Things to do in Hong Kong
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TakeOut Comedy Club
If your idea of a perfect evening involves laughing, Hong Kong’s first comedy club will blow your socks off with consistent stand-up and improvised acts in English, Cantonese and Mandarin.
reviewed
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Tian Tan Buddha
On a hill above the monastery sits the Tian Tan Buddha, a seated representation of Lord Gautama some 23m high (or 26.4m with the lotus), or just under 34m if you include the podium. There are bigger Buddha statues elsewhere – notably the 71m-high Grand Buddha at Leshan in China's Sichuan province – but apparently these are not seated, outdoors or made of bronze. It weighs 202 tonnes, by the way. The large bell within the Buddha is controlled by computer and rings 108 times during the day to symbolise escape from what Buddhism terms the '108 troubles of mankind'.
The podium is composed of separate chambers on three different levels. On the first level are six statues of…
reviewed
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Peak Tower
The anvil-shaped Peak Tower makes a good grandstand for many of the best views of the city and harbour. On Level P1 there’s an outpost of Madame Tussauds, with eerie (and often creepy) wax likenesses of international stars, as well as local celebrities such as Jackie Chan and Michelle Yeoh. There is an open-air viewing terrace (adult/child $30/15) on Level 5.
reviewed
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Punchline Comedy Club
A veteran on the scene, the Punchline hosts local and imported acts every third Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 9pm to 11pm. Entry costs around $300. Book tickets online or call.
reviewed
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Ocean Park
It may have to compete with the natural crowd-pulling powers of Disneyland on Lantau, but for many Ocean Park remains the top theme park in Hong Kong. The accolade is in no small part thanks to a successful revamp of this local institution, which has seen new rides and attractions added to the constantly expanding site as well as consistently record-breaking visitor numbers. The presence of four giant pandas plus four very cute, rare red pandas – all gifts from the mainland – has also contributed to the dramatic turnaround in the park’s fortunes.
The park is divided into two main sections. The main entrance is on the Waterfront (lowland) side and is linked to the…
reviewed
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Jade Market
The Jade Market, near the Gascoigne Rd overpass just west of Nathan Rd, has some 400 stalls selling all varieties and grades of jade from inside two covered markets. Unless you really know your nephrite from your jadeite, it’s probably not wise to buy any expensive pieces here, but there are plenty of cheap and cheerful trinkets on offer as well. Shanghai Street on the other side of Kansu St will take you back to a time long past. Once Kowloon’s main drag before Nathan Rd, Shanghai St is still flanked by stores selling embroidered Chinese wedding gowns, sandalwood incense, professional kitchenware and Buddha statues. There’s also a pawn shop at the junction of Saigon…
reviewed
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Hong Kong Disneyland
One of America's most famous cultural exports finally landed in Hong Kong in late 2005. It's divided into four main areas – Main Street USA, Fantasyland, Adventureland and Tomorrowland – but don't expect too much. This is a very small-scale Disney franchise (although there are plans to expand it) with a solitary real adrenaline- inducing roller coaster ride (Space Mountain), while the rest of the park is made up of tamer attractions and of course is rammed with outlets selling Disney merchandise and fast food.
There's plenty for younger children to enjoy, including the full complement of Disney characters patrolling the park and the odd show re-creating great Disney…
reviewed
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Stanley Market
No big bargains or big stings, just reasonably priced casual clothes (plenty of large sizes), bric-a-brac, toys and formulaic art, all in a nicely confusing maze of alleys running down to Stanley Bay. It’s best to go during the week; on the weekend the market is bursting at the seams with tourists and locals alike.
reviewed
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Chi Lin Nunnery
One of the most beautiful and arrestingly built environments in Hong Kong, this large Buddhist complex, originally dating from the 1930s, was rebuilt completely of wood (and not a single nail) in the style of the Tang dynasty in 1998. It is a serene place, with lotus ponds, immaculate bonsai tea plants and bougainvillea, and silent nuns delivering offerings of fruit and rice to Buddha and arhats (Buddhist disciples freed from the cycle of birth and death) or chanting behind intricately carved screens. The design (involving intricately interlocking sections of wood joined without a single nail) is intended to demonstrate the harmony of humans with nature. It’s pretty…
reviewed
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Ngong Ping 360
Bringing the masses in ever greater numbers to Po Lin is the 5.7km Ngong Ping 360, a cable car linking Ngong Ping with the centre of Tung Chung (downhill and to the north).
The ride is well worth taking, offering spectacular views over the airport as it transports you from the high-rise apartments of Tung Chung to the more rural landscapes of Lantau. The lower station is just opposite the Tung Chung MTR station. Less appealing is the upper station, which empties onto the 1.5-hectare Ngong Ping Village just west of the monastery complex. A blatant attempt to commercialise the whole experience, it includes several themed attractions, including two Disney-fied regurgitations…
reviewed
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Tsim Sha Tsui East Promenade
One of the finest city skylines in the world has to be that of Hong Kong Island, and the promenade here is one of the best ways to get an uninterrupted view. It’s a lovely place to stroll around during the day, but it really comes into its own in the evening, during the nightly Symphony of Lights, a spectacular sound-and-light show involving 44 buildings on the Hong Kong Island skyline, which runs from 8pm to 8.20pm. The new Deck ‘n Beer bar located here is a great spot to have an alfresco, waterside drink (weather permitting).
