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Aberdeen
Aberdeen is best known for its harbor, which in years past was home to thousands of people living on junks and in houseboats. A number of them remain, though most have moved off the water and into the sky¡ªlike much of Hong Kong Island, there's little room for building in any direction but up. The late-model high-rise cityscape makes for a rather dull town, but the harbor is still picturesque and a boat tour, whether with a freelance sampan captain or on a larger tour boat, takes you into the thick of Aberdeen's floating community of fishing families and the occasional expat houseboat-dwelling eccentric. At night, the harbor's three floating restaurants light up and make for pleasant drinks and dining. The Jumbo Floating Restaurant lays claim to a run of celebrity diners from Queen Elizabeth II to Tom Cruise and Gong Li, though the food itself is a bit B-list. For a pleasant day trip, explore the Country Park off Aberdeen Reservoir Road and, if you're up to it, hike your way up a trail toward Victoria Peak. You can also catch ferries to and from Lamma Island in Aberdeen.
Cheung Sha Beach
While Hong Kong has a number of beaches, Cheung Sha Beach on the southern shore of Lantau Island is Hong Kong's best-kept secret.
At 3 km in length, Cheung Sha is Hong Kong's longest beach and it's surprisingly quiet.
Cheung Sha is a great place to kite-surf or simply to relax, swim, sunbathe and is a one-hour ferry ride from Hong Kong Island.
For lunch on Cheung Sha Beach, The Stoep is the place. Tables are outside, facing the beach. It's run by South Africans, and the food's a mix of Mediterranean standards and South African-style barbecued meat -- try the mixed grill.
Happy Valley Racecourse
It's a popular saying: "Hong Kong's favorite sport is making money and in horseracing you have Hong Kong's favorite money sport." Happy Valley has been important to the city since 1846. Some say the city grew up around the racecourse. Happy Valley Racecourse is an oasis of green in the midst of the city with impressive tracks, a green expanse surrounded by high-rises. Before the races the atmosphere is charged with anticipation, residents of the surrounding high-rises throw cocktail parties on their balconies overlooking the track. And everyone knows there are two types of green in Hong Kong.
An incredibly popular pastime, the "Sport of Kings" is the only form of gambling legal in Hong Kong, but it's still not without it's share shady practices. In one racing season (September to June), more than HK$91 billion is taken in. Wealthy businessmen, holiday makers, locals and hard gambling addicts rush to throw down money their money as the horses gallope around this famous track. Even if you are not into betting, it's an experience to take in a race.
The name of the district "Happy Valley" is ironic considering that this was once a malaria infested district. There are many old cemeteries here commemorating those who died from the disease and also in the great fire at the racecourse in the 1920s.
Night races are the most atmospheric with bright lights, a charged atmosphere, and the winnings for betting on the right horse are huge. An enormous video screen surrounding the racecourse displays the races in progress, as well as all racing forms, manners of betting, and other relevant details.
Hong Kong Beaches
Repulse Bay
After a few days in the middle of Hong Kong surrounded by smog, a day trip to one of the island's bays is a good way to break up a trip. From the west of the island, the beaches stretch around in a curve. The first bay that you arrive at from Hong Kong, Repulse Bay, is the most popular. A long stretch of golden sand, it gets really busy, especially on weekends and holidays.
This is a popular swimming beach. During the summer, lifeguards are on duty. Near the beach, there are extensive facilities: showers, change rooms, barbecue racks, shade trees, hotels, supermarkets, and cafes. A lighthouse near the beach is a popular photo spot.
Sunset is a popular time to bring out a beach blanket and have glass of wine. With year round water temperatures ranging between16 C (60.8F) and 26 C (80.6F), this is a great place to beat the heat and get a bit of rest and relaxation. Shark nets and floating platforms have been outfitted to keep out the beasties.
In the 19th century, a battle took place in the bay between the British and pirates. The Brits were able to repulse the attack and that is how the place got its name. The real estate here is some of the most expensive in Hong Kong with many of the city's most rich and famous living in swanky flats in the surrounding hills.
