[Hawkeyed]

Hi all. I am relocating to Hong Kong in January with my wife and 1.5 yr old daughter. We are trying to decide where to live. I will be working in Tsuen Wan, so we were thinking of Discovery Bay or Gold Coast. I think both places are pretty nice, but wanted to get anyone's opinions/suggestions on one over the other (or another place I don't know about). My initial impression is that D-Bay might be a little nicer, but I'm not sure about the commute to Tsuen Wan every day. Does anyone know what that would be like? I appreciation anyones comments.

[sunniefaith]

Do you know whereabouts in Tsuen Wan? Have a thought of Park Island, it's something like Discovery Bay. There's a ferry to Tsuen Wan KCR and also a shuttle bus to Tsuen Wan MTR

[Mat]

GoldCoast / Tseun wan is pretty convenient. No need the boat, There are direct buses between both cities. (61M for example) It takes around 15/20 minutes depending on traffic and bus driver.

[tx75070]

I live in Gold Coast. If distance to work were not a factor I would rather live in DB. You are looking at 1 hour + commute if you want to go from DB to Tsuen Wan.

[carang]

let's see...

Db - Sunny Bay... 15 minutes
Sunny Bay - Tsing Yi... 10 minutes
Sunny Bay - Tseun Wan...10 minutes (by bus)

that makes 35 minutes (i'd give it 45 ... just to be on the safe side)

[texasaxel]

Originally Posted by carang

let's see...

Db - Sunny Bay... 15 minutes
Sunny Bay - Tsing Yi... 10 minutes
Sunny Bay - Tseun Wan...10 minutes (by bus)

that makes 35 minutes (i'd give it 45 ... just to be on the safe side)

There is presently no bus from Sunny Bay to Tsuen Wan; however, you can take the MTR from Sunny Bay to Lai King and connect to the Tsuen Wan line from there. Agree that the total journey time will be just under 45 minutes.

[carang]

sorry that was a mis print...
i meant tsing yi- tsuen wan....

thanks!

[tx75070]

You have to account for waiting between stops and good chance work is not sitting right on top of the Tsuen Wan station. I looked at living in DB, I work in Kwai Fong, timed it and it was 1 hour.

[en_sursis]

hi hawkeyed,

i guess the big question would be your budget for housing. db has a large expat community and a price range for everyone e.g. flats to houses from 7k to 60k a month. the environment is considered to be resort style living and is definitely less hectic than the rest of hong kong although some consider it rather boring after a while.
i would not recommend living in tsuen wan or gold coast. i hope i am not offending anyone living in those areas but anyway, tsuen wan is rather ..........crowded. it isn't a new district and consists mostly of old buildings and factories. gold coast is in tuen mun and not particularly easy to get to and you would need to travel to do your shopping except for groceries. both tuen mun and tsuen wan has a large number of ....dare i say it.....undesirables. both these districts are reported to have the highest crime rate.
another option for you would be tung chung. this is a new town near the airport and has a large expat community as well with a decent shopping centre, lots of alfresco dining and a cinema. it is also only 15 minutes from db by bus. the good thing about it is the rental prices. you could get a 3 bedroom flat for around 8k at the carribean coast complex which has a humongous clubhouse. you honestly could not get a better rental anywhere in hk for that kind building with such facilities.
this is my opinion anyway and whenever visit tung chung, i feel comfortable whereas whenever i go to tuen mun or tsuen wan, i often feel depressed for some reason.

[tx75070]

Originally Posted by en_sursis

hi hawkeyed,

i guess the big question would be your budget for housing. db has a large expat community and a price range for everyone e.g. flats to houses from 7k to 60k a month. the environment is considered to be resort style living and is definitely less hectic than the rest of hong kong although some consider it rather boring after a while.
i would not recommend living in tsuen wan or gold coast. i hope i am not offending anyone living in those areas but anyway, tsuen wan is rather ..........crowded. it isn't a new district and consists mostly of old buildings and factories. gold coast is in tuen mun and not particularly easy to get to and you would need to travel to do your shopping except for groceries. both tuen mun and tsuen wan has a large number of ....dare i say it.....undesirables. both these districts are reported to have the highest crime rate.
another option for you would be tung chung. this is a new town near the airport and has a large expat community as well with a decent shopping centre, lots of alfresco dining and a cinema. it is also only 15 minutes from db by bus. the good thing about it is the rental prices. you could get a 3 bedroom flat for around 8k at the carribean coast complex which has a humongous clubhouse. you honestly could not get a better rental anywhere in hk for that kind building with such facilities.
this is my opinion anyway and whenever visit tung chung, i feel comfortable whereas whenever i go to tuen mun or tsuen wan, i often feel depressed for some reason.

Although technically Gold Coast is in Tuen Mun, it is not in Tuen Mun. That is further up the road. Gold Coast is well separted from the undesirable part that en_sursis is referring to. Gold Coast is very safe. I highly recommend that if you choose Gold Coast to get a car, especially since you are a family.

Tung Chung is the most polluted part of Hong Kong, but I would guess that Tuen Mun can't be far behind.