Plane Spotting Hong Kong

Plane Spotting Hong Kong

There are a number of hotels in the vicinity of Hong Kong airport which are useful for watching aircraft, the favourite by far is the Regal Airport Hotel featured below. The hotel is popular with aircraft spotters due to its fantastic views, plus the fact that you are connected to the terminal and therefore only a short walk away from many restaurants. There are one or two other hotels which offer a suitable back up plan in the event that The Regal is fully booked, some of these featured hotels may also offer better prices at certain times of the year. Note in early 2020 Terminal 2 which houses the spotting deck will be demolished leaving no official viewing are in the central terminal complex.

Regal Airport Hotel                                                                 Update March 2020

Important 2020 update: Construction is well underway on the new Skybridge connecting the North Satellite with the terminal. Once completed this will block the views from the hotel room out to the Cargo Apron. Views of aircraft departing off 07R (the most common departure runway) will be restricted to a couple of seconds once airborne. Views of the landing runway 07L will remain unaffected. Credit Nick Yeadon

Is connected directly to the terminal building by a covered walkway. Make sure you ask for a room overlooking the airport as if you don’t you may be unlucky and only have a view of another part of the hotel (see video 2 below). Reports suggest that rooms on the higher floors are more expensive, but from here you will have good views of both runways. A good quality telescope is recommended as the windows can make viewing slightly awkward. 

As the terminal is only a 5 minute walk away there are plenty of eating facilities nearby. A Coffee Shop is located virtually at the beginning of the hotel walkway, whilst a McDonalds is also nearby. Wifi is available in the rooms for around £15 a night, do note that this is also per device, if you use a different device you will be charged again. Free wifi is available in the reception area of the hotel.

Location: *** Just a short walk from the terminal building. In the unlikely event that you do not get an airport facing room all is not lost. You can spot from the Eastern Side of the departure level which is only a 5 minute walk away. 
Spotting: ***

If you get an airport facing room, the higher the floor the better, then you shouldn’t be disappointed. Note that the majority of airport facing rooms are double beds. The North Wing does however a selection of twin rooms which have fantastic views.Rooms in the range of 9036 to 9062 (even numbers only) should also have great views, however it is unconfirmed if these are single or double beds. Note the best room described above, 9064 is a disabled room, however other than easy bathroom access there is no difference between this and a standard room.

Rooms 1042 and 1046 also have views from the lower floors but only have double beds. If you pay for Club Floor room you get a concierge service in the lounge. The ladies there cannot do enough for you and arranged a comfortable single portable bed to be delivered to each room which was a major help

From the North Wing rooms fantastic views can be had and little moving traffic missed, especially with flight tracking software. the usual runway configuration is landing on Runway 07R, departing 07L. This means on a lot of occasions traffic is landing towards the hotel, and can be read off as it vacates the runway. Flight tracking software is needed to tie up departures seen climbing off runway 07L. 

Note : Do not ask for a runway facing room as you will be allocated a room on the side which only overlooks the one runway. You need an airport facing room to get the views shown below.

If traffic is using the opposite end, arriving traffic will appear on your right hand side on short final to Runway 25R. Flight tracking equipment will only pick this traffic up at short notice as it is appearing from behind the hotel. At the time of visit (May 2013) flight radar 24 had excellent coverage of the Airport, to the point it shows aircraft taxing on the airfield all the way to the gate. By using flight radar 24 you therefore get notice of aircraft making the approach from a long way out (around 75% of airliner traffic tracks in this part of the world). Departing aircraft off Runway 25L is generally hidden behind the terminal until lining up when it appears into view prior to rolling.

From the hotel around 2/3 of the Northside of the terminal can be seen with aircraft read off, for the other stands you need to wait for the aircraft to move. The vast majority of aircraft on the freight area can also be seen from the room although is too distant to be read off. By leaving SBS 1 on overnight you can tie up the majority of freighters on the ground. The main bizz parking area is too distant to identify any traffic from.

In darkness a lot of the traffic on nearer stands can be read off, however the majority of movements would need flight tracking software to tie up. Due to the floodlighting, most airliners can be seen clearly to make out the livery’s, even when departing off the far runway.

Update 2015 : The new terminal building partly blocks views of the touchdown area of runway 07R. Arrivals disappear behind the building on a one mile final, a bizz jet landing short may not reappear back into view.

