Taxis may be door-to-door convenient, the MTR airport express is quick, but there is no disputing where the most scenic view is to be found. The upstairs deck of a double-decker public bus is far and away the best spot for a panoramic look at Chek Lap Kok and its linking bridges and tunnels.
In addition to the airport itself, a whole new series of highways, rail links and tunnels were built, which nudged the total cost up to the $155 billion mark. Travelling the new road link to Lantau gives a chance to put the whole project into perspective, beginning with the Western Harbour Tunnel, which takes bus passengers from Connaught Road across to western Kowloon.
From there, it is highway all the way, along the Western Kowloon reclamation and expressway, dipping through a major tunnel before Tsing Ma Bridge looms in the near distance. Speed limits across the world's longest road-rail link give plenty of chance to savour the view, and marvel at the engineering ingenuity which allowed it to be built.
To the left is a wide open vista of the outer harbour limits, with wallah-wallahs and fishing junks sharing ocean space with ocean-going container ships; to the right is a clear view over to Tuen Mun. On the return journey, a viewing spot allows car drivers to park, climb a hill and survey the scene.
The last airport-bound section is the grandest sweep, along a 12.5-kilometre straight and wide stretch of tarmac which brings buses to the airport terminal. For much of this leg, MTR trains run parallel to the road, hitting speeds of 135 km/h as they hurtle towards the urban areas.
From several kilometres away, arriving passengers have a clear view of the Sir Norman Foster-designed terminal entrance, with its scalloped frontage and glass walls.