The Complete Hong Kong Travel Guide

Every place on this page was picked by hand, and most of them cost a Star Ferry fare or nothing at all. Hong Kong is a city of verticals: towers over a harbour, a mountain over the towers, and a hiking trail twenty minutes from every office. Take this the way you'd take a tip from a friend who lives here, the one who tells you which side of the ferry to stand on and which dim sum queue is worth the wait.

How to use this guide: the tabs at the top move you between itineraries, places to see, restaurants, hotels, experiences and day trips. On any tab, open the map to see how the island, Kowloon and the outlying islands fit together, and how much of it the MTR covers. On your phone, tap Get the App (or add this page to your home screen) so the whole guide is one tap away. Short on time? Jump to the ⚡ Quick Facts below.

About Hong Kong: Everything You Need to Know Before You Go

This complete Hong Kong travel guide covers the MTR and the Octopus card, the Star Ferry, the Airport Express, the free views from the Peak, dim sum and roast goose, the temples and night markets of Kowloon, the hikes and beaches most visitors never reach, day trips to Lantau, Macau and Sai Kung, and the money-saving habits locals use without thinking. Whether you're here for three days of skyline and street food or a week of islands and trails, bookmark this page before you book your flight.

Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region of China, home to about 7.5 million people on 1,100 square kilometres, most of it green: the city is Hong Kong Island, Kowloon across the harbour and the New Territories behind it, plus more than 260 islands, of which Lantau is the largest. Only a quarter of the land is built on, which is how one of the densest cities on earth keeps country parks and beaches half an hour from Central. Cantonese is the language of the streets, English is on every sign, the Hong Kong dollar is the money, and Victoria Harbour, crossed by the Star Ferry since 1888, is still the centre of everything.

Whether you have a long weekend or a full week, the sections below cover how to get around, which neighbourhood to sleep in, where to eat beyond the hotel lobby, and how to spend your days without losing a morning in a queue.