Cheap and good hotels/dorms: HONG KONG – Apple Dorm Sai Wan, Sham Shui Po in Kowloon

While living space in Hong Kong is at a premium seeing that it’s so densely populated, there’s a dearth of options if you’re looking at longer term accommodation short of getting a pad of your own or renting with mates.

If those options are not particularly viable, there’s still a solution in the form of the Apple Dorm.

apple dorm sai wan

Designed as budget-oriented dorm-style accommodation, Apple Dorm has two venues, one located in Sham Shui Po in Kowloon and another in Sai Wan, 133, Connaught Road West.

The one in Sai Wan is located just above the Solo Mall which has a series of micro shop outlets with an eclectic variety of merchandise on offer ranging from baking supplies to clothing.
The Apple Dorm at Sai Wan is accessed by an unobstrusive entrance that leads up a rustic stairway that leads up multiple floors. Each floor has access to a series of small, cozy rooms with approximately 50-square feet of space that guests can rent out over the long term.

BELOW: Solo Mall Hong Kong. Apple Dorm Sai Wan is in the same building.

solohk - hong kong apple dorm - mall-001

Essentially, you get storage and sleeping space of your own that’s sized for a single person but performing your own ablutions and going to the bathroom is a shared experience with a series of bathroom and shower stalls located on each level.

BELOW: Your space – bed on top and personal space below.

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BELOW: A reading light and fan provided. The space is air-conditioned too.

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BELOW: The shared bathroom and pantry area.

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The corridor:

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You get free hot water on tap so daily hot showers aren’t a problem and a weekly maid service to keep the place cleaned. It also has free wi-fi too and a small pantry with a microwave too to nuke a meal or two.

The average room consists of a climb-in loft bed with work space below and a ladder to get up there.
After a chat with the on-site custodian, the place has been booked out for months and many book the place for extended durations ranging from months to years; having a room open up for a month or two is a rare opportunity.

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Make your way to the top floor of the Apple Dorm at Sai Wan and you’re greeted with an amazing view of Victoria harbour.
There’s jaunty deck chairs and parasols scattered around the rooftop and, for the more practical minded, a pair of washing machines to get your laundry sorted out once you take in the view or, more likely, to let you enjoy the scenery while you wait for your duds to get cleaned.

apple dorm sai wan hong kong - cheap and good

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The Apple Dorm at Sai Wan is also well located as it’s just five minutes walking distance from the Sai Ying Pun MTR station, which essentially makes it within reach of the vast MTR network.
Room rates run to about HKD3000 a month, which is still somewhat decent seeing the locality and convenience of the Apple Dorm.

If you’re keen on checking the place out, swing by www.appledorm.com.

133 Main Gate a

solo mall hong kong

Apple Dorm Sai Wan address:
129, 133 Connaught Road West, Sai Wan HK &
Eastern Street Sai Wan HK
(3 mins walk from Sau Ying Pun Station)

*******************************************
Sham Shui Po address:
56J&K Yen Chow Street Sham Shui Po Kowloon &
1/F, Hing Lung Building, 385 – 391 Ki Lung Street, Sham Shui Po KLN
(5 mins walk from Sham Shui Po Station)

Website: www.appledorm.com
Rental: Around 3K HKD per month.
Free Wifi.
24 hour hot water.
Housekeeping every week.
Common area.

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Naila

    Hi,
    Thanks for this informed article. I’m thinking of booking a room for a few months as an exchange student and this is one of my options at the moment. I have to base my decision and booking on pictures as I’m not in the country and not many rooms left, so would really appreciate your comments on the following:

    1. Do the showers have doors or are they curtained? The one in your pic above looks like there is a door but I see pictures of random shower curtains near the pantry so not quite sure.

    2. How difficult is it to climb from the ladder to the bed and vice versa as the gap looks kinda tricky?

    3. Do you know what people about storing clothes in those non-loft rooms?

    4. I imagine you won’t feel claustrophobic if you are a traveler for a few weeks but how do students who stay there for, say, a couple of terms feel about the place?

    Thanks,

    N.

    1. Rebecca Saw

      Hi Naila
      Do email them direct for your queries as I’m worried about giving you inaccurate info.

      As far as I CAN REMEMBER:
      1. Yes, those sliding/folding doors.
      2. u do hav to be careful and agile to navigate the climbing. But just be slow and careful and u’ll be fine.
      3. You would have to make do with whatever space you got I’m afraid.
      4. Hmm.. it could be claustrophobic for sure. So it depends on you, are you the sort who is not great with small spaces?

      Hope that helps! I myself would hv to stay in this place if I’m gonna be there for a few months. HK is frightfully expensive if you are earning Ringgit (myself) but ok if you are earning a stronger currency like USD or SGD.
      regards
      Rebecca

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