Saturday, February 13, 2010

Attraction Review: Ladies Market, Mong Kok, Hong Kong

This market reminded me of Fashion Street in Mumbai where you can get good stuff for amazing discounts. You can reach the Ladies Market by MTR. This is at the Mong Kok station on the Tsuen Wan line. When you get off at the Mong Kok station then the Ladies Market is 2 blocks away. This market is also a stop on the Hop-On Hop-Off Big Bus Tour of Hong Kong.

Things you can get at good bargains in the market are souvenir T-Shirts and other cheap apparel, necklaces, bracelets, trinkets, purses and bags. All the items in the shops have a price tag on them however you can negotiate to 50% of that price and to even lower if you are buying in bulk. However, I would sincerely advise that you just take a look at every shop and start talking to the shopkeeper only if you have a genuine interest to buy, else things can get very ugly.

My wife decided to get friendly and started bargaining for purchasing 6 necklaces and then the shop keeper would not let us leave the shop as we had wasted a lot of her time haggling. She actually physically prevented us from leaving the shop and we had to shout for help. So please do not try the Indian Style bargaining in Mong Kok.
It takes about 2 hours to navigate the entire market and 3 hours if you are a woman, so you can plan accordingly. I found the shopkeepers in this market extremely aggressive and unfriendly and I did not enjoy the shopping experience much, so unless you want to buy any cheap stuff in bulk – you can skip a visit to this market as well. You will not miss anything much.

There are no good places to eat around this market and you will need to take the metro to Tsim Sha Tsui if you want to get something non Chinese to eat. You have a solitary KFC in Mong Kok, but that too is very crowded and I found the staff there very unfriendly as well.

This market – counted as a must do by most travel websites, turned out to be pretty disappointing for me.

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