How to Have a 48-Hour Day in Hong Kong

Location, Location, Location

Strategically pinning your pad is key.

The average commute time for Hong-Kongers on a weekday is said to be 73 minutes (source: Wikipedia). Adding a couple of minutes to and from stations you might end up spending a whopping 20,000 minutes / 333 hours a year for this. So picking somewhere close to station / within 5–10 stops is ideal (you can usually find somewhere in that travel time or less with reasonable rent).

On top of that, you will want to pick somewhere that gives you access to everyday needs. The accumulated time-saving on having a supermarket 2 minutes away and a KFC downstairs can surprise you.

Potential Time Saved: 0.5-1.5 hours a day

Extended Read: The 3 Minutes Circle — Causeway Bay Episode #120

Extended Read: The 3 Minutes Circle — Wan Chai Episode #23

Outsource Your Troubles

After a long day of work and stress, the best thing to unwind is to tend to your laundry, dusting, vacuum and the sacred linen ritual to cleanse your mind.

If you buy into what just mentioned congratulations you are a couple of steps up the Buddhism ladder. Fortunately for most of us, renting a serviced apartment with laundry plans, or hiring a helper from places like lazy.com.hk or hellotoby.com would give you just the right dose of enhancement to your life.

Potential Time Saved: 1-2 hours a day

Find Your Entrances & Exits

It sounds a bit much but short of randomly getting to equally packed doors to go into the sardine cartons, why not pick the right door to get you to exit faster? Many Hong-Kongers do that and in fact, in Japan, there are apps and directions telling you which car and which exit you should be doing respective to your to-and-fro stations.

If you try it in rush hours in the busier stations, you will notice an immediate reduction of wait time and packed sardine minutes (yay quality of life!)

Potential Time Saved: 10 minutes a day (plus having a better mood!)

Friend Your Building Manager / Lobby Buddy

Bribe. Well, it is as bad as it sounds but that’s the essence of the culture here.

You see, people give red packets for your lobby buddies during Chinese New Year, gift them occasionally snacks and coupons that they might not find useful, etc, not to exchange for any service immediately but rather to “invest” for a rainy day.

It’s not in their contractual obligations to help unless you live in a fancy place with a concierge, but if you have needs for delivery from time to time, needing to temp-store something, letting your cleaning lady or handyman in, your lobby buddy is your best help without the need of you rushing in and out of the office just to get something small done.

Potential Time Saved: occasional hours (but saving your precious weekend time / time off from work!)

Line up for Nothing

It’s tempting to play influencer and be hip once in a while. But if you are in a mission to score anywhere closer to a 48-hour day, you shouldn’t be lining up.

Hong Kong is an easy-come-easy-go place and things only stay sizzling hot for 3 minutes and no more. If you see shops having lines, suppress your influencer libido and come back in 2 weeks or maximum 3. You should be able to get the same thing minus the 2–3 hours queue.

Don’t leave it for too long though. Many of those “new” shops don’t last a year in Hong Kong.

Potential Time Saved: occasional 2–3 hours (sacrificing your chance to showoff)