Things to See in Hong Kong

Yung Kee Restaurant
Central 32-40 Wellington St

This long-standing institution is probably the most famous Cantonese restaurant in Central. Its signature roast goose has been the talk of the town since 1942 (the restaurant farms its own geese for quality control), and its dim sum (14:00 to 17:30 Monday to Saturday, 11:00 to 17:30 Sunday) is excellent. Set meals around 300-550 per person.

Cococabana
Beach Bldg Island Rd Deep Water Bay 2nd fl Southern Hong Kong Island

Clichéd as it may sound, it's all location, location, location. The service is rather lax, but with the sounds of the waves and the sea breezes, the dishes such as bouillabaisse and Spanish duck confit with olives go down well.

Man Fung Seafood Restaurant
5 Main St Yung Shue Wan Lamma

You can't judge a book by its cover, but you can certainly judge a seafood restaurant by its tanks. The live seafood is displayed outside, all seemingly having a good life in what looks like pristine water, until you end it by sending it to the kitchen. Don't be surprised to see your fellow diners diving into basketball-size spider crabs.

Kung Tak Lam
Ground fl Causeway Bay Lok Sing Centre 31 Yee Wo St

This long-established place, which serves Shanghai-style meatless dishes, has more of a modern feeling than most vegetarian eateries and is usually packed out. All the vegetables are 100% organic and dishes are free of MSG.

Yun Fu
43-45 Wyndham Street Basement Yu Yuet Lai Bldg Central

No other place does Chinese food in such a fun way. Entering the restaurant through the stone staircase feels like travelling back to the time of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. After an exotic cocktail garnished with dry seahorses or lizards, your appetite should be whetted for goose liver soaked in dark soy sauce and sliced duck fillet wrapped in tofu paper. For veggie, why not a whole roasted bamboo shoot served in the bark?

Pierre
5 Connaught Rd Mandarin Oriental Central

The godfather of fusion, Pierre Gagnaire, has finally brought his revolutionary cuisine to the city that embodies the concept. Consider this: Le Rouge - red pepper jelly, duck foie gras and 'red' red tuna, red belotta 'Croque-Monsieur', Niora paste, chorizo, light butternut squash chutney, red beetroot and raspberry ice cream. The décor, with portholes and chandelier, reminds one of a fine cruise liner restaurant even before the harbour view.

Cafe Deco
The Peak 118 Peak Rd Levels 1 & 2 Peak Galleria

With its spectacular harbour views, Art Deco furnishings and live jazz from 19:00 to 23:00 Monday to Saturday nights, this place need not have made too much effort with the menu. But the food, while an East-meets-West eclectic thing, is above average, with the bistro dishes, sushi and sashimi plates (around 150 to around 300) and oyster bar scoring extra points. Breakfast and brunch are served from 09:30 to 14:30 Saturday and Sunday.

Miu Fat Monastery
Tuen Mun New Territories 18 Castle Peak Rd

This restaurant, on the 1st floor of Miu Fat Monastery in Lam Tei, due north of Tuen Mun town centre, serves vegetarian meals at lunch time only. The range of dishes varies daily and depends on group size, starting with three dishes for two (which is the minimum number).

Luk Yu Tea House
Central 24-26 Stanley St

This old-style teahouse is a museum piece in more ways than one. Most of the staff have been here since the early Ming dynasty and are as grumpy and ill-tempered as an emperor deposed. The booths are uncomfortable, it's not cheap, prices aren't marked on the English menu but the dim sum, served from 07:00 to 18:00, is really quite delicious.

Felix
Tsim Sha Tsui Peninsula Hong Kong Hotel 28th Fl Salisbury Rd

Felix has a fantastic setting, both inside and out. You're sure to pay as much attention to the views and the Philippe Starck-designed interior as to the fusion food (think lobster nachos, hoisin grilled ribs). Towering ceilings and copper-clad columns surround the Art Deco tables and even the view from the men's is dizzying. A special lift will whisk you up directly. If you can't afford dinner just try a drink in the swanky bar.