Middle Bay and South Bay
The two small beaches of Middle Bay and South Bay are just a ten minute walk in either direction from Repulse Bay and offer a little more peace and quiet. The area around here is home to many of Hong Kong's most rich and famous residents. Luxurious villa's and apartments dominate the hills and there is also a big shopping arcade and park close to the bay.
Deep Water Bay
The next beach to the east is Deep Water Bay only a few kilometers east of Aberdeen. Trees along the edges of the beach offer shade from the heat of the sun and there are some nice restaurants and bars to eat around here too. Visitors can also set up their own barbecue at the end of the beach. Wakeboarding is also offered here. The last two beaches in this stretch are the prettiest. It is worth making the effort to get out here, especially if you are after some peace and quiet.
Shek O
The beach in Shek O in the southeast is one of the best beaches on the island. There is a great laid back feeling about this place, and there are a few great restaurants (try the Black Sheep). This is a very small, family run place serving up great Mediterranean style cuisine at reasonable prices.
Big Wave Bay
Just 2km north of here is an even nicer beach, Big Wave. Bay To get here you can either walk or hire a bike from the village. It is usually lovely and quiet and the sea is clear and great for swimming.
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center
Rising from reclaimed land and an artificial island next to the Wanchai Ferry Pier, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center (HKCEC) is a striking contemporary project with substantial symbolic importance: It was here in 1997 that the British formally handed Hong Kong over to the People's Republic of China. Interested visitors can stop in and view the room where history was made; a twice-daily flag ceremony. Besides functioning as a conference center and banquet hall, there are numerous offices, restaurants and theaters in the building.
Hong Kong Disneyland
While Hong Kong Disneyland is not for everyone, if you enjoy kitsch and color, you will not be disappointed. Opened in 2005, the popular 126 hectare theme park has four parts: Main Street, U.S.A, Fantasyland, Adventureland and Tomorrowland.
Located on reclaimed land in Penny's Bay on Lantau Island, this is the fifth and smallest Disneyland with less than five million visitors each year. In an attempt to be culturally sensitive, Disney incorporated aspects of Chinese culture, customs and traditions in the design and building of the park and resort.
The park can handle 34, 000 visitors per day, but it gets less visitors than expected and plans to expand in an attempt to double its annual visitors.
At present there are 27 attractions in the park, making it the smallest of the 5 other Disneyland Parks (Paris, Tokyo, Florida, and California).
The theme park's staff speak English, Cantonese and Mandarin and the guide maps are printed with Chinese character, Japanese and English.
Hong Kong Disneyland has become an increasingly popular place to have a "fairytale wedding" and begin your "happily ever after". Imagine the romance of having Mickey Mouse as your best man.
Lamma Island
After a day wandering around the intensely urban heart of Hong Kong Island, you'll be ready to hop on the Lamma ferry. A short ride from the Star Ferry Pier, Lamma Island is gloriously car-free place with great hiking trails, beaches and small enough be an ideal day trip from the city. The lack of motorized traffic is tonic for the overtaxed urban soul. The island's 13.6 kilometers are home to around 5,000 people and at least twice as many cats.
At Yung Shue Wan, a picturesque small town, you disembark from the ferry (from Central and Sok Kwu Wan which connects to Aberdeen). The seafood restaurants clustering the ferry piers all look and feel very similar--open-air seating, tanks out front full of crabs and fish and lobsters for the picking, and friendly laid-back staff. Try the seafood at ¡°the Lamma Hilton,¡± an open-air restaurant overlooking a small harbor. Sadly, the prices remain Hong-Kong high, but it was worth the splurge.
There's a small touristy street running through town--but you get the definite vibe that Yung Shue Wan and Lamma Island are there for the people who live there That's part of what makes Lamma great--you don't get crowds coming to see any particular famous sight, and the place has that great small-island vibe through-and-through.
