Hong Kong Airport to Guangzhou: Ferry, Train, Rules

Which route fits you?

Your route depends on one thing: whether you have already passed Hong Kong immigration. All the official pages below were read on October 26, 2026.

If you are starting from Guangzhou instead, read Guangzhou to Hong Kong by high-speed train.

SkyPier ferry for transfer passengers

The airport describes SkyPier Terminal as “for transfer passengers only” and “not applicable to passengers originating from Hong Kong”. You stay in the airport’s restricted area for the whole transfer (Hong Kong International Airport, SkyPier Terminal Ferry, read October 26, 2026).

Rules from the airport (same page):

• Go to the ferry ticketing counter at Transfer Area E2. Do not go through immigration or reclaim your baggage. Passengers who have gone through immigration cannot return to the counter and use the ferry.
• Carry your same-day arrival flight ticket, e-ticket or boarding pass stub, a valid ferry ticket, and a valid passport with a visa for the mainland if you need one.
• Transfer to the mainland on the day you arrive.
• Be at the ticketing counter at least 60 minutes before the ferry leaves, or 30 minutes if you have no checked baggage.
• With checked baggage, show your airline baggage tag receipt for customs clearance and baggage transfer.
• Hand baggage must not exceed 9” x 14” x 22”. For other baggage rules, ask the ferry operators or your airline.

Ports. The airport lists nine, two of them in Guangzhou: Nansha and Pazhou. It names CKS as the operator for both and sends you to the operators for schedules and tickets (same page).

Timetable and fares. CKS’s page for the airport routes shows these departures from the airport for October 26, 2026 (CKS, Chinese, read October 26, 2026). The page shows the timetable for the date you pick, so check yours.

The page prints no currency for these fares, and CKS says fares may change and that the figures are for reference. Child fares are on the same page. CKS lists no journey time, so how long the crossing takes is not confirmed in official sources.

At the airport, from CKS’s passenger notice and FAQ (Chinese, undated):

• Even with a ticket bought earlier, every transfer passenger must go to the E2 counter for document checks and ticket exchange. CKS says staff still check each passenger’s documents and visa validity by hand.
• If you checked a bag with your airline, you do not collect it. Show the airline baggage tag at E2, and you receive a new tag to claim the bag at the destination port.
• Tickets cannot be refunded once bought. If your flight is late and you reach the counter inside the minimum time, CKS says it will move you to the next sailing to the same port without a fee. Changing the destination port means buying a new ticket.
• You queue at the gate 30 minutes before sailing and take a driverless train to the pier. CKS’s passenger notice says the gate closes 10 minutes before sailing; its FAQ says 15.

On arrival. The airport publishes arrival steps only for its Shenzhen Fuyong ferry, where you go through customs, immigration and quarantine at the pier (Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong-Shenzhen Airports Link). We found no matching steps for Nansha or Pazhou, so the steps there are not confirmed in official sources.

Can you enter China at the pier? The NIA’s port table for the 240-hour scheme lists Guangzhou Pazhou Ferry Terminal and Nansha Port (Passenger) (NIA, August 20, 2026; the table is an image). The NIA added Pazhou as an entry port from November 5, 2025 (NIA, Announcement No. 4 of 2025, November 3, 2025). We read “Nansha Port (Passenger)” as the Nansha terminal CKS serves, but the NIA table gives no address, so treat that as our reading. Whether you qualify is a separate question:

• 240-hour visa-free transit for 57 countries, with an onward ticket to a third country or region.
• Visa-free entry for other passports on the list.
• The arrival card if you enter China.

If your passport needs a visa and you have none, the airport’s rules say to carry a visa for the mainland if you need one. Whether a temporary entry permit can be issued at either pier is not confirmed in official sources.

After Hong Kong immigration: Airport Express and high-speed train

The airport says the ferry is closed to you once you have gone through immigration. The usual route is rail:

1. Airport Express to Kowloon. The MTR timetable effective September 13, 2026 gives 22 minutes between the airport and Kowloon, and trains from the airport run from 05:54 to 00:48 (MTR, read October 26, 2026). The adult single fare is HK$105 with Octopus, a contactless bank card or an e-wallet QR code, and HK$115 with a smart ticket (MTR, tickets and fares).
2. Kowloon to West Kowloon. The MTR says the stations are connected by an overhead bridge or a pedestrian tunnel (MTR High Speed Rail). It gives no walking time, so that is not confirmed in official sources.
3. High-speed train to Guangzhou South. The MTR’s short-haul timetable for trains from October 11, 2026 shows journeys of about 48 minutes (G6526, 17:00 to 17:48) up to about 85 minutes (G6588, 19:43 to 21:08) (MTR High Speed Rail). Second class to Guangzhou South is ¥215 on the MTR’s fare chart for the same date (MTR High Speed Rail). Both are scanned PDFs, and the MTR says the ticketing system governs.

Tickets. You can buy up to 15 days ahead. Ticket counters at West Kowloon need a valid identification document for each passenger, the machines accept valid passports, and 12306 sells tickets online. Booking closes 30 minutes before departure, and tickets for trains leaving West Kowloon start selling at 08:00 (MTR High Speed Rail, ticket purchase). Our China train tickets guide covers 12306 in detail.

At West Kowloon. Use the passport you bought the ticket with. You can start the real-name check, security and immigration 90 minutes before departure, and these normally take 30 to 45 minutes, longer for passport holders and at busy times. The real-name check closes 30 minutes before departure, and boarding gates close in the last 5 minutes (MTR High Speed Rail, process). You go through Hong Kong and mainland immigration there, so for the arrival card choose West Kowloon as your port; see the 240-hour guide. The train arrives at the Guangzhou South station.

Coaches from Terminal 2

The airport lists cross-boundary coaches to destinations that include Guangzhou, from the Mainland/Macao Transport and Travel Services Centre on Terminal 2, Level 3. Boarding is at bays 20 to 26 and tickets are at counters 01 to 16. The operators are CTG BUS, Eternal East Tours, S.T. Travel and KCTIL Travel (Hong Kong International Airport, read October 26, 2026).

The airport sends you to the operators for fares and times, and says to hold a valid travel document or visa before boarding (itinerary planner). We found no official Guangzhou coach fare, timetable or journey time, so these are not confirmed in official sources.

What we could not confirm

• Ferry journey time to Nansha and Pazhou, and the currency printed on CKS’s fares. CKS’s page lists neither.
• Arrival steps at the Nansha and Pazhou piers, and whether a temporary entry permit is available there.
• That the NIA’s “Nansha Port (Passenger)” is the terminal CKS serves. The table has no address.
• Coach fares, times and journey time to Guangzhou.
• The walk from Kowloon to West Kowloon station.
• Whether CKS’s timetable repeats on other days. Its page shows the date you pick.