Using the Octopus Card in Hong Kong: Everything You Need to Know

Like Charlie and Grandpa Joe after that serendipitous purchase of a Wonka Bar, the Octopus Card is your golden ticket. 

However, instead of unfettered access to an eccentric, authoritarian, and braggadocious chocolate proprietor’s mysterious factory and its white-overall-wearing orange-faced miniature constituents, it grants you access to Hong Kong’s expansive, efficient, affordable transportation network. 

Hong Kong’s Octopus card is ubiquitous. Hence the name and its Cantonese name ‘Baat Daaht Tung’, which translates to ‘eight-arrived pass’, or more aptly ‘go anywhere pass’ and/or ‘reaching everywhere’. Just like an Octopus’s eight tentacles. 

As the city’s most popular contactless, stored-value, rechargeable smart card for electronic payments, the Octopus card is used everywhere. From Hong Kong’s metro (MTR) to buses, trams, ferries, convenience stores, supermarkets, restaurants, movie theaters, horse races (you heard me!), and even utility services, this is the one card both residents and tourists need to survive in the city. 

And, it’s as easy as pie to use. However, there are still several questions both tourists and newly settled residents of Hong Kong might have about it, like ‘Where can I buy one?’, ‘How can I customize it?’, ‘How do I recharge it?’, and ‘Is there a special card for seniors, students, or disabled persons?’. 

Everything you need to know about using an Octopus Card in Hong Kong is covered below. 

A Savvy Insider’s Guide to Getting Around Hong Kong

A hill that I’m willing to die on is that Hong Kong may be a contender for the most convenient city in the world. And that is all made possible because it has one of the most comprehensive transport networks I’ve ever encountered. 

From a transportation network of British double-decker busses that carve the city with ease, to leisurely tram rides on the beloved ‘Ding Ding’, iconic voyages cross-harbor on the football-shaped Star Ferry, shoulder to shoulder commutes via the metro, tri-color taxis skewering the city into three, and red minibuses that barrel around corners like bats out of hell, Hong Kong transportation isn’t just convenient, it’s legendary. 

There’s rarely a pocket of the city that you would have trouble reaching via public transport. And in that case, there’s no shortage of private transport options to get you there. I’m looking at you ‘Sampan lady’ down off the coast of Ap Lei Pai. What a lifesaver. 

To ensure that you expertly navigate Asia’s World City once you arrive, here is the complete guide to getting around Hong Kong. 

The 17 Best Things to Do in Hong Kong With Kids

I know what you’re thinking, “The name of this blog is ‘Pale Ale Travel’, I’m not bringing my kid to a bar,” or “What would this guy know about things to do in Hong Kong with kids?”. 

Well, you’re in luck because this isn’t one of those types of posts because as a man now in his mid-thirties, my weekend activities have heavily shifted away from tossing back cold ones with the gang to more wholesome family-oriented activities with married friends and their children.

And you know what? I ain’t hating it. So, I feel more than well-equipped to write this article. 

I was also once a kid, which I think bolsters my credibility. 

Further, if you’re anything like my parents, you know that you can never have enough inspiration and ideas for how to keep your kids occupied, as it’s neverending. A stacked Rolodex of activity ideas is essential for maintaining harmony in the household, exposing your kids to healthy, constructive, and cultural experiences, and ensuring they burn off some energy and go to bed at a reasonable hour. 

So, whether you live here or are just visiting and want to cross your t’s and dot your i’s with a list of the best things to do in Hong Kong with your kids, I’ve got you covered. 

14 of the Best Things to Do on Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island is the ‘Big Kahuna’ of launching points in Hong Kong when it comes to exploring Asia’s ‘World City’. So much so that you’d be hard-pressed to find a Hong Kong travel itinerary that doesn’t consist of a substantial chunk of activities, experiences, and restaurants being on ‘the Island’. 

You’ll most likely take the Airport Express to the city center (aka Central), there’s a high probability you’re hotel is between Sai Ying Pun and North Point, and we both know that a driving force behind your trip was because of an Instagram reel you saw of the sourdough egg tarts at Bakehouse. I can’t blame you for that at all. As a seven-plus-year resident of the city, I still line up with the best of them for these buttery, flaky, calorie-dense saucers of perfection. 

The beauty of Hong Kong is that while yes, there are certain activities and experiences that may be slightly more geared towards tourists than residents, oftentimes, you’ll find both groups at the same place, doing the same thing, eating at the same restaurants, walking the same walk, and talking the same talk (not literally, as I don’t speak Korean). 

That’s a testament to (a) Hong Kong’s inescapable density, and (b) the fact that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. To ensure that you don’t dejectedly Charlie Brown-walk your way to HKIA feeling like you missed out on the full Hong Kong experience, here are the 14 best things to do on Hong Kong Island. 

All are activities that both my friends and I regularly partake in so if you see a balding, stocky man in his mid-thirties with egg tart custard all over a one-size-too-small cat graphic tee, don’t be afraid to say ‘Wazzup!’ like Ghostface in Scary Movie.