[FunkoPlan]

Hey Guys, I’ve got some Q’s to u people living in SZ & working in HK. Due to some personal circumstances I might move to reside there:
- what’s the commuting time and cost from SZ (say, Lohu District) to HK (Central), including customs formalities;
- how can I avoid my passport to be stamped by the China Immigration every time I leave/enter Shenzhen (APEC Travel Pass’s not under consideration). If I have Chinese residence permit for foreigners is it possible to exclude wasting my pages?;
- How much is the decent 2 bedroom apartment in Lohu, preferably in the expat-oriented district?
Thanx!!!

[Stoob]

I don't think there is any way to avoid the passport stamps these days, several years ago Mainland China immigration offered the use of a passport saver which was basically an extra sheet of paper for the China stamps. I don't think that option is available anymore.

I'm afraid the resident permit will not help either.

Cannot really help with the commute question, I usually take the Western corridor route (I can do apartment to central in less than an hour)

[FunkoPlan]

Originally Posted by Stoob

I usually take the Western corridor route (I can do apartment to central in less than an hour)

Thanks....
You mean by bus? What's the round trip cost and the station location in SZ?

[Boris]

1) From 1.5 hrs dependent upon time of day and day of week.

2) You can't

3) That means nothing. You still require to present your passport.

4) In the building we have an apartment. ( adjacent to the ShangriLa ) a two bed rents for about 4000 rmb. Dependant on floor and view.

[Hatch]

From door-to-door I would say a little less than two hours.

A two bedroom in a nice place would maybe be a shade under 5,000rmb.

You will have a thick passport.

[Stoob]

Originally Posted by FunkoPlan

Thanks....
You mean by bus? What's the round trip cost and the station location in SZ?

I should have stressed that I do not live in Lohu district but in Shekou which is much closer to the Western corridor crossing (New bridge).

The journey is Taxi to immigration (10 mins), Immigration (10 mins), B2 Bus to Tin Shui Wai KCR (15 mins), KCR to Nam Cheong (25 mins), Nam Cheong to HK Station (10 mins) Ok a little over an hour!
Cost is around HK$50 each way.

[FunkoPlan]

Thanks, u all guys!

Boris, Hatch:
You're talking about train commuting from Lohu? And what;s the price?
Re. accommodation - u mean in what district?

Stoob:
So the bus arrives at tin shui wan kcr,right? Is it linked with mtr - can I get directly to Central mtr?

[Stoob]

Originally Posted by FunkoPlan

Stoob:
So the bus arrives at tin shui wan kcr,right? Is it linked with mtr - can I get directly to Central mtr?

Yes the bus arrives at the station (it's the 1st stop for the B2). You could change to the MTR Tsuen Wan line at Mei Foo station and go straight to Central MTR but that will take a lot longer (10 MTR stations to stop at ). The quickest way is to change to the MTR Tung Chung line at Nam Cheong and go to Hong Kong station which is linked to Central station, just a wee bit of walking to do

[larac]

I went through Lok Ma Chau this week and the staff were having a great time testing a new e-channel like HK has. I've never seen the staff there so happy, they were all running around chasing each other and racing each other through the system trying it out over and over.

Anyway if they implement an e-channel you will be able to avoid the stamps. I also find China customs are very tidy and fit a lot on one page so that is some consolation.

[Boris]

The e channel on the China side will NOT change the way foreigners go through. Its for Chinese nationals only and ( I believe ) set for the new China ID that resembles the HKID and is being issued to some areas of the population..

My wife has the old China ID ( she is from Tianjin ) and can't use the gates.