Hong Kong

Headed to Hong Kong this weekend to celebrate the SO’s birthday.

We arrive Friday morning and will be there for two nights, staying at The Kowloon in Tsim Sha Tsui.

A visit to Victoria Peak, Stanley Market and Temple Street Night Market are on the agenda I think. I’d also like to do a trip on a junk in the harbour but not sure if this feasible for just an hour or two? Any tips on what’s unmissable?

Thanks

Flying Ball bike shop!

Rather than a junk around the harbour, a trip across the harbour from Kowloon to Island and back on one of the iconic Green Star ferries. Dinner on the Jumbo floating Chinese restaurant.

You could take the cable car all the way to the giant Buddha and monasterywhich is quite nice. Some really good views.

Here

Get pissed up down at Ned Kelley’s bar. Entertaining house band.

Giant Buddha had also been mentioned to me actually. On the list.

Thanks for the tips.

Ben if you get chance go to Dan Ryans for lunch – one in Ocean Terminal or Pacific Place – & try the ribs just fantastic. Also the HK countryside is amazing but as you are only there a short time go visit the aviary in HK park behind the Bank of China Tower (designed by IM Pei). It the very triangular looking building near to Central. Your SO will love the birds & butterflys in the park. Have a great trip.

Rather than a junk around the harbour, a trip across the harbour from Kowloon to Island and back on one of the iconic Green Star ferries.

Note that the Star Ferry trip is also dirt cheap 🙂

If you go to Nong Ping 360 on the cable car then the queues to go up at peak times (particularly Sunday mornings) can be horrendous – as in more than an hour long.

+1 for Dan Ryan’s…

If you go to Nong Ping 360 on the cable car then the queues to go up at peak times (particularly Sunday mornings) can be horrendous – as in more than an hour long.

Make sure you get a glass bottomed car as well, the views are mental.

Like seafood? Go to the Lamma Hilton…. Not what you’ll expect at all. Ferry across to Lamma (nice and quite compared to HK and Kowloonside) and the a row of outside seafood restaurants. Choose your grub from the tanks. A similar trip out to Cheung Chau is a good day as well. Ferries from Central pier, ask taxi for ‘Lamma Doh’.

Get pissed up down at Ned Kelley’s bar. Entertaining house band

I used to go for lunch there quite regularily, back when I lived in HK.

go visit the aviary in HK park behind the Bank of China Tower

I used to work in the Citibank Tower, which is beside the Bank of China building and right beside HK park.

If you’re short on time the Giant Buddha’s nowhere near the city/harbour. But it is right next to the airport.

A day in Stanley’s nice. Get some bargains at the market, have a beer and a swim. Go on a bus over the top of the hill instead of through the tunnel. Loads of buses go from Central.

I’d strongly reccomend not going to Stanley market, the market is tat, although it’s in a nice location. Simply not worth spending 3/4 of day on.
Go have Peking Duck at the Peking Star, Peking Buildings, 1 Peking Place (Kowloon). It’s not too bad!

Agree Stanley is worth a visit, although there are also lots of shops selling similar stuff (including designer copies) over in Kowloon side.

Whatever you do make sure amd take a trip on the Star Ferry and wander the bars in Lan Kwai Fong. There used to be a nice Lebanese place there, but that was about 10 years ago.

Used to like Joe Bananas in Wanchai or Mad Dogs in Lan Kwai Fong and have a very quick look in one of the Wanchai girly bars (but don’t buy any girls a drink). The bars are a bit naff now but still conjur up images of Yank GI’s on R&R from ‘Nam.

I used to love going to Ned Kelly’s but surely the Oz band leader has ‘passed over’ by now?

There’s a couple of revolving restaurants (Hopewell Centre – Wanchai and Furama- Central) if you fancy a touristy meal. Go past Chater Gardens on a Sunday and listen to the maids on their day off – an experience….

Ah happy days 🙂

The spring deer is good.

Spent many a happy evening in Joe Bananas!

or “Joe’s Banana” as the taxi drivers call it 🙂

transapp – Member

I’d strongly reccomend not going to Stanley market

Agreed Stanley market is tourist trap. Expensive and very western, all of Stanley seemed like that to me. A place for the rich to swank pretty dull.

If you have time head Tai-O to on Lantau island, buy some fish from the market and get it cooked at the restaurant down the beach.

Many nice walks to be had as well, Lions rock is a short quick one you can do from Kowloon as is dragons back on HK island

Ben, will email you a few suggestions…! 🙂

You’re up very early, Flashy….

Actually no I spose not I thought it was like 4 am there or something! 😆

Not too early. Just back from getting a bite of breakfast now. Another long day beckons….!

Morning Flash, suggestions welcomed – thanks!

Thanks to all for the suggestions, some great tips there. Shall get planning.

Cheers

Morning…! Bit of a grey one here today, looks like there might be a bit of a storm blowing in!

Thought I’d put some musings on here, rather than email. Might as well share the (?)wisdom(?)

As above, Stanley market is a bit grotty, but a nice early evening beer on the front at Stanley is rather nice. Food there is a little average, mind you!

Wan Chai – Yeah, it’s a bit seedy at times, but there are some great bars! Mes Amis (Very much an ex-pat place, but great for people watching from the corner), Amazonia (Home to the best pub rock covers band I’ve ever heard, of and great fun watching the drunk gwailos dancing with the “freelancers” and not realising that it’s going to cost!)
Food in Wan Chai? Went to American Peking the other night. Ignore the decor, or lack of, and look around you. All local people in there, which should tell you something!

