HK & MACAU DAY 6 - Jumbo, Kwai Chung Plaza, The Peak

Day 6: Apartment @ Canton Rd -> Aberdeen Promenade -> Jumbo Floating Restaurant -> Kwai Chung Plaza -> The Peak Sky Terrace 428 -> Madame Tussaud @ The Peak -> The Peak Sky Galleria 

Last full day in Hong Kong :(

As we did not have much itinerary planned on this day we decided to leave a little later at 9.45am. Our first stop for the day is lunch @ Jumbo!

Jumbo and Kwai Chung Plaza were part of our consideration during planning, however it didnt make it into our itinerary as we factor a lot of time for the rest of the sightseeing places which we ended up completing the day before.

Jumbo is a popular place for tourists during the night for seafood dinner because it is big enough to hold many tour groups and it is at a unique location - floating on the aberdeen. So why didnt we avoid this 'tourist trap'? This is because we saw online previously that tour groups seldom visit Jumbo for lunch, and they serve dim sum instead of seafood for lunch! Their dim sum is also frequent by locals for its taste and affordability! Hence we decided to give it a try, given that we have spare time too!

To get to Jumbo floating restaurant, you have to take their boat @ Aberdeen promenade or Shum Wan Pier. We chose Aberdeen promenade as we have a direct bus - 970X from our apartment at Yau Tsim Mong district. The bus stop is at Dundas street which is like only a 1 or 2 minutes walk from our apartment.

bus stop

grids drawn for queuing!

The bus is operated by City bus and according to their website, the frequency is between 10-15 mins. 970X came at around 10am. We will be boarding to the last stop, hence 2 things to make sure before we board:

1. It is bus 970X

2. It is heading towards Aberdeen and not So UK estate as thats the reverse direction.

It was a double decker bus and it is pretty empty when we board. According to google map, the bus ride will take approx 50 mins. We reach Aberdeen bus terminal (ending stop) at around 10.45am. The bus fare is HKD 11.10 and payable by Octopus card when you tap the card when you enter.

Aberdeen bus terminal

Along the bus ride, we passed by a primary school and Hong Kong University. Somehow during that time (10+am) we see students walking along the pavement near their school with their bags. I wonder if they are heading to school at that time or their classes have ended.

Do note that the aberdeen promenade is on Hong Kong island, while our residing area @ Yau Ma Tei is Kowloon island. So to travel over across islands, it will go through this Western Harbour crossing (tunnel that is built underwater).

This bus terminal is also where we will board our bus to Admiralty MTR later on but on a different bus route. From where you alight just walk straight and you should see an underpass to the opposite side.

Underpass to Aberdeen promenade

If you are unsure, just look for these signs that say to 'Aberdeen promenade' or ' to floating platform'.

Guiding signs along the way

And you will soon reach the Aberdeen promenade!

Boats and more boats.

surrounding sights

Just walk along the Aberdeen promenade, as the jumbo 'pier' is right towards the end of the promenade, opposite Aberdeen shopping mall.

Jumbo 'pier'

Along the way, there's also ferries to other islands like Lamma island. It was pretty hot and unsheltered, so do bring along umbrella with you!It is around a 4-5 mins slow walk to reach Jumbo 'pier' from the underground tunnel.

walk down the connecting bridge to wait for the Jumbo ferry

Not too sure about the frequency of the ferry however do be patient and avoid taking these kind of boats.

private boats

These private boats will charge $. But Jumbo official boat is free of charge!

Official boat to Jumbo Restaurant!

We board the boat at 11.05am. Maybe because we are early, there were not a lot of people - just us and another 2 or 3 individuals. There's 2 ferry captains on the ferry/boat. It departed 5 mins later.

interior of the Jumbo ferry

sights along the way

Soon, we approached this floating restaurant called 太白海鲜舫. Not too sure if it belongs to Jumbo group of restaurants, but it is located right beside Jumbo floating restaurant.

Tai Pak Floating restaurant

Approaching Jumbo!

