Trailing Hong Kong's heritage in Lantau Island

It was a warm summer day in 2023, summer had set in earlier than usual in most parts of India and Delhi sprinted from freezing cold mornings to blazing hot days directly. On the work front, things were quite hectic over the last few months juggling between my office in the corporate HQ and various aviation ministry offices, this was my second Delhi stint working with the recently privatized Air India. 

I’ve always been passionate about Aviation and grateful to be employed in the industry I enjoy. So, I wasn’t unhappy, but like a lot of times in the past and I am sure a lot of times to come, my individual identity outside work was struggling for space with most days consumed with work, it was time to hit pause and take a break.

View of Central from Tsim Sha Tsui across Victoria Harbour

On that warm summer day in 2023, my wife and I spent close to an hour trying to figure out where we could go within a travel time of 5 hours. My preference had always been to avoid large metro cities or city countries- like Singapore and Hong Kong. My misguided perspective was that there was no point in trying to explore these cities with gigantic skyscrapers bereft of any distinct character or culture. As I would quickly learn in the next few days in Hong Kong, nothing could have been further away from this premature judgement of this city. 

Arrived to pleasant weather in Hong Kong

Hong Kong is a city of contrasts – a seemingly modern place with towering skyscrapers yet deeply rooted in Cantonese Culture.  Parts of the city in Hong Kong Island and Lantau make it seem like the entire city is in a perpetual hustle while the outlying islands and their sleepy villages give it a sense of peace and calm. Thanks to its geographic location and the city itself being a vibrant mix of Cantonese heritage and British Colonial past, Hong Kong offers a unique cultural experience nested in a beautiful tropical background. 

Being a Sub-tropical city, weather fluctuates quite a bit in Hong Kong. It was bright and clear an hour later after this picture was taken. 

A Trail from Victoria peak which seemed to be loved by Hongkongers and tourists alike!

Steep incline on the tram from Victoria peak

We did all things a typical tourist would do and visited all places in the city a tourist would go to, except Disneyland. While we had a great time exploring Victoria Harbour and Central, the crazy Mid-Levels escalator system which we had to take from Central every day to reach our Hotel, the hike near Victoria Peak, the vibrant markets of Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok, the laid back beaches of Stanley and south Hong Kong Island, the one place that had my attention the most was a Klook day trip to the Tian Tan Big Buddha and Tai O fishing village. 

Tsim Sha Tsui, sounded like a familiar neighborhood even before visiting, thanks to watching the same Russel Peter's show multiple times.

The high density "Monster Building" in Quarry Bay (Click image to enlarge)

Hong Kong eye?

This is a day trip in Lantau Island that begins at Tung Chung on a cable car (Ngong Ping 360) and climbs to the Tian Tan Big Buddha statue while giving a full glimpse of Hong Kong Airport along the way. The package also included a short detour from the Tian Tan Buddha to a tiny fishing village called Tai O at the other end of Lantau Island. My wife and I took a short yet exhilarating boat ride from this village to try and spot Fu Shan (Chinese White Dolphins) that inhabit the bay nearby.  While we couldn’t spot any dolphins, this was my first glimpse of a Non- South Asian village and for some inexplicable reason, caught my imagination. Our trip came to an end the next day as we headed back home to Delhi, wishing that I could have stayed longer and hopefully come back some other time to explore Hong Kong and the outlying Islands better.

Ngong Ping 360 Cable car from Tung Chung

Tian Tan (The Big Buddha) at the end of Ngong Ping 360 Cable car ride, this also has a tourist village and Shops/Restaurants.

Po Lin Monastery near Tian Tan Big Buddha Statue, Lantau Island.  

Boat ride from Tai O

Canals within Tai O Village

This lingering desire finally saw its fruition earlier this year, two years after our first trip to Hong Kong. I had changed jobs and moved to Dubai recently, an unexpected consequence was that planning longer trips became much easier owing to better international connectivity from the city. 

Tai O Village- No Private vehicles are allowed apart from few pre-approved locals.

A friendly dog with fashionable eyebrows. 

I am sure his friendliness is what led to someone doing this to him.

Like the previous trip, this too was a last-minute decision. In addition to the Hong Kong Island itself, we wanted to stay in this sleepy little fishing village- Tai O. A bit of research on potential homestays or any other possible accommodation options in this village led us to discovering this hidden gem- Tai O Heritage hotel.

The erstwhile Marine Police Station, now Tai O Heritage hotel- perched atop a hill facing the sea.

Parts of the erstwhile police station now converted to few rooms for guests.

This was originally a Marine Police station built in 1902 to combat piracy in the nearby areas which now make the outlying Islands of Hong Kong. The police station, now converted into a UNESCO awarded heritage hotel, is located on a hill by the Tai O fishing pier offering beautiful views of the sea and near constant sea breeze. Since Tai O is on Lantau Island, closer to the airport, we booked a stay here on our last day before leaving Hong Kong. 

The stay!

Quite comfortable for a place that was once used to arrest pirates!! 

