Tips on arriving in Hong Kong During the pandemics
Latest requirements for entering Hong Kong and how to enjoy Hong Kong Hotel Quarantine as much as you can
I recently came back to Hong Kong from Washington DC for a long vacation. The process is a bit confusing and may even be a little annoying. So I thought I would write down my experience and hope it could help others who might need to go through the same process.
Documents needed
The rules change quite frequently so please check the website https://www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/inbound-travel.html for updated information.
I flew Qatar Airways from the US on 8/8/21 and arrived Hong Kong 8/10/21 afternoon. These are a couple of documents needed before the airline would let me check-in, they are:
- Hong Kong ID card/Passport/other entry documents: Although it should be OK to use the Hong Kong ID card to enter Hong Kong, your airline representative may not be familiar with it. To avoid confusion and further explanation I showed them my Hong Kong passport.
- The Hong Kong designated quarantine hotel reservation for the days you need, see here for the list of designated quarantine hotels (note the list may change).
- A negative result proof of a PCR-based nucleic acid test for COVID-19 from an accredited lab (in the US it needs to be CLIA certified), and the accreditation certificate of the lab. Also, note that the collection time of the PCR test needs to be within 72 hours from the boarding time of the flight to Hong Kong, and not your first flight if you have a connection. Also, while this may be different for other airlines, Qatar Airways is using the local time to do the calculation, instead of the converted time. In my case, since Doha is 7 hours ahead of Washington DC, I am losing 7 hours of the 72 hours in their calculation. I did my COVID test at the Dulles airport testing site and I saw a lot of people tried doing the test before their flight and missed it due to the long wait at the testing site. I think if you plan on doing it right before your flight you might want to get there at least 5 hours before your scheduled flight time as waiting for 2–3 hours is the norm, not the exception. Also, the lab accreditation certificate is very very important! I was denied the boarding pass by the airline when I tried getting on the flight until I was able to obtain it the next day from the lab. It should look something like this
- While it is not needed to board the plane, it is easier to fill out the “Health & Quarantine Information Declaration" form and obtain the QR code before your flight so you don’t have to do this at the Hong Kong International Airport.
Arrival in Hong Kong
Be prepared to spend 3–5 hours at the Hong Kong airport before you can go to your quarantine hotel due to the COVID-related procedures. While there are many steps, there is plenty of airport staff to guide you through each step so you don’t have to worry that you would miss any important step. Sometimes there was a long walk between the steps and I felt like going around in IKEA and that there is a shortcut somewhere. The airport also feels a lot emptier than I was used to.
After getting off the plane, I was guided to get on the tram to another terminal. I was actually the only passenger in that car and an airport staff rode with me. The next step was to check the QR code I generated online. I saw a lot of travelers without that code and had to go online using their phone to fill out the questionnaire; Next, I was given a test kit and got my nose and mouth swab test done; the next counter made sure that they have my phone number correctly, they actually called my cell phone (US number) to make sure I can show them that I can receive it; next counter was a long one, they checked all my documents including the COVID PCR test results, HK ID card, and quarantine hotel booking. I was then given the mandatory quarantine form, an information booklet, and the thermometer for measuring my own temperature twice a day. The mandatory quarantine form was the most important form and was checked multiple times at the airport, at the hotel, and even after the hotel quarantine. After that, I was given a green tag with a code and was asked to walk to the designated area to wait for the PCR results. I was there for around 1.5 hours before they came and told me that my test was negative. They provide sandwiches, cookies, and water there. Because this was Hong Kong, being the third pole of the world, the airport was quite cold with the air conditioning. I came prepared with a down jacket. They also provided blanks for people who need them, which I thought was quite nice.
In the end, after we were allowed to leave, I went through the border control, picked up my check-in luggage at the baggage claim, and went through the luggage check, and got out of the terminal.
Hotel
The Hong Kong Government requires inbound travelers stayed in one of the designated hotels, see here for the list to choose from.
After I left the terminal I was guided to go to the next hall where I had to show them the green tag and the quarantine form, they gave me a luggage tag with the hotel name on it and asked me to get in line for the shuttle. The shuttle took a few passengers including me to the hotel and we checked in. I was given a room key that can only be used once and after that, I would be staying there for 14 nights.
I stayed at the Four Points by Sheraton Hong Kong, Tung Chung, and enjoyed it very much. I think the picturesque window contributed to at least half of my happiness.
