Hong Kong transport guide
Getting around Hong Kong with a dog: what actually works
A practical Hong Kong pet transport guide covering the Light Rail pet pass, taxis, ferries, trams, regular MTR services and the new pet open-top bus tours.
Hong Kong is easy to cross without a pet and oddly tactical with one. The useful network is not simply “public transport”: it is weekend Light Rail in a closed carrier, ferries with operator-specific rules, and taxis whose drivers can choose whether to take you. Plan the first and last kilometre before the fun part. A ferry to an island is no help if your dog cannot reach the pier.
Light Rail rules that catch people out
- Your pet must stay completely inside a fully closed pet carrier. The combined length, width and height cannot exceed 170 cm, and no side can exceed 130 cm.
- Wheeled carriers and pet strollers are not allowed. Carry the bag.
- Board at the last door and remain at the rear of the compartment. The pass does not cover MTR heavy rail, MTR Bus or the Airport Express.
For taxis, ask before the car arrives and say the dog’s size and whether it is in a carrier. Transport Department guidance leaves carriage of animals—and the conditions—entirely to the driver. If accepted, you are responsible for damage caused by the animal. A towel, a closed carrier for small dogs and a clean-up kit make acceptance much likelier than surprising a driver at the kerb.
Ordinary Hong Kong Tramways services do not take animals other than guide dogs. Regular MTR rail services also remain outside the Light Rail scheme. Citybus’s pet open-top buses, launched as regular bookable tours in April 2026, are a sightseeing product rather than a turn-up-and-ride bus route: useful for an outing, not for getting to the vet.