The Rough Guide to Hong Kong & Macau

Rating:
Summary: A great book for a first time visitor to Hong Kong
Review: I came across this book in a bookstore near the Central MTR station in HK on my third visit to that wonderous city. Having never purchased a travellers guide to Hong Kong, I decided on a whim to purchase it. I'm glad I did. After spending an hour or so reading some of the sections I realized I wish I had this book in my possession before my first visit! Part one (Basics) was accurate and a must read before visiting the city. Part two (Hong Kong) was clear and provided just enough detail without overwhelming. I can't validate the Macau section (haven't made it there yet). However, the restaurant section in my mind fell on its face by not lising my personal favorite HK restaurant, Jimmy's Kitchen (Hong Kong side). Jimmy's is a must, especially if you are suffering from chinese food burnout and need a good steak or other sort of western fare.

Honk Kong is an exciting, crowded, fun and interesting place. It's a great place for a westerner to begin exploring Asia-a true blend of east and west. The Rough Guide should be your guide of choice for visiting one of my favorite places on this earth, Hong Kong.

Rating:
Summary: Not the best guide for getting around or finding places.
Review: I purchased the guide because it seemed to give more background information than others I've seen such as Frommers. However, when we tried to use the maps to find our way around, we realized they were not well thought out, and were more confusing than helpful! Also, the restaurant section could be better organized, and give information such as price and address. We were frustrated over and over again with this guide.

Rating:
Summary: It's below the Rough Guide standard.
Review: Unreliable (and some apparently secondhand!) information punctuated with annoying feminist innuendos. For the sake of political correctness the author lists gay spots which is OK with me, but he goes out of his way to label men who go into the girlie bars in Wanchai as "pathetic." This misses the point entirely. A typical Rough Guide would mention the reason to watch out for those places: one can unknowingly rack up a bar bill of US $500 (that's US dollars!) within a few minutes just by buying drinks. They bill you on the way out and there's no getting out of it by arguing with the management. (I steered clear because I learned that on the Internet before going, and a local American expat living in the Wanchai district corroborated it.)

The author chides prurient men in the streets of Macau whom he labels "creeps." Then he touts the Kingsway Hotel as "one of the newer and most glam of Macau's hotel creations," having a "sauna and health spa"! Had the phony actually BEEN to the hotel instead of just hearing that, he would have learned that the "sauna and health spa" is actually a brothel next door to the hotel, and that the entire second floor of the hotel itself is a sex club (advertised by large color posters in the foyer and all the elevators and the lobby). This is inconsistent with the book's condescending, I-respect-women-as-people rhetoric. (Around the corner I saw some disturbing graffiti proclaiming the name of a sex worker with AIDS.)

The Nathan Road addresses listed for accommodations in Tsim Sha Tsui (an area of Kowloon known as "TST" among English-speaking locals) are switched around! I had *never* before seen a Rough Guide blow it in this regard! I got tired of trying to make sense out of his wacky directions, whipped out my credit card, and stayed at the Holiday Inn. (US $150/night but worth it! Ooh-la-lah what a room! It was a well-deserved happy ending to the wild goose chase.) The author probably had someone else garner address numbers for him; I wondered if he had really been to TST at all.

One more example of how this book falls short: I took the tram up to Victoria Peak --that was a great suggestion. It was dinner time, so I went to the expensive restaurant on the tram level and was told there was a 45 minute wait with little hope of getting a window seat (with a view of Victoria Bay). I found my way to another level (downstairs) and discovered a fast place simply called "Eat Noodles." It was inexpensive with good-sized portions, and the food was very clean and delicious. They brought it out to me on their spacious, uncrowded outdoor patio, where I enjoyed a *spectacular* unobscured view of the bay on a clear night and mingled with some neat people out there as well. It was a real find! But the book makes no mention of any restaurant at the tram terminal.

I give the book two stars for its lists of things to see and do. It should mention that Ocean Park is primarily an activity for families with children. The index could use more detail, but is adequate. I paid for a Rough Guide and got something else. For Hong Kong, I suggest giving another guide book a chance.