Last Updated on January 21, 2026 by Home in the World
The Chinese Special Administrative Region (and former British colony) of Hong Kong encompasses thousands of islands and the Kowloon Peninsula. It is a veritable fusion of East and West, and has long been a popular layover for intercontinental travellers.
But it is also well worth a stay in its own right. In this post, I take you on a journey back in time, to my Hong Kong visit in 2008, describing some of the things I saw and did. While the trip was many years ago now, I hope you can still draw some inspiration from it and get some ideas on what to see if you’re planning on visiting Hong Kong.
This article is also featured on GPSmyCity. To download this article for offline reading or create a self-guided walking tour to visit the attractions highlighted in this article, go to Walking Tours and Articles in Hong Kong. You can also read more about the GPSmyCity concept in this blog post.
Star Ferry, Tsim Sha Tsui (Kowloon) and general city vibe
I chose to stay in Causeway Bay, on Hong Kong Island, a 10-minute ride on the iconic Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour (costing less than USD 1) to Kowloon on the mainland.
The Tsim Sha Tsui district at the southern tip of Kowloon Peninsula provides a great vantage point to watch the nightly laser light show held at the harbour. Unfortunately none of my pictures were of adequate quality to post on here, but below is a good (and much more recent) example of what to expect.
The Olympics were quite a big deal at the time – China was just 3 months away from hosting the Beijing games. There was even a countdown board in one of the MTR stations.
…though not sure this cutie spotted in a nearby shop doorway was too impressed.
No matter which side of the harbour you find yourself on, you’ll inevitably be confronted with a myriad of dazzling signs strung between canyons of high-rise apartment blocks. Prepare your eyeballs, for you may indeed start to wonder whether the sky itself hasn’t simply morphed into a sea of flashing Cantonese characters.
Lantau Island
If you start to find the onslaught of signs and the frenetic city vibe is getting you down, the perfect antidote is to head out to Lantau Island, the largest island in Hong Kong (accessible via MTR), for something a little more zen.
Namely a ride in the Ngong Ping 360 cable car over the lush mountains and blue waters of Tung Chung Bay to the Tian Tan Big Buddha. It takes a good 45 minutes, and it is advisable to have a reasonable head for heights.
Perched high atop a hill and measuring 34 m (112 ft) in height, the bronze Buddha is visible well before you arrive. And when you do (having first passed through the touristy Ngong Ping theme village), it is a 268-step hike up to its podium. I am not sure if there are any alternatives available for people with special accessibility needs.
After huffing and puffing back down the 268 steps, allow your knees to recover in the tranquility of the Po Lin Monastery complex, which stands majestically under the Buddha’s impassive gaze.
Lantau Island is also home to Hong Kong Disneyland, which I did not visit.
The Peak
Back on Hong Kong Island, other popular attractions include The Peak (accessed via The Peak Tram), whose station – in the days before you had Google Maps in the palm of your hand – was harder to find than I had anticipated.
Nevertheless, the short but steep ride up to The Peak gives you the chance to enjoy a bird’s eye view north towards the city skyline and harbour (albeit often through a smog haze).
Cruise around Aberdeen
On the south side of the island is the Aberdeen district. You can take a short cruise through the harbour here – and if you’re lucky you may spot a traditional junk boat. Sadly I never did. The cruise did, however, take us past the Jumbo Kingdom floating restaurant, which was a sight in itself.
Central-Mid-Levels escalator
A somewhat lesser known attraction (at least at the time) is the Central-Mid-Levels escalator – the longest outdoor covered escalator system in the world.
I say ‘system’ because the escalator is broken up into segments; it is not one long continuous strip. It is, however, all part of the same 800-m (875 yds) stairway that rises up 135 m (443 ft) through the teeming streets of Hong Kong Island’s Central district.
New Territories
For something a little different, it is also possible to take a day-trip out to the New Territories north of the city towards the border with mainland China.
On the way, we stopped at the Chuk Lam Sim Yuen or ‘Bamboo Forest Monastery’, perched on the wooded slopes of the Tsuen Wan district. The complex was built in 1927, and from its elevated position, it looks out over the sprawling mass of high-rise in Hong Kong’s uplands.
Further up the peninsula is the Kam Tin walled village – one of the best preserved walled villages in Hong Kong. Built some 500 years ago, it is the ancestral village of the Tang clan, many of whose descendants still live there today.
The final leg of the New Territories tour took us up to the Chinese border. Visitors could usually go across briefly without the need for a visa, but due to the upcoming Olympics at the time, visa restrictions into China had been tightened, so we were only able to admire the city of Shenzhen from afar – well, the few glimpses we were able to catch of it through the haze of industrial pollution. I would visit other parts of mainland China in the future, however.
Day trip to Macau
If you want to experience something a little different when visiting Hong Kong, I recommend doing a day trip to the neighbouring Special Administrative District of Macau, a former Portuguese colony. The mix of Chinese and Portuguese heritage is truly unique! I have a separate blog post about my time in Macau, which you might also like to read.
Final thoughts on visiting Hong Kong
Hong Kong has always been a ‘city of the world’, shaped by both Western (British) and Eastern (Chinese) rule, while also maintaining its own unique character. It is the perfect stopover for intercontinental travellers, but is also a fascinating holiday destination in its own right.
I spent about 9 days there and found more than enough to keep me occupied. With its theme parks (Disneyland and Ocean Park), lush outskirts, traditional temples, world-class dining & luxury hotels, high-end and market shopping (I recommend Ladies Market in Mong Kok and Stanley Market in Stanley), and general cosmopolitan feel, there really is something for everyone.
The Octopus Card is indispensable for visitors to Hong Kong, as it enables tap-and-go payments on the city’s extensive public transport network, and for a number of other purchases.
Hong Kong is reasonably clean overall (though I hear the air quality has decreased since my visit), and English quite widely spoken (though I must admit I did expect the level to be a bit better considering the history of British rule).
It is an exciting and exotic destination, albeit with an uncertain future, as China strengthens its hold. Time will tell, but I hope Hong Kong can remain the Orient’s ‘window to the West’ that people have known it to be for decades.
** This post, like everything else on this website, has been written entirely by me. No ChatGPT or any other AI tool has been used. It takes longer to create, but I value 100% human-generated content and I hope you do too! **
Trip facts
When I visited: May 2008. This trip also included a day excursion to Macau, for which there is a separate blog entry here.
Weather: Over the 9 days I spent there in mid-May, it was pleasant (approx. 28°C/80°F) and predominantly dry. Hong Kong is often quite humid, polluted and overcast. While this was the case when I was there too, it was far from unbearable.
Where I stayed: Metropark Hotel Causeway Bay (no longer exists)
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For more Asia travel content, feel free to check out my posts from China, Cambodia, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, plus my older travel memories (more narrative style than blog style, just like this post) from Macau, Malaysia and Singapore.
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