Photos: **

Pretty good shots can be taken from the room especially morning to mid day. Unfortunately you are taking them through 2 layers of glass which is often quite dirty so you have to pick your spot carefully. A wide angled lens is required for wide bodies parking on the stands in front of the hotel. At least a 300 lens is required for widebodies vacating the runway and using the link taxyway around to the southern terminal stands.

From the 9th floor, a walk down the escalator to the 8th floor by the lifts will give you a view through large windows of the approach to Runway 25R where pretty good approach shots can be had, especially in the morning (video 2 gives a similar aspect)

Value: * Very expensive at up to £200 for a twin room. However, there is little else to choose from when it comes to being close to the airport.
Book:  

If you are looking to make your own travel arrangements please click on Booking.com to be taken directly to the hotel information page. Please help support our site. We are constantly checking the links for hotels to find the best price offered for our readers. If the price on this site is the best quote you receive, please help us by booking your hotel from the link provided as we receive a small commission payment from the hotel. This helps contribute to the running costs of this site enabling us to continue to offer a great service.

 Plane Spotting Hotels are also pleased to have entered a partnership with an ATOL approved travel agency which specialises in packages for plane spotters (your travel consultant is a fellow aviation enthusiast who understands your needs). An independent travel agency can often find you better deals for your hotels and flights to Hong Kong and China as they can access travel agents exclusive deals. Let them suggest a package of flights and hotels for your tour around Asia.

Quote The Plane Spotting Hotels website when contacting the NOT JUST TRAVEL WEBSITE and you will be dealt with by the Plane Spotting Travel Expert who can assist you with all aspects of planning your trip.

Comment!   If you want to add or update anything, please use the comment form at the bottom of the page!
Hong Kong Airport Photography Plane spotting hotel Hong Kong
A wide angled lens is required for traffic parking on nearby stands as shown above Up until around 0900 single runway ops take place for noise abatement. If Runway 25R is in use you are in luck, as the holding point for the runway is directly in front of the hotel, as demonstrated above.

 

 Above : General view from Room 9064. Runway 25 R is to the right of the shot, whilst Runway 25L  and the freight away is in the far left of the shot.

Above : All is not lost with a rear facing room at the Regal. Although you will not see the apron, you still should have a view of the approach if landing in this directionCredit Angelflyer. Click here to see a great range of Far Eastern Aviation videos.

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Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung                       Update January 2021

The Sheraton Tung Chung is a brand new hotel which has the potential to become a favorite for spotters in Hong Kong.  The hotel is located in Tung Chung, around half a mile away from the Novotel. The advantage of this hotel is that it is located nearer to the sea front and therefore has a wider aspect to view the climb out when on Easterly ops, or approach when on Westerly ops. The hotel features an outdoor seating area to the restaurant on the upper floors which gives great views out towards the airport.

The hotel is around a 5 minute walk to the pier where a ferry can be taken around to one of the favorite photo spots on Lantau Island. The Tung Chung transport interchange is a 10 minute walk away where you can catch the bus to the airport terminal, HAECO maintenance hangers viewing point or catch the subway into Hong Kong. The Scenic Hill photography spot is around a 30 minute walk from here.

Ask for an Ocean facing room and you should get views of the climb out from the Easterly Runways or approach to the westerly runways. Some rooms with a side aspect will also overlook the terminal in the distance along with the holding point for 26L. Flight tracking will be needed to tie up movements although departures off 08R (the predominant departure runway) should be readable with a good telescope.

Photos of heavies departing 08R may be possible although a 400-600 lens may be required. 

To conclude, the hotel offers the advantage of being able to see movements to or from all runways from a sea facing room (departures off the Easterlies or arrivals on the westerlys) subject to the cloud base been above 500 feet and no mist. The hotel is also in a great location to connect to the transport hubs to be taken to the different view points around the airport. 

If you are looking to make your own travel arrangements please click on Booking.com to be taken directly to the hotel information page

Below : Sea views rooms give views, in this case a departure off the Easterly Runway

Below : The outdoor terrace of the restaurant and bar area of the Sheraton offers good views out towards the airport and climb out.