Soho – Lively part of town, just above Central. Try Bistro Manchu and have the amazing fried lamb. Really nice little place.

Lan Kwai Fong – Mad, mad, mad little quarter of bars. Some great, some very average! Insomnia is a really good one (Best happy hour ever last time I was in there….free drinks from 2100 to 2300!) and they have a great Phillipino band in there playing cheezy covers. Very good band, though, I should add! Also, try the China Bar a little way up the hill.

Macau – Well, there’s Fernandos, which is a bit of an institution. Pretty much an old shack on the beach doing Portuguese food and ice cold Super Bock. Really laid back place, not gourmet but great! Casinos? Well, if you must. They’re all exactly as you’d imagine…!

Beach – Repulse Bay is quite nice, but will be rammed at the weekend.

Cheers for that Capn.

It’s a stormy one here too lah!

Is a ‘gwailo’ a bit like a gweilo 🙂 Tssk, bloody business tourists 😀

I’ll get mocked by the cool kids on here but last time I was over in HK for business i took the time to go to Ocean Park (locally operated theme park out in Aberdeen) – the rides are fairly lame but the reason for going was to see the Giant Pandas. I got the bus over the top (rather than through the tunnel) as its a nicer journey albeit longer.

Worth it to see the Pandas Synthpop?

Worth it to see the Pandas Synthpop?

Depends on how much you like Pandas, I really enjoyed the visit and as i hadn’t seen them before was really taken with them, plus the other half likes them a lot so I earned a lot of brownie points for taking her to see them, only downside was its a fair ways on the bus to the south of HKI so it eats into available time if you are on a short visit. The two ‘habitats’ ( 1 pair in each) are good for viewing and putting aside my normal qualms about zoos i did enjoy it.

The beach at Mui-Wo used to be fairly quiet and there were a few bars etc. nearby. We used to occasionally walk there from Discovery Bay, and you could then pick up a bus trip (with mental drivers) to get to the Big Buddha or to Tai-O.

We used to go to another small island, Peng Chau, as it was a short trip from DB and had waterfront bars where you could sit outside.

Still miss HK quite a bit – wouldn’t mind doing another stint out there.

Looking from my apartment in DB back to HK island:

Jetfoil to Macau from HK:

My old office:

View from my office window:

Would love to go back and spend a few more days there. Maybe next year.

From a pure tourist perspective, we loved bimbling around on the trams, just watching the world go by. Cheap as chips and the land version of the ferries, if that makes sense?

For the de rigueur Peak view, it was recommended to me to walk along Lugard road a bit. Hardly anyone along there and I got some decent enough pano shots

Ref Ned Kelly’s. Last time i went there in 09, the band leader was an Irish bloke.

Wouldn’t bother with Stanley – it’s a nice trip but nothing worth buying unless you want your name written in ‘Chinese’ as a souvenir. Definitely take a tram somewhere – wonderful just to see everything happening; same with Star Ferry and yes, walk about the Peak a bit.

It’s also very very hot and humid at the moment. Don’t know where you’re coming from but suggest one of you has a $10 fan and an umbrella.. Eat lots (of Asian food) and stay out late; HK is awesome 🙂

It’s also very very hot and humid at the moment

Are you…local?

Just been in town for a few days and I agree re the hot and humid, it was positively sticky around Wan Chai last night. Seek out the aircon…..!

Worth remembering that the OP’s coming in from Singapore, which is currently even worse! Not looking forward to the heat when I get there later tonight!

I lived there for six months just before the handover. Fantastic place. Many happy memories of Joe Bananas, Flying Pig, Mad Dogs Central, Jousters etc and the numerous little bars in Lan Kwai Fong and Wan Chai. Spent a fair bit of time at Happy Valley races too. I imagine its all changed a fair bit now but would love to go back. As others have said, Star Ferry, Victoria peak and Repulse bay are all great. Also seem to recall you could go up to a viewing floor in the Bank of China building.

If you have time in the evening it’s probably worth going down to the river to check out the symphony of lights. Starts at 8pm every night and lasts for 20 mins or so.

http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/attractions/kln-symphony-lights.html

Time and any jet lag aside……..

Star ferry – its iconic and one day they will fill the harbour in!!

Cheung Chau for sea food and a nice vibe (check out a google earth for orientation).

Stanley is my kind of hell. But I can do temple street night market for tat – but like looking at the men with their fotune telling birds.

DO GO AND HAVE DIM SUM HK Style……and don’t fear the ladies and their steamers.

Ben, what can I say, HK may be a long way away, but flipp’in eck it has a buzz about it. Real energy and drive. Scared me a bit to be honest as for the first time ever i thought to myself that HK is a young mans game……..and I’m not young!

Joe Bananan’s is an institution. Don’t expect too much, but it’s always full of people up for the crack.

You MUST have Dim Sum for one of your lunches.

Weather permitting, I’d suggest one of the numerous small islands for dinner one evening. Boat rides are usually about an hour and you get the most spectacular view of HK at night from the bay. You MUST do that.

Finally, this is one that will earn you extra brownie points with the SO. Forgive me, but I can’t remember the name of the bar, but it’s on the roof of the building that is in front of HSBC (don’t worry, you can’t miss it!) and to the left as you look from the bank to the sea. It is expensive, but well worth a beer up there looking at all hustle and bustle going on down below/lights on the buildings.