Jumbo floating restaurant - 珍宝海鲜 up next!

Jumbo floating restaurant

The whole ride lasts about 5 minutes. We reached Jumbo floating restaurant at around 11.15am.

When we reached, we met many young children from a local primary school/kindergarten!

Right in front of the main door is this 'fengshui' design also known as 九龙吐珠.

little kids and the main entrance of Jumbo!

We were early and thus we managed to get ourselves good seats - facing the aberdeen!

good view from where we are seated

They started serving at 11am for Mon-Sat and from 9am on Sunday. We reached the restaurant at around 11.20am. 

Interior of restaurant after 12.30pm

costume try out

When we were there we did not see anyone trying out the traditional palace costumes, however phototaking opportunities should be allowed with the trying on of the costumes for a small fee. It is situated in the restaurant too.

As mentioned earlier, for breakfast and lunch they serve dim sum!

Dim Sum galore part 1

Food ordered:
1. Mini Egg Tart HKD 26 (SGD $4.60)
2. Steamed rice roll filled with scallops HKD 42 (SGD $7.40)
3. Steamed pork dumplings "Shanghai Style" HKD  30 (SGD $5.30)
4. Steamed Glutinous rice w/ Meat wrapped in lotus leaf HKD 38 (SGD $6.70)
5. Glutinous rice roll filled with egg custard & mango HKD 28 (SGD $4.90)
6. Baked barbecued pork pie HKD 32 (SGD $5.60)
7. Steamed barbecued pork buns HKD 26 (SGD $4.60)

Steamed Glutinous rice w/ Meat wrapped in lotus leaf

Dim Sum galore part 2

8. Steamed pork dumpling w/ crab roe HKD 36 (SGD $6.30)
9. Stewed bean sheet roll filled w/ meat in stock HKD 30 (SGD $5.30)

Deep fried wonton w/ shrimps

10. Deep fried wonton w/ shrimps HKD 32 (SGD $5.60)

Receipt at Jumbo Restaurant

There is really no single dish that we regretted ordering. The deep fried wonton with shrimps is a must!!!!Our total bill came to be HKD 422.40 (SGD $74.10) for 4 pax. Of course it can't be compared to Tim Ho Wan in terms of price, but overall we feel its worth having a visit to Jumbo restaurant if you have spare time in Hong Kong for quality dim sum! :)

With the ambience and good scenary, worth popping by in the day, but maybe not at night since it will be filled with tourists.

Jumbo Restaurant name card

There's many people streaming in for lunch after 12+. We left at around 12.50pm and decide to wander around the place since we are here. They have a fish/seafood viewing area. 

seafood/fishes viewing area

We believe this is the area where guests can choose their desired seafood and they will catch it from the aquarium, cook and serve.

fishes

We saw plenty of prawns too, however the prawns seem to be pinkish in colour. Is the water temperature too hot until they are 'cooked'?? Not too sure, but they doesn't seem to be lively. In terms of fishes, not as many as we expected, perhaps the live seafood have yet to arrive for dinner.

Thereafter we went to wait for the ferry back to Aberdeen promenade. We waited at this area (near the main lobby) where its written ' To Aberdeen Centre'.

waiting area

However we were told by the staff there that it is not fucntional, and we have to wait somewhere else. So do pay attention to any announcement by the staff, if not you would have waited in vain.

young children boarding the ferry back to urban Hong Kong

We soon board the ferry back to Aberdeen promenade. Thereafter we walk back to the bus terminus to catch bus 37A. It is a loop service, so in essence there's only a bus route, dont need to worry about taking the reverse direction. The bus came when we reached the bus terminus and it was pretty crowded. Our destination is not the end stop this time round but stop 16, Pacific Place Queensway. We choose to alight there to transfer to the Admiralty MTR, whereby we can they catch the train to Kwai Fong MTR where we can head to Kwai Chung Plaza.