M at the Fringe
Dairy Farm Bldg Central Fringe Club 1st Fl, South Block 2 Lower Albert Rd

This palace of creative gastronomy is one of the best restaurants in Hong Kong so it's no surprise that no one seems to have a bad thing to say about Michelle's. The menu changes constantly and everything is excellent, be it lobster soufflé or slow-baked salted lamb. Save room for dessert, if you have that kind of self-restraint. Reservations are a must.

Feather Boa
38 Staunton St Soho

Feather Boa is a plush lounge hidden behind gold drapes. Part camp lounge, part bordello - part those curtains and order a mango daiquiri (around 75). It was once an antiques shop - thus the odd furnishings.

Red Bar
Two IFC 8 Finance St L4 Central

A fantastic combination of al fresco drinking and harbour views is hard to beat on Hong Kong Island. DJs playing funk and jazz turn up the volume as the weekend approaches.

Yumla
Central lwr Basement 79 Wyndham St enter from Pottinger St

Tucked behind Soda, Yumla is worth seeking out not for its scruffy looks but rather for the relaxed vibe and DJs that spin a eclectic but cutting-edge mix of excellent dance, hip hop and guitar stuff.

Sunbeam Theatre
Kiu Fai Mansion North Point 423 King's Rd

Cantonese and other Chinese opera are performed here throughout the year. Performances generally run for about a week, and are usually held five days a week in the evening at 19:30, with occasional matinees at 13:00 or 13:30. The theatre is directly above the North Point MTR station (exit A4), on the north side of King's Rd, near the intersection with Shu Kuk St.

Staunton's Wine Bar & Cafe
Soho 10-12 Staunton St

Staunton's, at the corner with Shelley St, is swish, cool and on the ball with decent wine, a central escalator-cruising scene and a lovely terrace. If you're hungry, there's light fare downstairs and the fabulously remodelled Scirocco restaurant above.

Brecht's Circle
gnd fl Causeway Bay 123 Leighton Rd Rita House

A small and fairly unusual club-like bar with an arty edge, Brecht's is given more to intimate, cerebral conversation than serious raging. Thankfully the décor has been upgraded to this century.

Sky Lounge
18th Fl Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers 20 Nathan Rd Tsim Sha Tsui

Before you can pooh-pooh the departure-lounge feel of this big, long lounge, you've already started marvelling at the view. Don't take flight: sit down in a scoop chair, sip something shaken or stirred and scoff international snacks.

Tony's Bar
gnd fl Tsim Sha Tsui 7-9 Bristol Ave

This low-key, anonymous and rather scruffy gay-friendly bar just behind Mirador Mansion is a relaxed place to come for a drink, with none of that 'last chance for romance' tension found in some other gay venues.

Hari's
Tsim Sha Tsui Mezzanine Holiday Inn Golden Mile 50 Nathan Rd

Tacky or classy? You decide, after a couple of speciality martinis - there are over a dozen to challenge you, including wasabi and garlic. The generous nightly happy hours will give you a chance to try these eclectic cocktails. There's also live music nightly.

Club 71
Soho 67 Hollywood Rd Basement access via a small footpath from Peel St or Aberdeen St

When Club 64, the counter-culture nerve centre of Lan Kwai Fong whose name recalled 4 June 1989, the date of the Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing, was forced to close, some of the owners relocated to this quiet alley north of Hollywood Rd. Named after the huge protest march held on 1 July 2003, Club 71 is again one of the best drinking spots for nonposers, with a pleasant little terrace. Access via a small footpath running west off Peel St.

