Posted by
LaurenBeth
10 yrs ago
Hi everyone,
I'll hope you forgive my complete ignorance in this post - I know very little about Hong Kong so any help would be much appreciated!
My husband and I and our three children (ages 2, 5, 7) are relocating to Hong Kong from early 2014 from Australia. My husband has already started working around Nathan Road but he will be eventually based in Macau doing work for one of the casinos. I have heard a lot of very good things about Sai Kung and Discovery Bay. Although Discovery Bay appeals to me because there are a lot of expats; I think Sai Kung is better for us because my two older children will be going to school there. So my questions are...
1. Is is possible for my husband to commute from Sai Kung to Macau and if so, how, and how long will it take?
2. Could you please recommend some areas of Sai Kung where I can feel at home in the expat community and am close to cafes, shops etc?
Appreciate the help! Many thanks :)
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Sorry my children's school is actually in Clear Water Bay...
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Yeah, the school locations may be the driving factor
In which case you can forget about DB
Study the MTR map, if your kids are old enough to use that, and it is convenient enough
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Sounds like a terribly long commute everyday for your husband. I've not been to Sai Kung so I am definitely no authority on it, but I've heard that traffic can get jammed pretty badly getting out of there during rush hour. On top of that he then needs to get over to TKT or Shun Tak to catch the Macau ferry? I don't envy that commute.
My guess is it'll be 1.5 hours from door to office for him, or 3 hours roundtrip.
Presumably once the HK - Macau bridge is finished in a few years it'll be far easier for him, but for now it will likely be long.
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Maybe find a place to live next to an MTR station over near Clearwater Bay. That way your kids have a quick commute to school and your husband can take the Purple & Blue line to Sheung Wan to catch the turbojet at Shun Tak. That would be a much more pleasant commute for both parts of the family.
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ARe there any other schools you might consider?
This might open up some interesting options.
My partners parents live in Macau, and we visit there often. The commute from Olympic station to the Macau Ferry is very easy. That may not be obvious. But if you get to know HK better, you will discover some things like that - and I doubt that many HK Island based agents would tell you about this
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Olympic is quite convenient for turbojet access. You can either catch a 5 minute taxi to TST turbojet or take a 5 minute subway + 5 minute walk to Shun Tak. It would likely not be convenient for commuting to Clearwater Bay though.
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Yes. That's Very true, Lucane1.
That's why I was asking if there are alternatives for schools.
These two areas : Macau Ferry and Sai Kung, are very remote from each other
Some compromise will be needed IMHO - and the poster should visit HK and try to get a sense for which compromises will be most palatable.
The first shock that many newcomers to HK need to adjust to, is the idea that they can (and should maybe) live less car-dependent lives.
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Thankyou all for your advice! My children are attending a Steiner/Waldorf school in Clearwater bay so that's why I am set on that area. I am a Steiner teacher so that's why it's something I won'treally ccompromise on. The thought of living in Macau doesn't really appeal to me much I must admit. I will be visiting HK next week so I will have a better idea about all thid after the trip :)
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I'd recommend checking out places on the purple line near Clearwater Bay. You and your kids will have easy access to your schools and your husband will be on the MTR straight to Sheung Wan where he can catch the turbojet at Shun Tak. I think Sai Kung would just be a nightmare for his commute unless he has a black car waiting for him everyday. I haven't been out to those parts of town so I really cannot give you any specific advice - I'm just looking at the maps and considering the commute times.
Another option is your husband can stay a few nights in Macau each week that way he doesn't need to do a 2-3 hour roundtrip commute everyday. Just a thought.
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Kkris
10 yrs ago
This is all very well, but isn't clear water bay ESF already full for the foreseeable future?
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