Along the first part of the promenade is the Avenue of the Stars, which pays homage to the Hong Kong film industry and its stars, with…
reviewed
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Hong Kong Museum of History
For a whistle-stop 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 also to understand how Hong Kong presents its history to itself and the world.
‘The Hong Kong Story’ takes visitors on a fascinating walk through the territory’s past via eight galleries, starting with the natural environment and prehistoric Hong Kong – about 6000 years ago, give or take a lunar year – and ending with the territory’s return to China in 1997. You’ll encounter replicas of village dwellings; traditional Chinese costumes and beds; a re-creation of an entire arcaded street…
reviewed
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Apliu Street Market
From the Sham Shui Po MTR station, take exit A1 and you’ll soon fall right into this flea market, which makes a cheaper and more interesting hunting ground than the Temple Street Night Market to the south. Everything from clothing to antique clocks and coins is on sale here, although the real speciality is secondhand electronic goods – radios, mobile phones, stereo systems, amplifiers and spare parts. The market spills over into Pei Ho St.
reviewed
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IFC Mall
Hong Kong’s most luxurious shopping mall boasts 200 high-fashion boutiques linking the One and Two IFC towers and the Four Seasons Hotel. Outlets include Patrick Cox, Geiger, Longchamp, Kenzo, Vivienne Tam, Zegna…we could go on. The Hong Kong Airport Express Station is downstairs.
reviewed
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City Hall Maxim’s Palace
This place offers a typically Hong Kong dim sum experience – noisy, cheerful, in a huge kitschy hall with hundreds of locals and many dim sum choices that are paraded on trolleys. A seat by the window will let you see land reclamation in progress where the old Queen’s Pier used to be. There’s breakfast dim sum on Sundays from 9am but people start queuing for a table at 8.30am.
reviewed
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Bar 109
Tired of rubbing, er, shoulders with working girls in the Wanch? Well, even if not, the 109 will give you 110 reasons to flock here. It’s a serious chill-out zone cobbled from a 1920s-vintage bakery and divided into three sections, including a bar, a covered ‘outside’ area and a 1st-floor balcony.
reviewed
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Woodlands
Located above a department store, good old Woodlands offers excellent-value Indian vegetarian food to compatriots and the odd local. Dithering gluttons should order the thali meals, which are served on a round metal plate with 10 tiny dishes, a dessert and bread.
reviewed
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Sogo
This Japanese-owned store, in the hub of Causeway Bay, has 12 well-organised floors and more than 37,000 sq metres of retail space. The range is mind-boggling: over 20 brands of ties just for starters. Eclectic departments include the Barbie Counter and the Character’s Shop.
reviewed
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La Kasbah
La Kasbah is a Frenchified Maghreb caravanserai serving dishes from Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco, which effectively means meze and tajine or couscous. It's good stuff but expensive for what it is. The bar, Medina, is open til 02:00.
reviewed
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Picture This
The vintage posters, photographs, prints and antiques maps of Hong Kong and Asia on sale here will appeal to collectors or anyone seeking an unusual gift or souvenir. There’s also an assortment of antiquarian books related to Hong Kong. Prices are not cheap but they guarantee all maps and prints to be originals. Sunday opening hours are noon to five.
reviewed
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Temple St Night Market
Temple St, which extends from Man Ming Lane in the north to Nanking St in the south and is cut in two by the Tin Hau temple complex, is the place to go for cheap clothes, dai pai dong (open-air street stalls) food, Chinese memorabilia, watches, pirate CDs and DVDs, fake labels, footwear, cookware and everyday items. Any marked prices should be considered mere suggestions - this is definitely a place to bargain. It’s also a place to catch some entertainment.
reviewed
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Central Escalator
The world’s longest covered outdoor people-mover is part commuter travelator, part sightseeing ride and part pick-up procession. It consists of elevated escalators, moving walkways and linking stairs on the 800m hill from Central’s offices to the bedroom communities of the Mid-Levels. The best part is gliding by the Shelley St bars; there’s just enough time to make flirtatious eye contact with the denizens within.
reviewed
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Wu Kong Shanghai Restaurant
If you don’t mind the staff looking daggers when you dawdle over your banana fritters, the specialities at this pleasant Shanghainese restaurant – cold pigeon in wine and Shanghainese pot-au-feu – are worth a trip across town. The four-course hairy crab meal (from $400, October to December) is also divine.
reviewed
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Ngong Ping Plateau
Perched 500m up in the western hills of Lantau is the Ngong Ping Plateau, a major drawcard for Hong Kong day-trippers and foreign visitors alike, especially since 1993, when one of the world's largest statues of Buddha was unveiled here.
reviewed
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Tai O
A century ago this mostly Tanka village on the west coast of Lantau was an important trading and fishing port, exporting salt and fish to China. Today Tai O is in decline, except perhaps as a tourist destination offering an intriguing glimpse of the life of a traditional fishing village.
A few of the saltpans still exist, but most have been filled in to build high-rise housing. Older people still make their living from duck farming, fishing, making the village's celebrated shrimp paste and processing salt fish, which you'll see (and smell) everywhere. It remains a popular place for locals to buy seafood – both fresh and dried.
As recently as the 1980s Tai O also traded in…
reviewed