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Golden Bauhinia
A 6m-tall statue (including pedestal) of Hong Kong's symbol, called the Forever Blooming Bauhinia, stands on the waterfront promenade just in front of the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre to mark the return of Hong Kong to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 and the establishment of the Hong Kong SAR.
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Government House
Parts of this erstwhile official residence of the governor of Hong Kong, opposite the northern end of the Zoological & Botanical Gardens, date back to 1855 when Governor Sir John Bowring was in residence. Other features, including the dominant central tower linking the two original buildings, were added in 1942 by the Japanese, who used it as military headquarters during the occupation of Hong Kong in WWII.
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Happy Valley Racecourse
Horseracing, worth more than US$1 billion annually, remains the most popular form of gambling in Hong Kong and it is one of the quintessential things to do while you're in town. The punters pack into the stands and trackside and the atmosphere is electric.
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Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park
A rewarding 6km walk in the area starts from the village of Hoi Ha (literally 'Under the Sea'), on the coast of Hoi Ha Bay, now part of the Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park, a 260-hectare protected area blocked off by concrete booms from the Tolo Channel and closed to fishing vessels. It's one of the few places in Hong Kong waters where coral still grows in abundance and is a favourite with divers.
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Hong Kong Arts Centre
Due east of the Academy for the Performing Arts is the Hong Kong Arts Centre. Along with theatres, you'll also find here the Pao Sui Loong & Pao Yue Kong Galleries (2824 5330; admission free; ; - during exhibitions). Extending over floors Nanshan four and five, there's room to host retrospectives and group shows in all visual media.
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Hong Kong City Hall
Southwest of Star Ferry pier, the recently facelifted City Hall was built in 1962 and is still a major cultural venue in Hong Kong, with concert and recital halls, a theatre and exhibition galleries. Within the so-called Lower Block, the Hong Kong Planning & Infrastructure Exhibition Gallery (3102 1242; www.info.gov.hk/infrastructuregallery) may not sound like a crowd-pleaser but it will awaken the Meccano builder in more than a few visitors.
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Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre
Due north of the Wan Chai MTR station, the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, which was built in 1988 and extended onto a man-made island in the harbour for the handover in 1997, has been variously compared with a bird's wing, a banana leaf and a lotus petal.
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Hong Kong Cultural Centre
The odd, wavelike (and virtually windowless) building clad in pink ceramic tiles behind the clock tower and opposite Star House is the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, one of Hong Kong's most distinctive - if not loved - landmarks. It opened in 1989 and was compared with everything from a cheaply tiled public toilet to a road-side petrol station.
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Hong Kong Design Centre
The design centre, just opposite the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre, is housed in one of the most graceful colonial buildings in the territory. Built in 1896, it served as a bank, the offices of the Japanese Residents Association of Hong Kong before WWII and a school until it was renovated and given to the Hong Kong Federation of Designers. Even if it does not have any exhibitions open to the public, the exterior and public areas are worth a look.
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Hong Kong Disneyland
One of America's most famous cultural exports finally landed in Hong Kong in late 2005 and has been struggling ever since to attract the hoped-for number of visitors. The reason is simple: compared to its US and European sister parks this tiny 100-odd hectare park, divided into four main areas - Main Street USA, Fantasyland, Adventureland and Tomorrowland - offers a decidedly flat experience.
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Hong Kong Film Archive
This is the place to find out what lies (or perhaps lurks) behind Hong Kong's film industry. The archive houses more than 4300 films, runs a rich calendar of screenings (local and foreign movies) and exhibits natty posters and other fine film paraphernalia.
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Hong Kong Heritage Museum
Located southwest of Sha Tin town centre, this exceptional museum is housed in a three-storey, purpose-built structure that is reminiscent of an ancestral hall. It has both rich permanent collections and innovative temporary exhibits in a dozen galleries.
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Hong Kong Maritime Museum
This small but interesting museum occupying the ground floor of Murray House consists of an ancient and a modern gallery charting the shipping history of Hong Kong and is well worth a visit if you've already come to see Murray House. The modern gallery includes some fun interactive displays where you can test your skills at morse code or even pilot a tanker through Hong Kong waters.
