HongKong vs Singapore-Which city to visit?

When I arrived in Hong Kong, first thing that came to my mind was the similarities between Hong Kong and Singapore. Both are much desired tourist destinations, full of skyscrapers, multi culture, multi lingual lifestyle, have lots of attractions/offerings packed in a small geographical area and so on. Both cities hope to be Asia’s most preferred destination for business, healthcare, MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, events etc) and container cargo movement as well. If you have to choose between the two which one is better? What are the similarities and differences? In this post, I have complied all the similarities and differences that I could identify. Feel free to add more.

This post is largely from a tourism perspective. I don't have expertise in terms of living/working/doing business etc in these cities.

Similarities

#	Activity	Hong Kong	Singapore	Remarks
1	Mega Theme parks	Disney Land	Universal Studios
2	Night laser show	Symphony of lights (8 PM every night)	Marina Bay Sands laser show and Gardens by the bay laser show	All are free
3	Local transportation	Good network of metro, tram, bus and taxis	Good network of metro, bus and taxis, Duck tours available	Singapore taxi are slightly modern but no trams
4	Nearest country for additional visit	Macau	Malaysia
5	Typical profile	Sky-scrappers, dense population, business and tourism hub	Similar
6	Cruise Options	Available	Available
7	Cost of Living	High	High
8	Giant Wheel	HK Observation Wheel	Singapore Flyer	Singapore Flyer is much bigger
9	Highest view point with public access	HK Sky 100, Victoria Peak	Marina Bay Sands observation deck, 1 Altitude bar, Bukit Timah
10	Main airline	Cathay Pacific	Singapore Airlines

Differences

#	Activity	Hong Kong	Singapore	Remarks
1	Connectivity from India	Except Cathay Pacific and very few AI/Jet flights, mostly one stop flight	Direct flight to Singapore available with multiple airline and multiple Indian cities	Flight to Singapore is cheaper as it is closer n direct
2	Visa	On arrival for Indians for tourism, 14 days, free Prior Visa/ Registration needed for Indias Indians may be subjected to additional scrutiny-read here	Need to be applied in advance, costs about 3-4k INR and validity 1 month to an year or so at embassy discretion Details here	Hong Kong will be no longer VOA for Indians from 2017. More details awaited
3	Language	Mostly Chinese, manageable with English but not as easy	Can be managed easily with English
4	Area	Relatively larger than Singapore	Area is less but more attractions are available in Singapore than HK
5	Restrictions/ lifestyle	Public smoking is banned, no toll road was spotted, deemed less restrictive overall	Singapore is more stringent in terms of toll fee (ERP), public smoking, chewing gums, speed limit etc
6	Regional Influence	Heavy Chinese influence in language, culture and practices	Malay, Tamil and Chinese Influence-Finding India connection is easier
7	Eat out area	?	Clarkey Quay
8	Adventure Options	Overnight cruise, bungee jump at Macau tower, Multi Day Cruise	Reverse Bungee, iFly Singapore, Ferrari ride, River Cruise, Multi day Cruise
9	Parks and Gardens	Kowloon Park Victoria Peak and many more	Gardens by the Bay Botanic Gardens Fort canning centre Labrador Nature Reserve Jurong Bird Park Singapore Zoo
10	Airport	?	One of the best in the world	Free tour and lots of facilities at Changi I have not been to HK airport

Hong Kong’s advantages include free Visa on Arrival for Indians, slightly larger surface area and ability to add Macau visit to the itinerary for added experiences. However, Hong Kong has lesser flight connectivity from Indian cities compared to Singapore, resulting in higher fare and more travel time. But do read this post for additional scrutiny Indians may have to go through. HK also appeared more crowded to me than Singapore, but because of its larger area, has more parks and green cover. Hong Kong + Macau area gives you unlimited casino options, which is limited in Singapore.

Update: As per this news, on Arrival Visa for Indians will be discontinued effective 2017 and prior registration will be needed- more details on Visa fee, processing time, validity, documents needed etc are awaited.

Singapore on the other had is closer home, cheaper and quicker to access and has more actions packed in small area. But visa cost and time needs to be factored. It is easier to manage in Singapore with English than in HK, where there is heavy Chinese influence and not everyone speaks or understands English fluently. Singapore also has more museums, history and traditional attractions than Hong Kong. Changi airport is an attraction in itself where one can spend lots of time.

Which one to select between Singapore and Hong Kong?
It is like Flipkart vs Amazon or Ola vs Uber debate. Hard to decide, but below is what I think:

• If you are tight on budget, time etc and looking for a quick getaway and action packed holiday, I feel Singapore is better option.
• If you have already seen Singapore, or planning a holiday at short notice without enough time for visa processing and if your city has good connectivity to Hong Kong, then you can try Hong Kong.

Update: All my friends who commented on this post in FB have voted for Singapore. My vote is also for Singapore if I have to chose between these two.

Disclaimer: I have been to HK only once and 4 times to Singapore. This post is compiled based on my limited exposure to these cities. Please use your discretion.

Do share your thoughts- if you have been to both Singapore and Hong Kong, which one would you recommend higher?