The bus ride lasts for approx half hour. The bus stop is at this shopping mall called pacific place. We wanted to count the stops initially as we are unsure how pacific place looks like, but fret not, the bus will flash the stop it is at. Thus you just need to pay attention to the lcd screen to know which stop is coming up next. Of course, if you have the list of the stops, it will be even better so you will be able to prepare when to alight!

We alighted at around 2pm. The total fare is HKD 4.7. Pacific plaza is quite a 'posh looking' place but filled with working adults - guess its part of their CBD area. We used the toilet too and the design is pretty unique!

toilet in pacific place

We did not stay at Pacific Place for long. We head to Admiralty MTR which is linked to Pacific Place. Our next destination in mind is Kwai Chung Plaza. It is similar to Argyle Centre in Mongkok but more frequented by locals. Since we have spare time we decided to make a trip there though it may seem a little out of place. It is located near Kwai Fong MTR. From Admiralty MTR, we just need to take the Tsuen Wan Line and we will reach there in around 20 mins time. There's 11 stops in total though. The total fare is HKD 13.20 as there is the crossing from Hong Kong island to New territories Island.

We reached Kwai Fong MTR at around 2.40pm. Head to exit D2 for Kwai Chung Plaza.

Kwai Fong MTR

Courtesy of: http://www.panoramio.com/photo/9850273

Once we are inside, we realised we do not have enough time! Its really a shopping haven! Generally it does not just have clothings but also food stores inside, so do not have to worry about being hungry. In terms of variety of clothes, there's more variety here than Argyle Centre. Back in Argyle Centre, after going around 1 level, you realised the shops sell roughly the same kind of clothings. but overhere at Kwai Chung, yes they do, but there's more unique pieces! The prices are more affordable too. Like you can easily find HKD 50 (SGD $9) pieces. But definitely, dont expect the quality to be exceptional. But I believe it's hard to leave Kwai Chung without buying any fashion pieces. Note that the shops do not provide carrier bag, so if you intend to go on a shopping haul, make sure to bring your own big bag to put your loots! Strongly recommend young adults to come here and shop if you have the time!

We had to leave at 4.30pm as we are heading back to Hong Kong island - Central area for dinner and the peak thereafter. We might seem to be backtrekking, however there isnt any other way that we can arrange it in a better way last minute. As we desire to head to the peak around evening/night to view the night scene. Hence it is impossible to shuffle them around. We left and reach Central MTR by the Tsuen Wan Line at around 5.15pm. Total fare is HKD 13.20 (SGD $2.30)

Thereafter it is a hike through the streets of Central to find Yat lok Restaurant - a Michelin 1 starred Restaurant, famous for its roast goose. It is situated on Stanley Street. Take Exit D2 from Central MTR. Finding Stanley Street is not too difficult, but spotting Yat Lok might be a feat. We walk the whole stanley street and did not spot Yat Lok for the first time. When we walk the second time, then we spotted it. 

Yat Lok Roast Goose Restaurant

Roast poultry

Interior of Yat Lok

This restaurant seems to be quite popular online and thats why we decide to give it a try. It is famous for its Roast Goose.

Roast Goose Rice + Poached vegetables

Roast Goose and Char Siew noodles

Receipt from Yat Lok

1. Roast Goose rice @ HKD 52/plate (SGD $9.20)
2. Roast Goose + Char Siew noodles @ HKD 67/plate (SGD $11.75)
3. Poached Vegetables @ HKD 25/plate (SGD $4.40)

It is the first roasted delights we have in Hong Kong and we find that it really lived up to its name. However its a little too over priced. As you will read on in Day 7, we tried Mei Xin Jade Garden Roasted delights. We find it more affordable than this. But if you happen to be on a makan spree in Central, no harm ordering and try as its good too. Then hop over to the street beside it - Wellington St for Mak's noodles (famous wonton mee). We didnt get to try it this time round :( But oh well, Singapore's centrepoint opened its branch.

Overall Yat Lok food is good, however if you expect to be served like in a restaurant then maybe not so. Everything is very fast paced inside, and the staff doesnt seem exactly friendly. There's a lot of people streaming in around 6+pm. So be there early to avoid disappointment! We left at 6.15pm. Thereby we proceeded to walk towards the Peak. Along Stanley Street, we spotted Wong Chi Kei. So if you missed it in Macau, you can try it here too!

