit, an hour is plenty of time for you to slowly make your way up to the Buddha and back.

If you decide to stick around for Ngong Ping a little longer, here are some other things you can do:

Wall Art is going to be a common theme in these towns. They're very cute and beautiful, and I encourage you seek them out!

Don't be too alarmed to see cows or buffalos here, they are apparently wild but quite tame. But as the posters around this strip of the village say - don't touch them!

There are lots of clean toilets here. Try to walk a bit ways down the village away from the cable car area for less crowded toilets. There is one just around the corner from this shop:

⚠️ Please don't read this guide as you traveling. Read it before you go to make more informed decision and tailor it to your needs and your group.

There is bus #21 from Ngong Ping down to Tai O that runs hourly. Here is the time schedule as of 2023 from Ngong Ping Village:

The tofu dessert was smooth and ok, nothing special and more expensive that getting some at Tai O.

A Day in Ngong Ping & Tai O (Hong Kong)

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