Tips and advice for blending in easier after moving to Hong Kong

We are students conducting a project that aims to help immigrants assimilate easier after arriving at HK, so after surveys with immigrants, we have concluded a list that brings out what most immigrants think of Hong Kong!

1. It’s very easy to navigate road signs

- There are symbols (e.g. MTR) and directions indicated on signs in Chinese and English

2. To make transport more convenient:

- Download the MTR and bus app to check times, places and routes
- Google maps may not be very reliable as HK has high buildings and might block the receiving of signals

3. To adapt to HK cuisine easier:

- Download the Openrice app
- You can look for food, look at other people's reviews, look at price menus, ratings and pictures

4. To find out where to buy stuff easier:

- Go on forums such as GeoExpat, AsiaExpat, InterNations, Expat Arrivals, TripAdvisor to ask questions/ look at previous discussions
- Taobao, Tianmao, Carousell and HKTVmall are popular local online shopping platform
- Amazon and eBay products will sometimes ship to HK

5. Common phrases in Cantonese

- Hello (ha lo)
- Bye bye (bai bai)
- Good morning (jo sun)
- Please (mm goi)
- Thanks (dor tse)
- I’m sorry (dui mm zhu ah)
- Yes (hai ah / ho) ; No (mm hai / mm ho)
- Excuse me (mm goi je je)
- May you please repeat again? (ho mm ho yee gong do qee?)
- I don’t understand (o mm ming ah)
- Do you know where is the toilet? (cing men ci soh hai been? )
- I want to buy ‘this’ (Or seung mai li gor)
- How much does it cost? (lee go gei doh qeen)
- Can this be cheaper (hor mm hor yi peng d ahh?)

6. Changes in everyday habits you might experience after moving to HK

- Weather and Climate
- In winter it is usually 14-18°C (57-64°F) and in summer it is usually 29-33°C (84-91°F)
- HK is a relatively humid place, so you’ll want a dehumidifier around your home
- You can check the weather by downloading the HK observatory app

- It’s an EXTREMELY fast paced city, so watch out!
- You’ll probably be sleeping later waking up earlier
- You might be more interested in hiking since the distance between city and country is close and convenient

7. What HK is not really welcoming about

- People are not that friendly and open, so you may need to be more proactive
- HK is discriminatory (don’t be offended it’s just something HK still needs to work on)


If you have any further questions, feel free to reply to our post and we will answer them as soon as possible!