Ascending the hillside behind Yung Shue Wan, you pass a slew of charmingly low-rent-looking island pads, that feed the escapist fantasies of enjoying the quiet island life with one of the world's greatest cities only a short ferry ride away. Soon you reach a network trails that running through charming wooded neighborhoods, along beaches and steep hillsides, into the bush, through jungly and rocky "neighborhoods"
You can wander the ¡°streets¡± of Lamma for a few hours; eventually you¡¯ll end up near the water. The only thing that doesn't fit in is the looming smokestack of the power plant situated on the coast down from a pleasant beach; an odd sight when you¡¯re strolling along the surf line or turn off the main path into the organic vegetable-and-herb garden Herboland, complete with healthy snacks and teas.
You can spend the better part of a day on the trail, ending up toward dusk in another small fishing town, Sok Kwu Wan, full of island cats. As dusk falls and lights began to glint across the waters from Hong Kong Island, board the ferry and chug back from whence you came.
Ocean Park
Ocean Park, once unquestionably Hong Kong's premier theme park, took hits from the Asian Financial Crisis, the SARS scare and, most damaging of all, from the Disney empire, which opened a local Magic Kingdom franchise in 2005, Hong Kong Disneyland.
Unable to compete directly with Mickey and crew's brandname power, Ocean Park has successfully set out in a new direction in recent years, upgrading and adding rides while also moving away from a fantasy-based theme park toward more of an eco-theme park focused on (you guessed it) the ocean.
This means that the park's famous pandas are joined by sea lions, dolphins, penguins, sharks and over 2,000 kinds of fish in a revitalized aquarium setting that ranks among the best in the world. The park also features 14 major rides, including two roller coasters, and a cable car runs through it, connecting it to the Middle Kingdom, a neighboring theme park based on traditional Chinese culture.
Victoria Peak
Taking the tram to the top of Victoria Peak for the first time can make you a bit giddy, first with the kind of buzz little kids get from amusement park rides, then with the pleasure of realizing that, in Hong Kong, everyday public transportation is fun (don't forget the double-decker street trams and Star Ferry). And once you reach the peak, you're in for another treat: one of the world's best views, with Hong Kong's skyscrapers, bustling Victoria Harbour and Kowloon spread out before you.
The tram drops you off at the foot of the Peak Tower. An oddly unnecessary addition to such a stunning spot, the eight-story wok-shaped mall in the sky looks a bit like a clunky party hat perched atop the head of an otherwise grand dame. Along with the neighboring Peak Galleria, the tower houses a slew of expensive shops, pricey eateries and a Madame Tussaud's wax museum. Of far less questionable aesthetics is the historic Peak Lookout, a breezy colonial-era building that is home to a restaurant with a terrace perfect for a cup of coffee, a cold beer or a satisfying meal (seafood is especially recommended).
Exploring further afield, you'll find four roads leading away from the tram terminal. Mount Austin Road leads to the actual top of the Peak (the tower sits below the real summit) and to the Victoria Peak Garden, former the governor's residence. Harlech and Lugard Roads circle the Peak and make for pleasant, shady strolls and more great outlooks. Old Peak Road runs down toward the city, connecting to the May Road tram station. If you're up for it, returning to the city on foot takes you through some beautiful parts of Hong Kong's priciest residential real estate (that is, some of the priciest land in the world).
The way up is just as nice, though you'll find it strenuous if you're not in good shape. Old Peak Road is one way down; Hatton and Conduit Roads lead down to the Mid-Levels, where you can continue by foot or catch a bus or taxi. Another good walk takes you to Pokfulam Reservoir and its namesake road, from which you can descend by bus to either Aberdeen or Central.
Victoria Peak's history is revealing. Until the tram¡ªtechnically a funicular railroad¡ªwas completed in 1888, the area was difficult to access. This didn't stop wealthy colonial residents from making it to the top in style, transported in sedan chairs by local laborers. The Peak was popular among the British for its cool air and distance from the relative squalor of the harbor city below; in the worst of the colonial years (or best, if you're a racist retrograde colonial aristocrat), the area was de facto off-limits to Chinese.
Today, Chinese tycoons are buying up much of the hottest properties in the region and the general public is welcome¡ªthough it certainly doesn't hurt to have a few extra HK dollars to have a peak Peak experience.
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