Wong Chi Kei @ Central

It is generally a straight route, There are signs along the way, so feel free to follow them! But do note that when you are near the Court of Final Appeal, there is a small 'hill' to climb.

direction signage

Opp Garden road

It is a 10-15 mins walk from Yat Lok. The streets of Central is bustling with working adults. The Peak tram is opposite Garden road.

The Peak tram

To get up to the Peak, you can either take cab, bus or the tram which is also the 'fastest way'. By right it is the fastest way, but then if there's a long queue it become a very long long way :(

long long long queue!

Queues to buy tickets and waiting to board the tram

Sigh. We actually waited for nothing. Earlier on, we actually purchased our tickets from Golden Crown Guesthouse and have collected the actual phyical tickets. So there's no need to buy tickets on the spot anymore. 

When we asked the first staff, he told us that even though we have tickets, we must still queue. But then after we queued for some time and slowly approaching the ticketing counter, we asked a second staff and she say we can actually just enter and join the tram queue! Sigh :( We queued for nothing. So as a tip, we would recommend buying tickets earlier!!!

1. Avoid queues

2. Cheaper too!

Peak + sky terrace Ticket

We purchased the Peak + Sky terrace + Madame Tussaud ticket (triple combo) from Golden Crown Guesthouse for HKD 218 (SGD $38.30). the ticket validity is around 4 months so this means you can use it on another day during your trip even if it rained on your planned day. In another words - flexible. The actual pricing of this ticket on the official web is HKD 310 (SGD $54.40). So you have actually saved SGD $16 per pax by buying through the guesthouse! whtsmore, you only pay cash when you collect it at the guesthouse @ tsim sha tsui. Hence, no fear of it going bankrupt or business closure. We highly recommend this mode! And if you purchase tickets earlier like us, ASK TO JOIN THE TRAM QUEUE and not the tickets queue!!!

But still there's many people at the tram queue :(

waiting to board the tram

Finally we see the tram

This is 7.15pm. We totally didnt expect this huge turnout. Moral of Story: go in the morning or maybe factor more time for queuing so that you can still catch the sunset view in time. We started queuing when its still bright and now its dark.

Getting up the tram is also a challenge. Similar to getting up Singapore's MRT during peak hours. Initially we thought no standing allowed on the tram, but I guess there's too many people and end up standing is allowed.

Boarding the tram!

crowded tram

There is nothing much to see outside on the way up as its dark, all we see is trees/branches. Then soon we start to see a little of the Hong Kong Skyline!

Glimpse of Hong Kong Skyline

Not too sure if its illusion, but its pretty steep. We were standing and you must make sure to hold tight to the grips if not you will fall.

When we reach, we first went up to the sky terrace which is extremely filled. We finally reached the sky terrace which is the highest - just take the escalators up and up, at around 7.30pm. In total we queued an hour to reach the peak. Oh well :/ I guess if its a high season, a longer time is needed.

View from the sky terrace

More views from the sky terrace

tall buildings

Pretty Hong Kong skyline and the weather was pretty chilly. We wanted to catch the Symphony of lights from here, but sadly we can't :( Moral of story: Catch it at Avenue of Star 

 You can have your photo taken against the Hong Kong skyline backdrop too. Either by taking selfie or there's professional photographer there to take your photo too for a fee!

There's fog!!

We left at around 8.10pm and proceed to Madame Tussaud museum!

Madame Tussaud Admission Ticket and entrance

Entrance

At the main entrance area, there is a Jackie Chan wax figure there for visitors to have photo opportunities with. There after ticket admission is necessary and the whole Wax musuem is divided into 9 sections. First up, you will see Hong Kong Glamour!

1. Hong Kong Glamour 

Not sure why, but they include Asian top stars and Hollywood A-list stars under Hong Kong Glamour. But whatever it is, let the star studded night start off with a bang!