Novotel Citygate                                                           Update April 2020
is located out in the Tung Chung district of the island about a mile away from the airport. Ask for an airport facing room and movemnts can be seen away over in the distance, however ACARS or SBS would be required to help identify the aircraft. The hotel is situated a 2 minute walk away from the Tung Chung transport interchange. From here you can take a bus to the Heaco Hangers (even if travelling from the airport you would need to change here for HEACO) or the airport depending on the runway in use at the time. The hotel is part of a large designer outlet Mall which makes it an ideal location to take your wife. There are plenty of dining options in the Mall if you wish to avoid eating in the expensive hotel.
Location: *** Next to the transport interchange so excellent for the bus around to the ends of the runway, or the train if you wish to visit the city. The S52 (must have maintenance are displayed as there are two buses in opposite direction) leaves Tung Chung regularly for the HAECO Rocks viewing area. The hotel has a shuttle bus running every 20 minutes between 0600-2340.
Spotting: ** If you get an airport facing room (sea view should also work) you will identify aircraft with the help of ACARS/SBS. Room 2027 on the club floor has confirmed distant views of the airport. The Club room on the 21st floor also gives the same views out towards the airport which is around 1 mile away. A good telescope is required to read aircraft off from the Runway 25L holding point but flight tracking software is required to identify the majority of movements. All movements can be seen from this room although not many will be read off. Room 2107 also has confirmed views.
Photos: * Too far away from the action
Value: ** Better value than the Regal and a nicer hotel! Many spotters use this hotel as an alternate when the Regal rates are too high (hint check the Regal rates for each day as they vary significantly). You can always switch hotels on the last day if you secure a better rate. 
Book:  

If you are looking to make your own travel arrangements please click on Booking.com to be taken directly to the hotel information page. Please help support our site. We are constantly checking the links for hotels to find the best price offered for our readers. If the price on this site is the best quote you receive, please help us by booking your hotel from the link provided as we receive a small commission payment from the hotel. This helps contribute to the running costs of this site enabling us to continue to offer a great service.

 

Plane Spotting Hotels are also pleased to have entered a partnership with an ATOL approved travel agency which specialises in packages for plane spotters (your travel consultant is a fellow aviation enthusiast who understands your needs). An independent travel agency can often find you better deals for your hotels and flights to Hong Kong and China as they can access travel agents exclusive deals. Let them suggest a package of flights and hotels for your tour around Asia.

Quote The Plane Spotting Hotels website when contacting the NOT JUST TRAVEL WEBSITE and you will be dealt with by the Plane Spotting Travel Expert who can assist you with all aspects of planning your trip.

Comment!   If you want to add or update anything, please use the comment form at the bottom of the page!

 

 

Marriott Skycity Hotel                   Update November 2020
is a new hotel at Hong Kong which is bound to become a firm favourite with spotters and photographers. The hotel room costs much less than the Regal and the accommodation is superb, the views are reported as just as good!  
Location: ** Good location a short bus ride from the terminal building. 
Spotting: **

Excellent. Ask for an even numbered room as high as possible for great views of aircraft on short final to runway 25R (the usual landing runway when aircraft approach from this direction). When aircraft land in front of you they are easily read off. SBS signals arrive late due to the characteristics of the hotel, the aircraft first show when they appear past the window so it is also useful to have a scanner with you (the SBS come into it’s own at night time) Try to get an high up even number as the hotel curves and the higher numbers also give views of the most of the cargo facility. Room 1510 is highly recommended. This room has a view of the northern runway, as well as a partial view of the southern runway by the freight area. Room 918 has also got confirmed views.

We recommend booking an Executive room if your budget allows. This allows access to the Executive lounge on the 12th floor which has a balcony overlooking the airport. If Runway 25R is in use for landings great shots can be had of traffic on short final from the balcony. 

Photos: * No reports, however it seems quite likely that photos could be taken of the aircraft on finals from the room. 
Value: * Very expensive at about £180 for a twin room. However, there is little else to choose from when it comes to being close to the airport.
Book:   This hotel can be booked through the following links  Booking.com who occasionally offer the better deals .
Comment!   If you want to add or update anything, please use the comment form at the bottom of the page!

Above : The above shows the aspect of the hotel against Runway 25R arrivals. It is a similar view of the approach to The Regal Hotel, however views can be more distant.

 

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Posted in Asia, China, World