Visa-free entry from Hong Kong to Shenzhen. Passing the border between China and Hong Kong

As you know, there are now problems with obtaining visas to China, but there is a loophole, even two.
One obtaining a visa for 5 days in Shenzhen and the second one month in China in Hong Kong from the famous Mr. Shao
Below is about the 5 day visa:

If you urgently need to get from Hong Kong to Shenzhen, but do not have a visa... then you can get a 5-day visa at the Lo Wu/Luohu border crossing (Hong Kong-Shenzhen). Visa to Lo Wu/Luohu is issued from 6.00-23.30 hours.

So you are in Hong Kong. At the border in Hong Kong you may be asked: “Where is the visa to China?” Feel free to answer that you will receive a 5-day visa to Shenzhen at the Chinese border.

After crossing the Hong Kong border, without getting in line with the Chinese customs officers, turn left and go up the escalator to the 2nd floor, to the visa office. Fill out a short form simplest form, which indicates the full name, passport number, date of birth, nationality, passport expiration date, residential address in Shenzhen and signature. I didn’t indicate the address, but the official said that it didn’t really matter.

To the right of the entrance to the office there is an automatic registration desk for visitors; click on the icon and a receipt with a number will come out. Submit this receipt along with your passport and application form. If you are not a young girl, then problems, as a rule, do not arise. The official checks the documents, says OK and hands the documents to the neighbor.

Hangs above every window electronic scoreboard, when your number appears, you will need to come up. The second approach to an official is based on payment. The cost of a 5-day visa for Russians is 393 yuan. You can pay in cash or using a Chinese card. There is a sign that they accept credit cards, possibly Russian, but only Unionpay logo is available.

The total time from starting to fill out the application form to receiving my passport with a visa took me 9 minutes. The visa takes up the entire page of the passport; the type of visa is not indicated, only the number.

The visa is only valid within Shenzhen. In principle, people can travel outside of Shenzhen on these visas, but then there will be problems checking into hotels. On domestic trains Visas are not checked on planes either.
Unfortunately, travel is also only possible to Hong Kong. You cannot, for example, fly to Beijing and fly there to a foreign country.

The same 5-day visa is issued 24 hours a day at the Huangan border crossing (Shenzhen-Hong Kong) and, according to as yet unconfirmed data, at the ferry terminal in Shekou.
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Written specifically for the group "Laovaya Tales", when copying, provide a hyperlink

A trip to the "jewel of the world economy" - Hong Kong - is a must if you want to see Asia at its best.

We live in Shanghai, so we will tell you in detail about the optimal route to Hong Kong through China.

There are 2 optimal ways for real travelers:

1. Direct flight from any large city world, or China, to Hong Kong.

2. Flight from any major city in China to Shenzhen, and then cross the border on foot.

Let's consider the first option.

It is suitable for those who:

1. Located outside of China and who does not have a Chinese visa

2. Limited in time

3. Has no desire or opportunity to load up your trip with additional activities

4. It’s better to overpay for comfort than for adventure.

5. Doesn’t want to “fight the Chinese system” without knowing Chinese

Direct flights to Hong Kong are naturally more expensive. The difference in ticket price, on average, can range from 50 to 150$.

This option is the simplest, does not require any effort, just money, as they say.

We have a lot of free time, a desire to see China far and wide, a desire to save money and a lot of living energy, so we chose the second option, which is full of adventures and new discoveries.

How to plan a trip through Shenzhen?

1. Book a hotel in Shenzhen, near the metro station bordering Hong Kong, in advance through booking.com.

2. Prepare a list of top places that you definitely want to visit in Shenzhen on the day of your arrival.

3. Plan your visit to Hong Kong in terms of time and order of visiting attractions (since unnecessary travel around the city will cost you VERY EXPENSIVE, and spending time choosing an attraction already in Hong Kong is somehow stupid)

After landing at Shenzhen airport at 11:00 on Friday, we immediately went to the hotel we had pre-booked through booking.com. When leaving the airport, you need to follow the signs; here you have to make a choice: use a taxi, or take the metro, which can be reached by bus, which runs every 10-15 minutes. The bus fare is 2 yuan. The trip takes about 10 minutes.

It took us about 1.5 hours to get from the airport to the hotel (located near the border crossing with Hong Kong) (bus + metro + walking from the metro to the hotel). But, living close to the border with Hong Kong, you will not need to waste precious energy on exhausting trips on the Shenzhen subway. You will really need them in Hong Kong!)

Most cheap option how to get from Shenzhen to Hong Kong- by metro.

The most optimal border crossing point, in terms of congestion, is Luo Hu (Chinese: 罗湖). Luo Hu is one of the Shenzhen MRT stations, so getting there is easy. The border checkpoint is open from 06:40 to 24:00.

