7 Best Sights in Hong Kong, China

This peninsula town lies south of Deep Water and Repulse bays. There's great shopping in the popular Stanley Market, full of casual clothes, cheap souvenirs, and cheerful bric-a-brac. Stanley's popular beach is the site of the Dragon Boat Races every June. To get here from Exchange Square Bus Terminus in Central, take Bus 6, 6A, 6X, 66, or 260.

Aberdeen's harbor contains about 3,000 junks and sampans, and each might be home to multiple generations of one family. During the Tin Hau Festival in April and May, hundreds more boats converge along the shore. On Aberdeen's side streets you'll find outdoor barbers hard at work and any number of dim sum restaurants serving up dishes you won't find at home. You'll also see traditional sights like the Aberdeen Cemetery, with its enormous terraced gravestones, and yet another shrine to the goddess of the sea: the Tin Hau Temple.

A bridge connects Aberdeen with Ap Lei Chau Island (Duck's Tongue Island), where you'll find popular shopping malls like designer-packed Horizon Plaza.

Just east of Ocean Park is this lovely beach that's often overlooked by tourists, though weekends can get a bit more crowded. It's a good place to have a barbecue or swim under the watchful eye of a lifeguard. Leafy trees provide ample shade, and there's a great view of the Ocean Park cable car. To get here, take Bus 6, 6A, or 260 from Exchange Square Bus Terminus in Central. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (fee); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: swimming; sunset; walking.

Most Hong Kongers have fond childhood memories of this aquatic theme park. It was built by the omnipresent Hong Kong Jockey Club on 170 hilly acres overlooking the sea just east of Aberdeen. Highlights include the resident pandas, an enormous aquarium, and the Ocean Theatre, where dolphins and seals perform. Youngsters love thrill rides like the gravity-defying Hair Raiser, as well as the Water World waterpark, added in 2019. The park is accessible by the MTR's South Island Line. From Admiralty Station, the ride takes about four minutes. There are also a number of buses, including the 629; get off at the stop after the Aberdeen tunnel.

If you have kids, plan to spend a day here. You can even stay the night: Marriott's 471-room hotel has a 52-foot-high, cylindrical aquarium in its lobby.

The beach in this tranquil neighborhood is large and wide, but be warned: it's the first stop for most visitors to Southside. Two huge statues of Tin Hau—goddess of the sea—at the east end of the beach were built in the 1970s. Worshippers had planned to erect just one statue, but worried she'd be lonely. Look for a famous apartment building with a hole through it—following the principles of feng shui, the opening allows the dragon that lives in the mountains behind to readily drink from the bay. To get here, take Bus 6, 6A, 6X, 66, or 260 from Exchange Square Bus Terminus in Central. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; parking (HK$50–HK$60 fee for two hours); showers; toilets; water sports. Best for: sunset; swimming; walking.

The seaside locale is Southside's easternmost village. Every shop sells the same inflatable beach toys—the bigger the better, it seems. Cut through town to a windy road that takes you to the "island" of Tai Tau Chau, really a large rock with a lookout over the South China Sea. You can hike through nearby Shek O Country Park, where the bird-watching is great, in less than two hours. To get here from Central, take the MTR to Shau Kei Wan (Exit A3), then take Bus 9 to the last stop (about 30 minutes).