Hong Kong offers many charming off-the-beaten path spots. These include photogenic swimming sheds, hidden dim sum joints in the mountains and even lesser known tide pools.
Hong Kong is an extraordinary city with an intriguing past and future. It offers shopping and dining venues of its own with vibrant culture. Cathay Pacific flights taking you from Brisbane to Hong Kong can be bought now.
1. Nam Sang Wai
Within walking distance of Yuen Long is this recreational wetland area – an ideal spot for birdwatching! Boasting tidal mudflats and fish ponds, the wetland area provides shelter to waterbirds such as the critically endangered Black-faced Spoonbill.
Nam Sang Wai is not only an ideal spot for bird-lovers; it is also an idyllic destination for family picnics and photoshoots. Boasting vast swathes of grass, ponds, and reeds that serve as peaceful retreat from city life.
Visit this charming island by renting a bicycle near Yuen Long Station and cycling to Nam Sang Wai Ferry Pier, then paying a small fee to take the ferry across.
Discover all that this island has to offer by following its various trails through pristine nature. Make sure you stop at Yick Fat, a colorful residential complex straight out of a fairy tale that serves as an oasis from Hong Kong’s hustle and bustle. It will certainly refresh and revitalize you!
2. Tung Ping Chau
Hong Kong stands out as an astonishing city full of towering skyscrapers and bustling traffic, but Tung Ping Chau stands apart. A paradise for photographers, this island in the northeast offers unique geological formations and ghost villages slowly being taken back by nature.
On Tung Ping Chau, visitors can also explore a rocky outcrop that resembles a dragon’s back (with different angles showing different hues) and stroll along beaches lined with shells and sea urchins. You can walk a simple country trail around the island, or camp overnight to watch the sun set over Mirs Bay while listening for rasping cicada calls.
To reach Tung Ping Chau, start at Ma Liu Shui Pier in the New Territories, where you’ll pay HK$90 round-trip ticket and board an industrial two-story ferry with sea views and solitude that make up for its no frills ride. To avoid crowds, book your trip during weekday or non-holiday weekend rides (Tatler Tip: arrive before 9am for best chances on getting onto a ferry and camping instead) This island forms part of Hong Kong UNESCO Global Geopark system.
3. Shek Kwu Chau
Shek Kwu Chau is an outlying island west of Cheung Chau that houses a rehabilitation clinic and should provide you with some much-needed peace and quiet.
Coffin Island was once known for its small community of addicts living there as well as an addiction treatment and rehabilitation centre that requires a permit to visit. Residents have decorated this enchanting spot with statues, shrines and other often extravagant structures to add an aesthetic flourish that makes the island worth seeing.
Patrick Wu Shun-on, superintendent of Shek Kwu Chau in Hong Kong. It’s almost unspoiled; only 80 out of 100 Hongkongers would know of its existence.”
He points out that the island serves as a natural refuge, home to Hollinrake’s racer snake and subspecies of Jade vine snake, along with being used as nesting site by rare finless porpoise.
4. Tian Tian Buddha
Tian Tan Buddha stands atop Lantau Island’s Ngong Ping Plateau as one of the world’s largest outdoor seated Buddha statues and is also an important spiritual site. Constructed to commemorate when Buddha attained enlightenment, this landmark statue opened its doors for business in 1993 with a special opening ceremony attended by Buddhist monks from all around the globe.
Po Lin’s monks drew inspiration for the construction of this statue from their visits to Taiwan and China during the 1970s, where they saw monumental buddha figures on mountainside ridges. Furthermore, they relied on their experience with ancient Buddhist temples throughout Asia.
Visit this statue within an easy day trip from central Hong Kong by taking the ferry from Tung Chung to Mui Wo and then bus from there directly to the monastery. Alternatively, combine this trip with a visit to Tai O, Hong Kong’s oldest fishing village for stunning stilt houses and pink dolphins!
5. Yick Fat
Hong Kong is renowned for its secret islands, beautiful beaches and excellent hiking trails that rival any city worldwide, but there are also plenty of alleyways worth spending some time exploring. Time Out’s team of investigators have braved oily puddles, dodging unhygienic bin bags and unknowable drips to locate Hong Kong’s best hidden spots within these alleyways.
Yick Fat is an enormous residential complex that looks straight out of a Disney fairy tale, making it one of the most Instagrammable spots in all of Bangkok. Its colorful walls are filled with launderettes, massage parlors and other small shops which create an interesting juxtaposition against its towering apartment blocks just one block away – this building even made an appearance in Michael Bay’s film Transformers!
Make sure to arrive early as it can quickly become very crowded during weekends; bring along fully charged batteries! It will ensure amazing shots.
6. Yim Tin Tsai
When day trips to Lamma Island or Cheung Chau become boring, turn your sights towards Yim Tin Tsai for some real island magic. A quick ferry ride away from Sai Kung, this hauntingly beautiful abandoned island provides a fascinating look into Hong Kong’s past.
At its peak, Hakka Island was home to Hakka villagers who supported themselves through salt production. But as families left for education or work opportunities elsewhere, the village gradually declined until eventually there were none left at all by the 1990s. Colin Chan was elected village representative in 1999 and soon started renovating buildings and revitalizing salt production activities on Hakka Island.
Today, Yim Tin Tsai bustles with activity on weekends as visitors throng to its old village school and community buildings to discover remnants of former residents, from kitchen utensils to bed frames. A highlight is Jade Girdle Bridge – a concrete causeway connecting this island with Kau Sai Chau (Sharp Island). Walking uphill towards Twin Pavillion provides impressive views of both Sharp Island and its mountain ranges.
7. Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware
Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware may not be high on every traveler’s itinerary, but it should certainly be on any tea lover’s itinerary when visiting Hong Kong. Situated in Hong Kong Park and built in 1846, it served as office and residence of British forces commander in Hong Kong until 1978 when it was converted to a museum.
Vitasoy Museum became the world’s inaugural museum dedicated to studying, collecting and exhibiting Chinese tea ware. Their treasure trove boasts more than 600 purple clay tea vessels donated by Dr Kwee Seong Lo, the founder of Vitasoy.
The museum hosts exhibitions, tea gathering ceremonies and lectures to promote China’s tea drinking culture. You can join a guided tour to explore the house and its treasures or use GPSmyCity Self-Guided Walking Tours in Hong Kong app to turn your mobile device into a personal tour guide – you might discover parts of Hong Kong even most travelers don’t know exist!
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8. Flower Tunnel
Hong Kong attractions you are likely to encounter when traveling include The Big Buddha, Stanley Market, Temple Street, and Avenue of Stars; however there are numerous lesser-known spots and breathtaking nooks you should experience as well. We’re talking pristine beaches, fairytale-esque forests, and eye-catching street art murals which will add flair and flair to any Instagram feed!
Lok Wah South Estate Flower Tunnel has quickly become one of the city’s lesser-known Instagrammable spots since appearing in Korean boyband Got7’s music video for “You Are.” This public housing estate-based project brings nature into public housing estates by planting flowers throughout the year so residents can still take pleasure from them during winter months.
Peng Chau is one of Hong Kong’s many hidden gems, and feels like another world when compared to the rest of its sprawling metropolis. This sleepy island offers stunning beaches, some of the finest seafood restaurants in town and beautiful trekking trails such as Finger Hill.