Central Library
66 Causeway Rd Causeway Bay

Wan Chai Police Station
1 Arsenal St Wan Chai

Cyber Clan
Tsim Sha Tsui 66-70 Nathan Rd south basement Golden Crown Court

Joint Council for the Physically & Mentally Handicapped
Wan Chai Room 1204 12 31 Hennessy Rd

Australian Consulate
23 Harbour Centre 25 Harbour Rd Wan Chai

Hong Kong Central Hospital
1B Lower Albert Rd Central

US Consulate
26 Garden Rd Central

UK Consulate
1 Supreme Court Rd Admiralty

General Post Office
2 Connaught Pl Central

Hong Kong Tourism Board Visitor Centre
near exit F Causeway Bay MTR Station 99 Queen's Rd Causeway Bay

Ocean Park
Aberdeen Ocean Park Rd

Ocean Park is an amusement park with a roller coaster and other stomach-turning rides. It is also a marine park, with dolphin and killer whale shows, seals and sea lions, a shark aquarium and aviaries featuring the 'Amazing Birds' theatre.

Miu Fat Monastery
18 Castle Peak Rd Tuen Mun

Miu Fat Monastery in Lam Tei, due north of Tuen Mun town centre, is one of the most well-kept and attractive Buddhist complexes in the territory. Guarding the entrance to the main temple are two stone lions and two stone elephants, and there are attractive gardens outside. This is an active monastery that preserves more of a traditional character than many smaller temples; you'll see Buddhist nuns in droves wearing brown robes.

Hong Kong Museum of Art
10 Salisbury Rd Tsim Sha Tsui

To the southeast of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, The Museum of Art does a good job with classical Chinese art, showcase paintings and lithographs of old Hong Kong, and a Xubaizhi collection of painting and calligraphy. Another hall shows creditable international exhibitions, but the gallery falls down in contemporary art - visit the smaller galleries around for recent Chinese art.

Kowloon Walled City Park
Kowloon City from the train take a taxi or walk 15min along Junction & Tung Tau Tsuen Rds cnr Tung Tau Tsuen & Tung Tsing Rds

The walls that enclose this beautiful park were once the perimeter of a notorious village, part of China throughout British rule. The enclave was known for its sordid proclivities until the Hong Kong government acquired the area, evicted the residents and replaced them with pavilions, ponds, turtles, goldfish and exquisite flora.

Ping Kong
Sheng Shui New Territories

This sleepy walled village in the hills south of Sheung Shui is seldom visited by outsiders. Like other walled villages still inhabited in Hong Kong, it is a mix of old and new, and has a lovely little Tin Hau temple in the centre. You can also go exploring around the farming area behind the village compound.

Hong Kong Museum of History
Tsim Sha Tsui 100 Chatham Rd South Kowloon

For a whistlestop overview of the territory's archaeology, natural history, ethnography and local history, this museum is well worth a visit, not only to learn more about the subject but to understand how Hong Kong presents its history to itself and the world.

Jardine House
1 Connaught Pl Central

A short distance southeast of Star Ferry pier, this 52-storey silver monolith punctured with 1750 porthole-like windows was Hong Kong's first true 'skyscraper' when it opened as the Connaught Centre in 1973. Hong Kong Chinese like giving nicknames to things (and people, be they friend or foe) and the centre has been dubbed the 'House of 1000 Arseholes'.

Hong Kong Space Museum & Theatre
10 Salisbury Rd Tsim Sha Tsui

Just east of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, this golf-ball-shaped building consists of the Hall of Space Science, the Hall of Astronomy and the large Space Theatre, one of the largest planetariums in the world. Exhibits include a lump of moon rock, rocket-ship models and NASA's 1962 Mercury space capsule.

Hong Kong Science Museum
2 Science Museum Rd Tsim Sha Tsui

Illustrating the fundamental workings of technology such as computers and telecommunications, and practical demonstrations of the laws of energy, physics and chemistry, the Hong Kong Science Museum is a great hands-on experience capable of entertaining adults as well as children. There are more than 500 displays, although some of them are showing their age.

Harbour View International House
4 Harbour Rd Wan Chai From Wan Chai MTR (Hennessy Rd), walk north on O'Brien Rd to Gloucester Rd, cross to Immigration Tower, then turn left onto Harbour Rd.

