Moving to HK from Copenhagen

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Weronika

New member
Hi All,
I'm moving to HK in a few months with my husband & 5 month old boy. My husband will work in Sha Tin and we're looking for an apartment: not far from Sha Tin, but also not far from city center; with gym/ swimming pool; close to park/ green area; close to shopping areas; close to trains (MRT, I think?); in general, children-friendly. Our budget is ca. 45,000 HK$, and we don't have to live in a 100% expat community. Thanks in advance!
Regards,
Weronika
 
hk, unlike other places has "city centres" all over the place.

some would say that hk island's is from north point all the way to sheung wan (basically the northern half of the island).

kowloon would have a "city centre" from TST all the way to mongkok and beyond.

every area in the new territories also has it's own "city centre": tsuen wan, shatin, sai kung (although, more of a town, than a city), sheung shui, yuen long...etc

MTR stations all over HK, depends on where you want to be going.

the big question is this: do you want to live in a high-rise or would you rather have a house/town house?
 
Without knowing what private rentals cost in HK (our housing is provided by employer so I'm a bit clueless) maybe Kowloon Tong or Tai Wai? I would suggest you choose somewhere along the east rail line (MTR) because Sha Tin is on that line.

I quite like Kowloon Tong because it's retained a more low-rise, open feel than a lot of HK, especially the new towns in the NT (such as Sha Tin). FRom Kowloon Tong it is about 7 mins to Sha Tin and about 25-30 mins to central on the MTR. There are also heaps of schools at Kowloon Tong if you have kids. Sha Tin has a great big park right near the MTR. Not sure about park in KT. It's definitely not an expat 'enclave' and it's very handy to many places in Kowloon also.
 
Hi,

Just saw your post - are you Danish? I don't wanna take the chance and write you in Danish so let me know if you want an answer in Danish or English :)
Otherwise let me just say what experiences we've made these first moths in HK. We came 6 months ago with our, at the time 7 months old daughter, by chance ended up at the Gold Coast which has been great but is a bit far out. But with a baby the new territories have been the right place for us.
Ok here are my initial tips:

1) Don't go house hunting before you get here! They photoshop EVERYTHING down here - spend 1 week in a hotel and go have a look around the different areas, 45000 hkd. will get you a long way in N.T.
2) Keep in mind that HK is small and so are the apartments, however you will get between 100 - 150 kvm for 45000, so not bad!
3) What I would look for is a nice place with open spaces for your baby to play in and also good playgroups as there is no dagpleje system down here ;)Also find out what management of the building is like and stay in the apartment long enogh to find out how noisy the neighbours are :) There is lots of realty pages down here but the good places you need to talk to the agents down here, give them your requirments and your budget (Rent is negotiable!) and they will take you out.

4) The Danish church down here is really active, there are lots of get togethers and families with babies

There is loads more to tell you - but it's late so let me know if I can help with anything specific :)

And a big before hand welcome to HK - We love it here!!!

Mia
 
There are actually quite a few expats in and around shatin...shatin is great for shopping, restaurants etc. if you want to be removed a little, you could look at fo tan or ma on shan (either a village house or a low/mid-rise, or even a highrise). sai sha road, between sai kung and ma on shan have loads of villages and village houses. there are also buses direct to shatin and an mtr station at wu kai sha.

shatin is a transportation hub, so it's fairly easy to access from almost anywhere in kowloon/new territories.
 
Thank you all for your replies!

My husband is currently in HK and looking for something suitable for us: at the moment we're torn between The Palazzo close to Sha Tin, Mount Beacon in Kowloon Tong and The Arch in Kolwoon - any tips on which one is better?

I like Mount Beacon most, but are afraid it's a little bit too far from "everything" - I think I'll be working in Quarry Bay, and don't know how long I'd spend on the way to work if we lived there.

I'd like to send my baby to a nursery pretty soon (in Spetember - November).... so do you know any nurseries in Kowloon Tong?? I don't mind local one, I'd like my son to learn Kantonese :)

Miabn - I'm not Danish, but have lived there for 4 years, so I do speak the language (have very funny accent though :), and frankly speaking, would love to keep practising it, otherwise will forget everything soon! :)

//Weronika
 
My brother is living in Copenhagen at the moment - he loves it there! We're Australian so my poor parents lost both of their eldest overseas (my mother on the other hand has lived in two houses in one city her entire life!)

Have you considered looking around the Tseung Kwan O area/clearwater bay etc? I'm not THAT familiar with the NT area so someone may correct me - but I don't think it's TOO far from Shatin...(??) I DO know from there though, it's VERY easy to get to Quarry Bay so maybe it will be a good half way point for you.
 
Weronika - when you say nursery, do you mean kindergarten/preschool, or do you mean daycare/childcare for a younger baby?

There are loads of private kindergartens in Kowloon Tong. My son goes to a particularly lovely Montessori kindergarten there. From memory there is Anfield, York, Yew Cheung, St Katherine's, Tutor Time, and I'm sure lots more. Most kindys will have a bilingual element with English & Chinese.

If you mean a childcare setting, they really don't exist here as far as I'm aware. Kids generally start kindy at about 3 years old (usually half days) and before that are cared for at home by a parent/grandparent or domestic helper. Early kindy programs (i.e. before 3) require a guardian to be there with the kids.
 
don't think it's very easy to get from tko to shatin without a car...however, i could be wrong and there may be a bus... i know there is a bus from sai kung to shatin.
 
I did a quick google search when I typed my post earlier and it said there was a bus that took 25-30 min from memory, but as I've never been on the bus, I can't really say for sure!!
 
Ozmerc, I meant daycare for younger baby... pity they don't have it in HK!
So, I guess we'll need a nanny when I start working (I'd die of boredom if I stayed at home longer!!)
 
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