Three days in Hong Kong

Introduction

Hong Kong is a city of contrasts. From the imposing skyscrapers of the financial district to the green peaks of the islands and to the chaotic streets of Kowloon, there’s something for everyone.

During our recent trip to Asia, we spent 3 days in Hong Kong, as a long time bucket list destination. It did not disappoint.

It’s fascinating to understand the history of the city and how it evolved over time. The long story short version is that Hong Kong was a British colony until 1997, when it was handed over to China. Since then, it has been a Special Administrative Region of China.

This means that Hong Kong feels like a country within a country, with its own laws, currency, and culture.

Don’t expect to visit Hong Kong and to think you are visiting China. It feels closer to Singapore than to mainland China.

There are two main areas to consider when planning your trip: Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. The island is where the famous skyline is located and where you find the most popular attractions. Kowloon is the old harbour area where you will find the rougher side of the city.

We decided to stay on the island, in the Wan Chai area. This is a good compromise between the price and the location. It is significantly cheaper than the Central Area, but it’s just a stone throw away from the main sights.

We recommend the YING’nFLO hotel, it’s located close to the tram line and not too far from the Admiralty MTR station. It also has a ton of restaurants and coffee shops just around the corner.

Day 1: Wan Chai and Victoria Peak

We started our day with a coffee at Blend and Grind Starstreet, a super cute corner place with great food and coffee. It is located in a small area packed with narrow streets, shops and cafes in Wan Chai known as Starstreet Precinct.

Hong Kong actually surprised us with the amount of top quality breakfast and coffee places, particularly around Wan Chai. We tried at last 3 different places and all were great.

From the Starstreet area, we did a short walk towards Hong Kong Park. This is a large green area in the heart of the city, surrounded by skyscrapers. There are a few interesting places, free of charge, to visit in the park, including: a tea museum, a conservatory and an open aviary where you can admire a variety of birds.

Also at walking distance from the park, you can find the Peak Tram, a funicular railway that takes you to the top of Victoria Peak. Being one of the most iconic places in Hong Kong, you can expect long queues to get to the top. There are special tickets you can buy to skip the line, but they felt overpriced for us.

Being with a toddler, we decided to skip the tram and get to the peak by taxi. It was a great decision as we ended up saving a lot of time while enjoying a wild ride going up the mountain with the fearless Hong Kongese taxi driver.

Victoria Peak is absolutely worth the visit. There’s a circuit hiking trail that takes you around the peak, offering great panoramic views of the city and the harbour below. The path is pretty flat and even stroller friendly.

For a complete experience, we recommend the sunsets and the night views from the peak trail. From the tram station, you can take a short 15 minute walk to check out some of the best spots for the panoramic view over the city.

On our way back from the peak, we stopped by the Harbour promenade on the Hong Kong Island side of the harbour. It was a great spot to enjoy an evening stroll after sunset and to admire the skyline from a different perspective. While the area looks pretty empty at times, you see tons of runners, cyclists or people practicing tai chi and other outdoor activities.

Day 2: Central and Victoria Harbour

For the second day we decided to stay on Hong Kong Island, so we signed up for one of the free walking tours that covered the Central area. The tour was great, as it gave us a good overview of the city and its history.

To get to the Central area, we took the famous Hong Kong tram, which is a fun experience in itself. The tram has a unique double-decker shape and is super narrow and usually packed with people. It can be tricky to fit in with a stroller or with large luggage, so keep that in mind when planning your trip.

The walking tour took us through the financial district, where we saw the famous HSBC building and the Bank of China building. We also passed by the Central Market and rode up the Mid-Central escalator, which is a unique experience as well.

We ended the tour with a visit to the Man Mo Temple, a small but beautiful temple with a unique architecture and a lot of history.

For the evening, we took a ferry ride to the Tsim Sha Tsui area, which is on the Kowloon side of the harbour. This area is packed during the evenings as people come to enjoy the harbour views.

The ferry ride is a public transport option that is very popular both with locals and tourists. It’s pretty cheap and it’s a great way to see the city from a different perspective. There are two piers on the Hong Kong Island: Central Pier and Wan Chai Pier. You can use any of them to get to Tsim Sha Tsui. You can also use the metro if you prefer a faster, but unspectacular option.

While the Hong Kong Island promenade is quiet and empty, the Kowloon side feels like a different city. It’s packed with people, mostly tourists coming to enjoy the harbour views especially during sunsets. The Tsim Sha Tsui area and the entire Kowloon side has a distinct unique atmosphere, definitely more chaotic and crowded than the island.

Day 3: Kowloon

For our third and last day, we decided to visit some places further away from the city centre. We started with the Nan Lian Garden, a free public garden. It features a golden pavilion, a beautiful fish pond and lots of beautiful bonsai trees. While vising the garden, you can also step inside the Chi Lin buddhist temple.

Just one metro stop away from the Nan Lian Garden, we visited the Wong Tai Sin Temple, a large and beautiful temple complex which is very popular with locals and with tourists alike.

Coming back to the southern part of Kowloon, we experienced the hectic and chaotic streets that made Hong Kong famous. There are lots of good restaurants in the area and a lot of different open markets that sell everything from fresh produce to clothes and electronics.

After filling up with fresh homemade dumplings at Yuan Ji Dumpling, we visited Kowloon Park, a green oasis in the middle of the bustling city, with lots of trees, plants and a huge playground area for the little ones.

Tsim Sha Tsui is just a few minute away from the park, so we decided to walk there and enjoy the harbour views one more time.

In the evening we did a repeat of the ferry ride at sunset, but this time only one way towards Wan-Chai to get back to our hotel room.

Travel tips

As mentioned before, don’t expect to visit Hong Kong as if you were visiting China. The city/country is in most way similar to an independent state: they have their own laws, their own currency and they are very proud of their unique identity. The last thing they want to hear from visitors is that they belong to mainland China.

It’s chaotic and busy, but very safe and clean. You can walk around the city at any time of the day or night and you’ll feel very comfortable.

The best times to visit Hong Kong are during the spring and autumn months, when the weather is milder and the city is less crowded.

We spent three days in Hong Kong, but you can definitely spend more time as there are loads of other things to do. For a condensed trip, two days would probably be enough to get a good overview of the city, but we travelled with a toddler and wanted to take it easy.