There are multiple ways to reach Tai O from downtown Hong Kong-

Metro: Take the Metro (MTR) from anywhere in the Hong Kong metro network to reach Tung Chung MTR station. From Tung Chung there are three options:

• Bus number 11 which runs between Tung Chung and Tai O Village

• If you are in the mood for a slow yet scenic ride in a cable car, take the Nong Ping 360 Cable car that terminates at the Tian Tan Buddha (while offering a great view of the Islands and Hong Kong Airport) and take bus 21 to Tai O Village

Ferry: Take a ferry from Central Piers in Hong Kong Island to Mui Wo on Lantau Island, take bus no 1 after alighting from the ferry to Tai O village. These are operated by Sun Ferry, you can check the timetable on their website.

Central

Taxi/Self Drive Car: Regular Hong Kong taxis and private cars are restricted on South Lantau Island except with a LCRP Permit. You can take blue taxis with this permit up to the village, but this is a costly and least preferred option.

Since we already went on the Nong Ping 360 cable car on our previous trip, we wanted to try the Ferry/Bus combination, which also happens to be the cheapest way to commute. Ferry takes a little over 30 minutes to reach Mui Wo depending on the type (Fast Ferry- 35 mins, Normal ferry-50 mins).

Look out for this Pier from Central

View of Outlying Islands between Hong Kong and Lantau Islands from the ferry.

While the ferry ride may appear to be a regular mode of transportation for Hongkongers, it was very exciting for us and the views were great. Mui Wo bus terminal is located right next to the Pier with a decent frequency of buses to Tai O, the ride takes close to an hour. 

Pro tip: Grab a left Window seat on the left side, this side offers nice sea views as the short bus journey goes along the periphery of Lantau Island.

Tai O, like I mentioned earlier, is a sleepy little fishing village without much noise since private vehicles or buses are not allowed beyond the bus terminal. Although fishing or tourist boats near the bus terminus drop guests to the hotel for a charge, we chose to walk since we wanted to try the deep-fried Tai O donuts, a local delicacy along the way. It became quite apparent that most of the touristy things in the village are named after the village itself, from hotels to local delicacies. It took us about 20 minutes to walk the entire length of the village to reach the hotel.

Mochi from Tai O bakery. Try a bottle of Vitasoy when here.

Its a cute little village, the walk was lovely!

Landmark, midway from the village center to the hotel.

Almost there...

We had watched a few videos of the hotel before we got here so we had an idea of what to expect, the actual place exceeded our expectations though. The hosts were polite and checked us in while explaining the history of the place and its transformation timeline from a marine police station in the British times to a heritage hotel.

Entrance to the hotel, there's a fun little lift too.

The sea facing end.

We spent the entire evening walking around the village and sitting by the pier looking at occasional fishing boats getting back after a day’s haul. The Sea looked spectacular from this hotel pier, especially during sunset where we spent a good part of the evening admiring the beautiful view. Apart from the rare distant noise from an overflying aircraft, all that we could hear after sunset was the sea breeze and few errant Cicada’s.

One of the Pier's nearby

A glorious sunset to end the day..

This village sleeps very early as most day visitors from Hong Kong would have returned by late noon. Shops and restaurants began to shut down by 6 pm and the village centre which was bustling with activity just a few hours ago turned into a ghost town with only few street cats for company. Thankfully, the hotel serves good food in its restaurant. The cold sea breeze got us to sleep like a log that night.

...the village sleeps on cue with sunset.

The next morning, we went on a hike from the village that leads to a Fu Shan (Chinese River Dolphin) viewing point. This trail passes through a ridge with a beautiful view of the sea, the Hong Kong- Macau Bridge and Chek Lap Kok Island (Hong Kong Airport). While we did not spot any dolphins, the distant view of aircraft landing on RWY 07R of Hong Kong International airport was a sight to watch. Since we went early in the morning, we had the entire ridge to ourselves and could just sit and enjoy the breeze hitting our face, a light drizzle made it even better. 

Short trail to Fu Shan Viewing point that begins in Tai O village. This is a relatively easy hike and offers great views on both sides.

Macau bridge in the background...

We were the only ones around and loved the hike.

My wife spent quite a while trying to spot a Dolphin. She didn't have much luck.

..it was my lucky day though, spotted a lot of aircraft landing in HK International, thanks to a phone with powerful zoom.

Once back from this hike, it was time to pack our bags and head to HKIA for our flight back home to Dubai. Bus 11 from the village centre to Tung Chung takes close to an hour, there are frequent shuttles from Tung Chung MTR/Bus terminus to Hong Kong Airport. Citygate mall at Tung Chung terminus also has a lot of shops in case you want to pick up any food or souvenirs before heading to the airport. 

Quite Content after a few hours hiking on the ridge. There's also a very old trail from Tung Chung to Tai O called the Tung O trail, we would love to do it someday.

Bus timings from Tai O to Tung Chung, Ngong Ping and Mui Wo in case you'd like to visit.

We loved the city’s distinct Cantonese culture with a British influence during both of our visits and would be back someday to explore more non touristy parts of Hong Kong. Do write to me in case you need some information about this place or if you'd like to suggest some place for us to explore when we are in Hong Kong next.

If you are in Hong Kong and even if Tai O village is not on the plan, I would recommend taking a ferry round trip to one of the outlying islands from Central Hong Kong just as a touristy activity, this gives a peek into the slow life in these Islands, a chance to indulge in good rural Cantonese food, while also offering nice views of the Sea and many small islands along the way.