Popular Hong Kong/mainland male actors

hong kong/asia popular actresses

Left to right: Andy Lau, Lang Lang

Hollywood stars

2. Royal Family

The British Royal Family!

Get a chance to sit on the 'throne' alongside Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth ll!

Princess Diana

3. Historical and National Heroes

Thereafter, we enter straight into the political arena and how can we miss Singapore's nation father - MR LEE KUAN YEW ~

Lee Kuan Yew Wax Figure

Political leaders around the world, including Hitler

China's political leaders

From top to bottom: Barack Obama, Xi Jinping

Enough of National heroes, there is also a section on historical heroes!

Historical Heroes!

Zhang Guo Rong (Leslie Chung)

Not too sure why Zhang Guo Rong is under this section, maybe because he is known as one of the founding fathers of Cantopop.

4. TV Studio

For TV studio, there's many interacting areas for you to play along with the characters. Like you can act as a host alongside Sandra Ng with cameras starring at you.

From left to right: Eric Tsang, Sandra Ng

5. World Premiere
World Premiere features mainly from the early black and white hollywood era.

Bruce Lee, Audrey Hepburn, Donnie Yen..

5a. KPOP Zone
Screams* Fan girl/boy mode on!

All your favourite Korean pop stars~

6. The Champions
Now, we enter into the sports arena!

sportsmen/women

Sportsmen + Sumo!

7. Authentic History
Midway, we see this section on Authentic History. Basically it talks about how these wax making figurines comes about and the history of Madame Tussaud museum. It uses Donnie Yen as an example, and showcase the construction process of his wax figure too.

Madame Tussaud Museum was founded by Madame Tussaud herself who was the creator of the first wax figure.

Madame Tussaud

Modelling process of the wax figurines

8. Music Icons

As we enter the last second section, it features the popular and prominent singers across continents.

pop singers

Past legends

Lady Gaga, The Beatles...

9. Fantasy Kingdom


Last but not least, it is the fantasy kingdom!

Hello Kitty kingdom!

Fantasy characters

Characters from the Monkey God show

And lastly, like all museums, you will end the journey at the retail shop. We spent an hour in the museum had we had a whale of a time in there. Highly recommend you to enter if you happen to be at the peak!

Last glance of the Hong Kong skyline @ 9.15pm.

View of Hong Kong Skyline @ 9.15pm

We then head to The Peak Galleria with the hope of catching more of the skyline before we retreat back home. 

The Peak Galleria

Iconic Peak Infrastructure

However when we went to the Peak Galleria, we realised that it is also where we are supposed to queue to board the tram back. And the queue is horrendous. Once again we didnt expect it to be a long queue for the tram back. We decided to ditch the idea of exploring the area and head straight for the queue instead.

Queue for the tram.

We waited for 35 mins in total.The tram journey is an average of 7 minutes. In the end, we reach the ground of the Peak terminus at close to 10pm.

The peak terminus at night

Overall, we seem to spent most of our time queuing. If we were to plan it again, maybe we would not schedule visiting The Peak on a Friday night and maybe we will queue earlier say 5pm. In essence, factor more time for queuing. Though we believe there might be less crowd in the morning, however the night/sunset scene should be still worth viewing.

We weren't too sure of the way back to Central MTR, but there's a couple of people heading for the MTR too. So we followed their footsteps and it seems correct!

We took the MTR from Central MTR back to Yau Ma Tei MTR.

Yau Ma Tei MTR 

Apparently this is our last train journey in Hong Kong, as the following day we will be taking the cab.

Yau Ma Tei train platfom @ 10.15pm.

We reached Yau Ma Tei around 10.15pm and this concludes our last full day in Hong Kong. Tired but fulfilling.

Side-note:

Along our way back, we spotted this huge truck that has an employment advertisement on it. Wonder if the rates are considered good or bad

Employment Advertisement

In the apartment that we stay in, they will put up notice in the lift stating any tenants that owe rents. This is something that we dont see in Singapore.

Notice - rents owed