This place is different to what you might expect from a YMCA-managed establishment, with no sports facilities such as a pool or a gym on-site, but you'll be hard-pressed to find cheaper views of Hong Kong's harbour. It's conveniently located opposite the city's Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Island Shangri-La Hotel
From Admiralty MTR on Queensway, cross to the south side of the street and go through Pacific Place to hotel. Supreme Court Rd Admiralty Pacific Pl

The Shangri-La is serenely removed from the congestion of the Hong Kong Island streets below it. The hotel's aloofness is reinforced by a lobby that tries too hard to impress with European flourishes, but overall this establishment is far more oriental in design (gloriously so) than most other deluxe Hong Kong accommodation.

Empire Hotel Hong Kong
33 Hennessy Rd Wan Chai From Wan Chai MTR at Hennessy Rd, walk two blocks west to Fenwick St, then right into Hennessy Rd.

Recent renovations to this hotel have made a enough of a difference to the interior style of the place to make you completely forget about the smudged grey tile-work of the exterior. Facilities are great and staff are super-efficient, generally speaking excellent English (which is not always a given in this area).

Hong Kong Hostel
Paterson Bldg Causeway Bay 3 Flat A2, 47 Paterson St from Causeway Bay MTR, walk E on Yee Mo St, then left into Paterson St

The hostel formerly known as Wang Fat is a good place to meet other backpackers, with 110 rooms scattered through several floors of a large apartment building. They're not spacious, but many are newly renovated with phone, TV and fridge. There's laundry facilities, long-term storage, free Internet access and wi-fi, but be sure to get a receipt when you pay.

Peninsula Hong Kong
Salisbury Rd Tsim Sha Tsui From Tsim Sha Tsui MTR, head south down Nathan Rd, then turn right onto Salisbury Rd.

The Peninsula Hong Kong (known more informally as the Pen) is a fabulous grey-stone edifice that has enjoyed a glorified reputation since it first opened its doors in 1928. Its classical architecture, rather like that of a grand old mansion, is a refreshing departure from the skyscraping modernity around it.

Ritz-Carlton Hong Kong
From Central MTR, head east on Chater Rd, left down Club St, then right onto Connaught Rd Central. Central 3 Connaught Rd

There's an enchanting old-world element to this sumptuous hotel. The staff manage to avoid making their constant greetings sound perfunctory and the opulence is displayed with an impressive lack of restraint, from the tiny chandeliers in the lifts to a lobby so stuffed with antiques that it looks more like the sitting room of a country manor.

Metropark Hotel
Causeway Bay 148 Tung Lo Wan Rd From Tin Hau MTR, walk west on Causeway Rd, then turn right onto Tung Lo Wan Rd.

Only a few years old, the Metropark is one of the nicest contemporary hotels in Hong Kong, with a quiet modern elegance that will garner appreciation from the moment you step inside.

Welcome Guest House
Flat A5 Chungking Mansions Tsim Sha Tsui from Tsim Sha Tsui MTR, cross east to Nathan Rd. 7 A Block 36-44 Nathan Rd

Hong Kong's budget guesthouses consist of teensy rooms in converted apartments. This place is one of the originals and still one of the best. It's a fixture in the tumbledown labyrinth known as Chungking Mansions, which is a place that has probably never lived up to the 'De Luxe Hotel' lettering high up on its facade.

Newton Hotel
218 Electric Rd North Point From Fortress Hill MTR on King's Rd, walk one block north on Oil St, then turn right on Electric Rd.

The Newton Hotel is in North Point, a district to the northeast of Hong Kong Island's main northern drags, but it's actually only a short walk away from Causeway Bay via the peaceful terrain of Victoria Park. It's a good-value business hotel, possibly the best in the area, that rarely gets swamped with people.

Royal Garden Hotel
69 Mody Rd Tsim Sha Tsui East From Tsim Sha Tsui MTR at Mody Rd walk east across Chatham Rd South. The hotel is 500m from the intersection

This facility-laden hotel, located not far from the tumult of Nathan Rd in the comparatively peaceful Tsim Sha Tsui East district, has been designed to lighten your mood. The foyer is full of milkwood and pale marble, and natural light is the main feature of the room-encircled atrium.

