Last week we booked November flights to Hong Kong via China Eastern. Today they called us to say they had cut back on flights and instead of daily non-stop were only going twice per week. Naturally their new schedule does not fit our travel plans which are fixed with hotel reservations and other connecting flights.

I'm going to have to do an overnight stay in Hong Kong anyway (for one night). I've been told it's easier to get a flight to Shenzhen than Hong Kong. That being the case, is it possible to get a taxi from Shenzhen to a hotel in Hong Kong?

You have to cross the border by foot, not in a taxi. There is a MTR station on both sides of the border where you can do it. Then you can get in your Hong kong taxi.

I'm surprised about this - as Hong Kong is a major connecting point for flights from mainland China to other parts of the world. Have you considered flying with Dragonair instead? My understanding is that they offer daily or even more frequent flights from Kunming to Hong Kong. If you can't get a refund on your ticket or are unable to change airlines, then I'll recommend them for next time at least.

I looked at Dragonair originally but didn't like the flight times. I prefer to fly earlier in the day rather than later. The original time on China Eastern would have got me into Hong Kong to arrive just after hotel check-in time. I've never been to HK before so wanted to have the evening free to look around before my next day flight to Toronto.

KMG to ShenZhen is the way to go since it is a domestic flight and KMG to HK is considered an international flight. As previous poster suggested, it is very easy to cross border. One consideration is - how much luggage do you have as that could be a hassle.

Just take a flight to Shenzhen.
From Shenzhen airport, there is a direct bus that will bring you to HK TST ( and a few other options). The bus will wait for you when you cross those two immigration check point.
ENjoy HK!
Have a good trip back to Toronto!

@AlPage48, I see. However, in Asia there is generally no problem arriving earlier than the check-in time at a hotel, and they won't even charge extra. I have arrived at 5-6am many times and would only pay for 1 night that allows me to stay until 12pm or so the next day, even slightly later if I request late check-out.

Fly Kunming to Shenzhen and take the bus to the Luohu crossing or to the ferry terminal in Futian.

If you want to stick with China Eastern, since you are already ticketed with them, go to their office on Tuodong Lu and see about a change. They have three or four flights KMG to SZX a day. There may be a change fee.

KMG to SZX is domestic (to HKG is international) and the ticket price will be about half what you probably paid. (500 up vs. 1,000 up.) They usually have an English speaker on duty in the China Eastern office, in case you can't manage in Chinese.

maps.google.com/[...]

Thanks everybody for your responses and suggestions. I've cancelled with China Eastern and re booked on Dragonair.

Flying via Shenzhen would not have been perfect for us this time around. On my return flight from Toronto I was to meet my wife at the Hong Kong airport (with her arriving from Kunming) so that we could go to our hotel together. She gets lost in Kunming, where she grew up and would be totally confused going from Shenzhen to Kowloon. I also already had hotel bookings for my first night out near Hong Kong airport. Perhaps next trip will be via Shenzhen though, on an airline other than China Eastern.

Glad you got it worked out. There are many ways to skin a cat.