Frommer's Hong Kong (Frommer's Complete Guides) [Paperback]

Beth Reiber (Author)

Book Description

Series: Frommer's Complete Guides | Publication Date: February 22, 2001

You'll never fall into the tourist traps when you travel with Frommer's. It's like having a friend show you around, taking you to the places locals like best. Our expert authors have already gone everywhere you might go -- they've done the legwork for you, and they're not afraid to tell it like it is, saving you time and money. No other series offers candid reviews of so many hotels and restaurants in all price ranges. Every Frommer's Travel Guide is up-to-date, with exact prices for everything, dozens of color maps, and exciting coverage of sports, shopping, and nightlife. You'd be lost without us!

Meticulously researched, Frommer's Hong Kong is the only guide you'll need to experience the best of this exotic city. Since Hong Kong reverted to Chinese control in 1997, it's been swept by many changes, including economic trends that spell bargains for you! Frommer's brings you all the latest developments, with practical tips on how to get around, and valuable advice on how to communicate and how to navigate the local etiquette and culture.

Look for candid reviews of the best accommodations, from plush, high-tech business hotels to moderately priced bargains. You'll also discover the best of the Hong Kong dining scene, including its world-renowned dim sum palaces, and the hottest places to play after dark. Detailed walking tours help you discover the hidden treasures of this fascinating city, and a complete shopper's guide covers everything from open-air markets and traditional Chinese antiques to tailor-made suits and the latest electronics. You'll even get a free, full-color fold-out map!

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Experience a place the way the locals do. Enjoy the best it has to offer. And avoid tourist traps. At Frommer's, we use 150 outspoken travel experts around the world to help you make the right choices. Frommer's. Your guide to a world of travel experience. Choose the Only Guide That Gives You:

• Outspoken opinions on what's worth your time and what's not.
• Exact prices, so you can plan the perfect trip no matter what your budget.
• Off-the-beaten-path experiences and undiscovered gems, plus new takes on top attractions.
• The best hotels and restaurants in every price range, with candid reviews.
• The expert guidance you need to take charge and travel with confidence.

Great trips begin at frommers.com

• Book flights, hotels, and rental cars.
• Get free updates on attractions and prices.

About the Author

About the Author Beth Reiber worked for several years in Germany as a freelance travel writer writing for major U.S. newspapers and in Tokyo as the editor of the Far East Traveler. Now a freelance travel writer residing in Lawrence, Kansas, with her husband and two sons, she's the author of several Frommer's guides, including Frommer's Japan and Frommer's Tokyo, and is a contributor to Frommer's Europe from $70 a Day and Frommer's Southeast Asia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 305 pages
• Publisher: Frommers; 6 edition (February 22, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764562576
• ISBN-13: 978-0764562570
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 4.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,410,428 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Woefully Inadequate, December 4, 2003

By 

Delta Dave "blues_man" (Santa Clara, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Frommer's(r) Hong Kong, 7th Edition (Paperback)

If there is a hell for travel writers, I hope Beth Reiber will burn in it. The useful information in this book could be condensed into a postage stamp size guide: One good Dim Sum Restaurant, one good Macanese Restaurant and one walk in The Western District. I recently traveled with this book to Hong Kong. I had a Hong Kong resident as a companion and still got lost using this book. Ms. Reiber recommends a walking tour of Kowloon, but does not bother to place the last four destinations on the included map. Nor does she say that you will encounter two rivers of humanity flowing in both directions that will turn a fifteen minute walk into a half hour hike. It is easier for salmon to swim upstream to spawn than it is to find the Bird Market in Kowloon. She also recommends a Kowloon park that is not even on the visitor map! (Just hop on the bus, she says. It stops across from the park. Hah!) We took the bus to Stanley after seeing Victoria Peak. The bus ride is interesting but time consuming. First time travelers on a three day holiday will never be able to complete her suggested three day tour. Taxis speed things up at night, but get snarled in traffic during the day. I was there six days and saw most of the things on her list, including a side trip to Macao, but only by the grace of God did my Hong Kong friend and I find the ruins of Saint Paul's Cathedral, so inadequate were the included maps. As for the unnecessary words: Anyone can walk into a four star hotel and find a great restaurant. If you follow Ms. Reiber's restaurant suggestions you'll be eating either Very Expensive or Expensive (her categories) most of the time. If you like to shop, which I do not, I'm sure you'll find Ms. Reiber's book helpful; she drags you through every major complex of shops on her walking tours. Rick Steves she ain't. So if you are planning a trip to Hong Kong you can buy this book, but get some good maps as a supplement and draw out your routes in advance. A few things Ms. Reiber doesn't mention: The locals seem to think that tea is a disinfectant for chop sticks and soup spoons. Bring a pack of Kleenex with you to a neighborhood restaurant, because napkins are not provided. And forget about breathing clean air while you are in Hong Kong. However, the city is full of delights and I intend to return, now that I know my way around.

23 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This book is not updated. Many names dont exist any more., November 23, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Frommer's Hong Kong (Frommer's Complete Guides) (Paperback)

What have the frommers done is Just duplicating the old edition with a new name. This so called 2001 edition " frommer's hong kong 6th eddition" has so many names I could not look up on the internet mainly because they were sold to another company with a different name. The air lines they suggested dont even fly to hong kong any more. Many restaurants were nonexistant. Things are changing rapidly in Hong Kong. Frommers has not kept up with those changes. Seems like a [price] rip off scam to me.

Good luck.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Handy and complete, June 12, 2006

By 

G. J. Quintero "GJQ" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Frommer's Hong Kong (Frommer's Complete) 8th Editon (Paperback)

Just got back from a quick jump over to HK and Macau for business and I brought this book along. Contrary to some other readers reviews, I found the book absolutely invaluable! The walking tours were quite insightful and with good directions and time estimates -I never got lost. Some of my most memorable experiences were from the walking tours in HK. The information was accurate and concise. It provided everything I needed to know about getting to the outlying islands on my free day, getting to the airport and getting around town. Nightlife recommendations were great for the foreign visitor on business. I compared the recommendations to that in Lonely Planet and my own experience and I thought the Frommer's was a lot more true to the scene than Lonely Planet. I didn't run into any snags while using the Frommer's book. I also took a side trip to Macau with the book and had a great time. Info was accurate, although the maps a little inadequate, but nothing a quick stop into the tourist office couldn't solve. I'd highly recommend the book and I'd pass it along to any colleagues or friends who might be going to HK since it never failed me once.