For heavy public transport use in Hong Kong, buy an Octopus Card, a rechargeable ticket for travel on the MTR and KCR lines, the Airport Express (AEL), Light Rail, trams, most buses, most ferries and minibuses. The card costs an initial HK$150, comprising HK$100 useable value and HK$50 deposit (there’s no refund if you return the card within three months, however). When it runs out you add credit at machines in rail stations or over the counter at any 7-Eleven store. The cards are available from MTR, AEL and KCR ticket offices.

To use, scan them over sensors at the ticket gates.

Octopus also offers a Tourist Pass (HK$50), valid for 24 hours from the first time that you use it and allowing unlimited travel on the MTR (but not the AEL); and an Airport Express Tourist Card (HK$200/300 including a HK$50 refundable deposit) for use on the AEL (either single or return according to price) and 72 hours unlimited travel on the MTR after the first time you use it.

Hong Kong’s speedy underground MTR (daily 6am-1am; trains every few min) has five colour-coded lines which cover Hong Kong Island’s north shore, much of Kowloon, and some parts of the New Territories, as well as Lantau.

All signs and maps displayed in the system are in both Chinese and English.

Tickets cost between HK$4 and HK$26 for a one-way journey, and are only valid for ninety minutes. Ticket machines are on the station concourse - some don’t give change and some only take coins; there’s a HK$5000 fine for fare evasion.

The MTR is extremely crowded during rush hour (8-9.30am & 5.30-7pm) and is best avoided then if possible.

Hong Kong’s KCR (5.30am-1am; every 3-10min) serves the New Territories with three lines: KCR East, running via Sha Tin, Tai Po and Sheung Shui to the Chinese border at Lo Wu (you can only go as far as Sheung Shui without a Chinese visa); and the Ma On Shan Line and KCR West, which are of less use to visitors.

One-way tickets cost between HK$3.50 and HK$9 depending on the length of your journey, with a first-class compartment for double the standard fare. There’s a HK$100 fine for fare evasion, or travelling first-class with an ordinary ticket.

Hong Kong’s buses (6am-midnight; skeleton night bus service after midnight) cover just about every corner of the SAR.

Each bus is marked with the destination in English and a number, along with a letter: “K” or “M” means that it links with a KCR or MTR station respectively; “R” buses only run on Sundays and public holidays; and “X” buses are express services with limited stops. Fares cost between HK$1.20 and HK$35 a trip - the amount is posted at bus stops and on the buses as you get on. Put the exact fare into the box by the driver; no change is given. For route maps and timetables, contact the Hong Kong Tourism Board.

Double-decker trams (6am-1am) rattle along the north shore of Hong Kong Island, linking Western, Central, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay; some detour around Happy Valley racecourse. You alight at the back and pay the flat HK$2 fare as you exit from the front. Destinations are marked on the front in English.

Hong Kong’s cross-harbour ferries (daily 6-7am until 7-11pm, depending on the service; every few min) link northshore Hong Kong Island with Kowloon - they are suspended, though, in bad weather. The most famous vessel is the Star Ferry between Central and Tsim Sha Tsui, though there are several other vessels and alternative routes, including one between Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui - see the map.

Most inter-island ferries leave from the Outlying Islands Ferry Piers in front of the IFC2 tower in Central, with a few departing Tsim Sha Tsui’s Star Ferry terminal.

Hong Kong’s taxis are relatively cheap: HK$15 for the first 2km, then HK$1.40 per 200m, though there might be surcharges for carrying luggage, and using the cross-harbour tunnels. Cabs are colour-coded for region: red on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon; green in the New Territories; and blue on Lantau.

Cabs for hire display a red flag in the windscreen and an illuminated “Taxi” sign on the roof. Make sure the driver turns the meter on when you get in (though rip-offs are rare). Don’t expect drivers to speak English, apart from the names of hotels and streets. If you get stuck, gesture to the driver to radio his control centre, and ask them to translate.