It is very easy to get on the wifi at the hotel. If after you select the hotel Marriot wifi and it doesn’t automatically take you to the login page, you could go to marriotwifi.com to log in. The Internet speed is reasonable to do streaming, zoom meetings, and remote computer login.
However, since the room does not come with a desk and a desk chair, it is not very comfortable to be working on the laptop for a long period of time. I find that the cube ottoman is the right height for me to rest my hands for typing, but then my laptop screen was too low. So if you plan on doing a lot of work, you might want to bring a portable laptop stand for a better posture.
There are plenty of plugs in the room and most of them have the standard UK and 3 USB plugs, like this:
My daily routine/Things to bring
Food: The hotel provides breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There are 4 choices for each meal, Chinese/Western and vegetarian/non-vegetarian. The hotel sent me a google form 2 weeks before my arrival and asked me to fill out the choices for my 14 days quarantine. In general, the quality of food is pretty good and it did start to get slightly repetitive after 7 days. The hotel does allow friends/relatives to drop off food or orders from restaurants. I think foodpanda, deliveroo, and HKTVmall are a few popular choices. I have tried deliveroo and the food would be delivered to my room within 15 minutes I get the notification that it had arrived the hotel. However, while there are quite a few choices (>50) it is rather limited compared to most of the places in Hong Kong, due to the location of the hotel being on Lantau Island. So if ordering outside food is very important for you Four Points at Tung Chung may not be your best choice.
Exercise: My hotel provided a complimentary yoga mat and a resistance band, which were useful for yoga and floor exercises. moved the coffee table to the corner to allow room for the yoga mat. The hotel actually also rents out exercise bikes, treadmills, and rowing machines for HK$100/day but when I found out I was already halfway into my quarantine. My main exercise was actually the Just Dance game from Nintendo Switch, I sometimes throw in the Boxing game and the Downdog app for HIIT or Barre.
Entertainment: The hotel provided a cable for plugging in HDMI cable for the TV. I used it for plugging in my laptop and for the Nintendo. The TV has the usual Hong Kong channels that I did not watch. I watched quite a few YouTube videos during my 3 meals on my laptop. I also saw on YouTube that someone who stayed in the same hotel connected the HDMI cable with the Amazon Fire Stick and watched movies that way.
Read/Work: I thought it was a great chance to have no distraction for 14 days so I made a long list of things to achieve. While I am disappointed that I only finished one item on my list, I was happy that I got a chance to relax, and not to worry about things that I have to accomplish by the end of the day or week. So my list of things to do include: 1. Learn the basics of the programming language Rust; 2. Study and (hopefully)do the Google Cloud Machine Learning Certification; 3. Take the DeepLearning.ai Build Basic Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) Coursera course; 4. Finish a book in my Kindle Library. After almost 7 days of watching YouTube and taking pictures of the boats, I started to realize that I didn’t have much time left in my quarantine. So I had to be more disciplined. Eventually, I did finish the book Richer, Wiser and Happier by William Green, as well as moved halfway into the GAN course.
Housework: Yes, I had to do some housekeeping work since no one is allowed to enter my room during the 14 days quarantine. The hotel provided dish soap and laundry detergent. I had to do my own laundry and wash dishes in the sink. I have tried several areas for hanging the clothes and found that the shower area is the best (see below). The clothes are usually completely dry overnight.
COVID tests:
There are multiple COVID swab tests that are required after Hong Kong. After the one at the airport as I mentioned earlier, I had to do 3 more at the hotel (one self-administrated saliva test and two conducted by clinical staff coming to my room). After leaving the hotel, I had to go to the community test center to do two more on days 16 and 19 (This requirement depends on travel origin and vaccination status). This is the website for making the appointment. The community test center I use is not busy at all and they are not strict about the appointment either, but you still have to make an appointment online here.
Final words
While I am sure no one wishes to have the long hotel quarantine please consider this as a chance as a mental reset and a vacation. If you receive it positively and plan accordingly I am sure you will enjoy it as much as I do and your 7/14/21 days will go by very quickly. Stay safe!
Here is a list of websites that could be useful for you:
- Hong Kong inbound travel guide: https://www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/inbound-travel.html
- COVID community test online booking: https://www.communitytest.gov.hk/en/
- List of designated quarantine hotels in Hong Kong (valid until 8/31/2021): https://www.coronavirus.gov.hk/pdf/designated-hotel-list-v4_en.pdf
- An article on dos and don’ts for someone who also stayed at Four Points by Sheraton: https://research.hktdc.com/en/article/NzY5OTM2MzIz