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Hong Kong Museum of Art
To the southeast of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, The Museum of Art does a good job with classical Chinese art, showcase paintings and lithographs of old Hong Kong, and a Xubaizhi collection of painting and calligraphy. Another hall shows creditable international exhibitions, but the gallery falls down in contemporary art - visit the smaller galleries around for recent Chinese art.
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Hong Kong Museum Of Coastal Defence
This museum doesn't exactly sound like a crowd pleaser but the displays it contains are as much about peace as war. Part of the fun is just to enjoy the museum's location. It has been built into the Lei Yue Mun Fort (1887), which took quite a beating during WWII, and has sweeping views down to the Lei Yue Mun Channel and southeastern Kowloon.
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Hong Kong Museum of History
For a whistlestop overview of the territory's archaeology, natural history, ethnography and local history, this museum is well worth a visit, not only to learn more about the subject but to understand how Hong Kong presents its history to itself and the world.
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Hong Kong Museum Of Medical Sciences
This small museum of medical implements and accoutrements is less interesting for its exhibits than for its architecture and attached herbal garden. It is housed in what was once the Old Pathological Institute, an Edwardian-style brick-and-tile structure built in 1905. The exhibits comparing Chinese and Western approaches to medicine are unusual and instructive.
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Hong Kong Observatory
This historic monument, built in 1883, is sadly not open to the public. It continues to monitor Hong Kong's weather and sends up those frightening signals when a typhoon is heading for the territory.
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Hong Kong Park
Hong Kong Park is one of the most unusual parks in the world, emphasising artificial creations such as its fountain plaza, conservatory, artificial waterfall, indoor games hall, playground, t'ai chi garden, viewing tower, museum and arts centre. For all its artifice, the 8-hectare park is beautiful in its own weird way and, with a wall of skyscrapers on one side and mountains on the other, makes for some dramatic photographs.
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Hong Kong Railway Museum
The museum is housed in the former Tai Po Market train station, built in 1913 in traditional Chinese style. Exhibits, including a narrow-gauge steam locomotive dating back to 1911, detail the history of the development of rail transport in the territory. There is also much attention paid to the opening of the Kowloon-Canton Railway in 1910 and its original terminus in Tsim Sha Tsui, which moved to Hung Hong in 1975.
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Hong Kong Science Museum
Illustrating the fundamental workings of technology such as computers and telecommunications, and practical demonstrations of the laws of energy, physics and chemistry, the Hong Kong Science Museum is a great hands-on experience capable of entertaining adults as well as children. There are more than 500 displays, although some of them are showing their age.
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Hong Kong Space Museum & Theatre
Just east of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, this golf-ball-shaped building consists of the Hall of Space Science, the Hall of Astronomy and the large Space Theatre, one of the largest planetariums in the world. Exhibits include a lump of moon rock, rocket-ship models and NASA's 1962 Mercury space capsule.
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Hong Kong University
Established in 1911, HKU is the oldest and most prestigious of Hong Kong's eight universities. The Main Building, completed in the Edwardian style in 1912, is a declared monument. Several other early-20th-century buildings on the campus, including the Hung Hing Ying (1919) and Tang Chi Ngong Buildings (1929), are also protected.
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Hong Kong Wetland Park
The space and serenity of this 60-hectare ecological park make it a wonderful place to while away half a day. Its nature trails, bird hides and viewing platforms are windows on the wetland ecosystems and biodiversity of the northwest New Territories. The futuristic grass covered headquarters houses interesting galleries including one on tropical swamps, a film theatre, a large café and a viewing gallery.
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Hong Kong Zoological & Botanical Gardens
Established in 1871 as the Botanic Garden, these gardens are a pleasant collection of fountains, sculptures, greenhouses, a playground, a zoo and aviaries. Along with exotic trees, plants and shrubs, some 160 species of bird are in residence here. The zoo is surprisingly comprehensive, and is also one of the world's leading centres for the captive breeding of endangered species, 16 different species of endangered animal being bred here.
