The SARS outbreak has meant that Hong Kong hasn’t been anyone’s favorite destination of late, but as the epidemic dies down tourists will start heading back to what has long been one of Asia’s top travel spots. And with good reason: Hong Kong is a truly unique experience.
Today’s visitors don’t get the thrill of nearly brushing the tops of high-rise buildings as they come in for landing. The new airport on outlying Lantau Island is thrill-free, user-friendly and connected to central Hong Kong by a fast, air-conditioned train that whisks you past lush green hills and dense clusters of apartment blocks that look like the newer districts of outer Moscow taken to truly grandiose proportions.
Hong Kong’s urban frenzy is what makes it so unique. Kowloon, the flat promontory on the mainland, is the most densely populated place on earth. Buildings crowd in from every side. At night the streets are ablaze with advertising and seas of people bustle about in various markets.
Over the narrow strait lies Hong Kong Island, its dark peaks rising above garlands of futuristic skyscrapers that look more like something from a science-fiction movie. The metro links the island to the mainland, but more picturesque are the ferries that run back and forth, chugging past cargo ships and even traditional Chinese junks that make an incongruous sight against the glass and steel urban backdrop.
The jungle of banks and boutiques on the island conceals numerous side-streets and stairways where you can find people selling all kinds of wares. Buy freshly squeezed tropical fruit juices from street stalls, wander past barrels of spices and unidentifiable food and get glimpses into steaming, cramped apartment buildings with tiny patches of garden. And if you’re too lazy to walk, an alternative to Hong Kong’s London-style double-decker buses are the escalators that carry people up parts of the steep hillside.
Shopping is the big draw for a lot of visitors to Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a world center for made-to-order clothing, and even if you just go for the mass-produced stuff, there are plenty of good deals. The upscale boutiques are on Hong Kong Island, while Kowloon is home to the Ladies’ Market, which specializes in women’s clothes, the Jade Market, and all kinds of cheap establishments. Kowloon’s main shopping street is the long and busy Nathan Road. The other attraction of shopping is that it gives you a chance to leave the sultry humidity outside for a bit of air-conditioned coolness.
There is more to Hong Kong than just the concrete jungle, and if you have time, you can take boat trips to nature parks, to sights such as the giant Buddha on Lantau Island, or to what remains of the more traditional villages such as Stanley on the far side of Hong Kong Island. The bus, train and boat system is easy to use.
Land in Hong Kong is expensive, and so accommodation doesn’t come cheap. The youth hostels are all farther from the central areas. One cheaper central option is the famous Chungking Mansions on Nathan Road, a teeming labyrinthine place that looks nothing like a mansion. For more comforts such as air-conditioning, expect to pay at least $50 a night at the better "mansions," and plenty more again at real hotels. The Salvation Army-run Booth Lodge in Kowloon offers comfortable hotel-style service and breakfast for around $50 a night.
As for visas, Hong Kong is part of China, but you need a separate Chinese visa to enter China. Hong Kong has its own visa rules, which you can find on the Internet.