In a city where every square foot costs around $2,000, it’s hard to imagine being able to have a cheap trip to Hong Kong.
But the concrete jungle will surprise you if you do it right.
Here’s how to have a cheap trip in Hong Kong:
1. Couchsurf
Couchsurfing is one of the most underrated travel networks. We stayed with a local host named Peter, for FREE.
Couchsurfing connects you to a global community of travelers. These travelers open their homes to other like-minded travelers, usually for free. It’s like Airbnb, but you actually stay with the host and get to know someone local.
The idea is that when you finish traveling, you might consider sharing your home with others. It’s like one, big beautiful network of very generous former or current travelers.
2. Get free lunch at the Sikh Temple
If you’re exploring Hong Kong Island and find yourself with a hankering for incredible vegetarian food, make your way to the Khalsa Diwan Sikh Temple.
Everyday over lunch, they serve a free meal to international visitors of any faith.
Remove your shoes, grab a head covering, and descend to the basement cafeteria area, where you grab a tray and cup before sitting in long rows on the ground. Men and women come around with giant vats of various, delicious vegetarian dishes (think curries, yogurts, etc.) and dish it onto your tray. Finish your meal off with a cup of hot chai tea.
The food is incredible and the kindness and generosity admirable. If you wish, you can leave a donation. When we were there in December 2019, they were asking for donations to help restore the nearly 120-year-old temple.
3. Go to free or cheap cultural sites
Hong Kong’s list of free things to do will keep you busy for weeks.
Skip the overpriced touristy stuff. For instance, the uber-expensive combo ticket to get up Victoria Peak and access the Sky Terrace 428 there costs $99 HK ($12.75 US). You can simply get a tram return ticket (without the Sky Terrace) for half that at $52 HK ($6.70 US).
At the top of Victoria’s Peak, you’ll be able to find your own viewpoint, and it will give you nearly the same view with 10x fewer people.
I can personally recommend the permanent — and FREE — exhibits at the Hong Kong Museum of History. Covering two floors, walk through the history of Hong Kong from 400 million years ago and the formation of the islands to life-sized villages and homes of various clans and groups who have lived here to the reunification of Hong Kong with China.
I’m all for interactive museums, and this one was superb!
Other great freebies include the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery (pictured below) and the Avenue of Stars and Symphony Light Show. At the former, you get your sweat on climbing a path lined with life-sized golden statues, culminating in a temple lined with 10,000 small Buddhas. The latter is the city’s “walk of fame” topped off with a nightly light show, which happens at 8 p.m.
Other free things to do in Hong Kong that sounded interesting (but I didn’t get the chance to do) were the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens and the Hong Kong Science Museum, which is free entry on Wednesdays.
4. Hike
The most surprising part of my trip to Hong Kong was the sheer amount of hiking you can do. I always assumed it was just skyscraper on skyscraper, but Hong Kong’s various islands and neighborhoods have so many great hikes.
During our week in Hong Kong, we hiked three times and I would 100% recommend all three to anyone who loves hiking.
Suicide Cliff (pictured above) sits on Kowloon Island. You walk up a random driveway and have to search for a dirt track on the right-hand side. This track steeply winds up the side of a large peak overlooking the city.
Warning: it’s incredibly steep! Like, we were almost on hands and knees and had to grab onto tree branches to hoist ourselves up in some parts.
The views of the harbour and city were worth the hike, but this one’s not for the faint of heart. At the top, a sharp drop has caused several hikers to plummet to their deaths from various accidents, so be cautious.
Our Couchsurfing host took us on another popular hike through a different part of Hong Kong called the Dragon’s Back. You walk up and along a ridgeline (hence the name) with views of small fishing villages and small bays away from the main city.
My personal favorite hike was to a giant Buddha via Lan Tau Peak (above). This hike climbed up and up and UP and felt a bit neverending, but our reward waited at the top in the form of incredible views above Hong Kong’s notorious smog line.
It’s a grueling one, and you can easily reach the Buddha without doing this hike. But if you’re up for a challenge, it was my favorite hike in Hong Kong.
5. Eat where the students do
I was lucky enough to visit Hong Kong with a friend who had studied abroad there just a few years earlier, so he knew all the great, cheap places to eat.
I’ve written an entire blog post on this subject, but you can eat for $10-15 and leave stuffed from every place mentioned. Oh, and did I say that one of those places is Michelin starred?
6. Win some money back at the horse races
For just $10 HK ($1.29) you can join in an infamous Hong Kong activity – Wednesday night horse races at Happy Valley Racecourse.
The city congregates here at the only legal gambling outlet on the island every Wednesday to place bets on their favorite horses. Bets can be as small as $10 HK, and depending on your odds, you can win that back and more. My friend won $150 HK.
Obviously, use your best sense here. Set a limit and don’t spend above that. If you do that, you can have a very fun Wednesday night out for less than $10 at Happy Valley.
Hong Kong’s surprising mix of free things to do and cheap accommodation and food (if you know where to look) actually made this expensive city one of the most budget and backpacker friendly places we visited.