Arch Angel Antiques
53-55 Hollywood Rd Central

Though the specialities are antique and ancient porcelain and tombware, Arch Angel packs a lot more into its three floors: there's everything from mahjong sets and terracotta horses to palatial furniture. It also operates an art gallery, Arch Angel Fine Art (2854 4255; 38 Peel St), across the road that deals in paintings by Vietnamese artists.

Lok Cha Tea Shop
290B Queen's Rd Central Ground Fl

This favourite shop sells Chinese teas of infinite variety as well as tea sets, wooden tea boxes and well-presented gift packs of various cuppas. A great bonus is that you can try before you buy. Enter the store from Ladder St.

Temple St Night Market
Yau Ma Tei btwn Jordan Rd & Man Ming La Temple St

Temple St (named after the Tin Hau Temple at its centre) is the liveliest night market in Hong Kong, and the place to go for cheap clothes, dai pai dong (street food), watches, pirated CDs, fake labels, footwear, cookware and everyday items. It's definitely a place to bargain and is at its best late in the evening, when it's clogged with stalls and people.

Page One
Lower ground fl 80-88 Tat Chee Ave Kowloon Tong Shop LG1 30, Festival Walk

A chain, yes, but one with attitude. Page One has Hong Kong's best selection of art and design magazines and books; it's also strong on photography, literature, film and children's books. There's also a smaller branch in Tsim Sha Tsui (2730 6080; Shop 3202, 3rd fl, Gateway Arcade, Harbour City, 25-27 Canton Rd).

Photo Scientific
6 Stanley St Central Eurasia Bldg Ground Fl

This is the favourite of Hong Kong's resident pros. You'll almost certainly find equipment elsewhere for less, but Photo Scientific has a rock-solid reputation with labelled prices, no bargaining, no arguing and no cheating.

Premier Jewellery
Tsim Sha Tsui Ground Fl 50 Nathan Rd Shop G14-15, Holiday Inn Golden Mile Shopping Mall

This third-generation family firm directed by a qualified gemmologist is one of our favourite places to shop. The selection isn't huge, but if you're looking for something particular, give it a day's notice to have a piece ready in time for your arrival. Staff can also help you design your own.

Shanghai Tang
Central Pedder Bldg Basement & Ground Fl 12 Pedder St

This stylish shop has sparked something of a fashion wave in Hong Kong with its updated versions of traditional yet neon-coloured Chinese garments. It also stocks accessories and delightful gift items. Custom tailoring is available.

Island Beverley
1 Great George St Causeway Bay

Crammed into buildings, up escalators and in back lanes are Hong Kong's malls of micro-shops selling designer threads, a kaleidoscope of kooky accessories and an Imelda Marcos of footwear. Island Beverley is where Hong Kong's youngest mall-trawlers shop for clothes and trinkets or just to capture their moment of retail therapy on sticker machines.

Li Yuen Street East & West
Central Hong Kong Island

These two narrow and crowded alleyways linking Des Voeux Rd Central with Queen's Rd Central are called 'the lanes' by Hong Kong residents, and were traditionally the place to go for fabric and piece goods. Most vendors have now moved to Western Market in Sheung Wan, and today you'll find the usual mishmash of cheap clothing, handbags, backpacks and costume jewellery.

Wise Kids
1st Fl 88 Queensway Admiralty shop 134, Pacific Pl

Nothing to plug in, nothing with batteries: Wise Kids concentrates on kids generating energy with what's upstairs. Along with stuffed toys, card games and things to build, there are practical items for parents such as toilet-lid locks and carry-alls. There's also a branch in Central (2377 9888; Shop 301, 3rd fl, Prince's Bldg, 10 Chater Rd).

Liuligongfang
Central Shop 20-22, Central Bldg Ground Fl 1-3 Pedder St

Exquisite coloured-glass objects, both practical (vases, candle holders, jewellery) and ornamental (figurines, crystal Buddhas, breathtaking sculptures) from renowned Taiwanese glass sculptor Loretta Yang Hui-Shan are on display and sale here. There's another branch in Admiralty (2918 9001; Shop 320, 3rd fl, Pacific Place, 88 Queensway).