More about the main ones border points China can be found out.

At the metro exit there are dozens of currency exchange points that will help you exchange CNY to Hong Kong dollar. I don’t recommend changing money at the first exchange office, which has the longest queue of Chinese people - you should go further and exchange money without a queue and at a more favorable rate.

Always follow the direction of the signs located literally at every step. The next point of your transition is a huge queue of Chinese - checking documents before leaving Chinese territory. Here I would like to say a special thank you to the Chinese government; to the left of the Chinese queue there is a special queue for foreigners, which is several times smaller than the Chinese one. So, having passed this point, you just have to go through the second passport control in order to enter the territory of Hong Kong.

How to get from Hong Kong (airport) to Shenzhen.

Ferry

By ferry: after getting off the plane, ( Not getting your luggage and not going through passport control!!) you need to follow the “Ferry” signs to zone E2 (see diagram), where you can buy a ferry ticket (Ferry to Shenzhen). Tickets cost between HK$150 and HK$220 (depending on the day of the week and time of day). When purchasing a ticket, you should give your baggage receipt to the cashier - the staff will use it to pick up your luggage and deliver it to the ferry. Passport control is passed upon arrival in Shenzhen, at which time you can collect your luggage. The swim lasts only half an hour. Before purchasing a ticket, you should decide whether you need to go to Shenzhen Fuyong or Shenzhen Shekou (different areas of Shenzhen).

Bus

By direct bus (coach, coach) from Coach Station in terminal 2. In the second terminal there are counters selling bus tickets. A ticket costs on average 190 – 250 Hong Kong dollars. The passenger is taken by bus to the Huanggang border crossing: the bus travels from the airport without stops (options are possible) to the Hong Kong border, then all passengers leave the bus with all their luggage, cross the border independently (on foot) (passport and customs control), after which they find themselves as between two borders - they have already left Hong Kong, but have not yet entered China. Next, passengers board their bus again (you need to remember the number and company, or do not let go of the ticket), drive for literally one minute, get off again with all their luggage, and again go through customs and passport control. After passing it, they leave in Shenzhen. They then board their bus again and travel to the destination indicated on the ticket. You can buy a ticket only to Huanggang (which is much cheaper - only 100 - 130 HK$), but then, after passing through Chinese customs, the passenger must decide for himself which transport to take next (metro, taxi or bus). The trip takes approximately 1.5 hours.

Regular bus

On regular bus A43 through the Luohu/Lo Wu border crossing. The bus runs from the Airport to the Fanling stop (that is, you need to go from start to finish). At the final stop, you should get off and walk about 200 meters to the metro following the signs and ride it from Sheung Shui station to Lo Wu. At this station you need to follow the signs “to Shenzhen”, which will lead to customs and passport control. Cost: HK$30.9 by bus + HK$21 by metro. The bus runs from 05:20 to 22:30. The trip takes approximately 1.5 – 2 hours.

Metro

By metro you need to get there with transfers: from the Airport MRT station (Airport Express line) -> transfer at Tsing Yi station to the Tung Chung line -> transfer at Lai King station to the Tsuen Wan line -> transfer at Prince Edward station to the Kwun Tong line -> transfer at Kowloon Tong station, take the East Rail line -> go to Lo Wu. The whole route can be traced more clearly on the Hong Kong subway map. Click on the picture on the right to enlarge. The cost of the entire trip is 100.5 HK$.
At Lo Wu Station, there will be signs "To Shenzhen" or "To Mainland China" at the exit. You should follow them to the place of customs and passport control. After completing them, you will find yourself in Shenzhen.

Taxi

By taxi getting from the airport to the Lok Ma Chau / Huanggang border crossing (i.e. without leaving Hong Kong) costs approximately 310 - 350 HK$. However, a person who speaks good English can negotiate with a taxi driver to take him there for a fixed fee (200 - 250 HK$). This crossing operates 24 hours a day, so the “taxi + this border crossing” option is best suited for people arriving on an Aeroflot night flight. There are taxi prices from the airport to different points.

About land border crossings

There is a total distance between Hong Kong and Shenzhen six border crossings : Lok Ma Chau/Huanggang, Lok Ma Chau/Futian Kou'an, Lo Wu/Luohu, Sha Tau Kok/Shatoujiao, Man Kam To/Wenjindu and Shenzhen Wan. These crossings have dual names, as one is in Cantonese (from the Hong Kong side) and the other is in Mandarin (from the mainland China side).
The Lok Ma Chau/Huanggang and Lo Wu/Luohu crossings are the most popular, as they are accessible by metro lines from both Hong Kong and Shenzhen.