Luxury holidays in Hong Kong

Hong Kong is now fully recovered from its handover hangover. When China took over the territory in 1997, some fickle-hearted souls fled for greener pastures. But, over the past few years, Hong Kong has been busy reaffirming its position as Asia’s most cosmopolitan city. Business is booming, and the bankers are still blowing their bonuses on elaborate cocktails in ever-sexier establishments. Rich local ladies, competing to see whose get-up boasts the most bling, are togged to the nines by couturier to the stars, Barney Cheng, while their husbands cut a dash in bespoke Berluti boots. The restaurant scene is buzzing like never before: Gagnaire, Robuchon, and Nobu have all opened here. Visitors can still do the traditional touristy things, like getting a suit tailor-made, suffering through the bad service at Luk Yu Tea House, or browsing crafts and antiques on Cat Street, but those in the know now go to Hong Kong for a slice of the high life, China-style.

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When to go

Hong Kong is a year-round destination, but the best time to visit climate-wise is during the cooler period between September and March. Go in late January to mid-February to catch the Chinese New Year celebrations.

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Getting there

  • Planes

    Hong Kong is one of Asia’s busiest hubs. Most of the world’s top international airlines fly to Hong Kong International Airport weekly, if not daily, and it regularly tops the charts in the ‘world’s best airport’ awards (www.hongkongairport.com). Once you have landed, zoom into the city on the Airport Express train service – it takes about half an hour (www.mtr.com.hk).
  • Trains

    Arrive by train from the mainland and capture some of the romance of bygone travel. The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) runs regular trains into and out of Hong Kong, as well as around the New Territories (www.kcrc.com). Excellent in both value and efficiency, the MTR subway system is a great way to zip back and forth between Kowloon, Central and Causeway Bay (www.mtr.com.hk).
  • Automobiles

    Renting a car is largely unnecessary thanks to efficient public transport and a glut of affordable taxis. Moreover, roads are frequently clogged with traffic and the one-way systems can be intimidatingly labyrinthine to the uninitiated.
  • Taxis

    Taxis are cheap and plentiful in Hong Kong. Be warned: while in certain neighbourhoods, such as Central, civilized folk patiently queue for their cabs, in others, you have to fight like Tyson to get through the door. Unless you have a huge life insurance policy, avoid the cute but crazy minibuses. While routes are defined, there are no regular stops except a few designated start and end points. Passengers flag down the buses, which are usually careering down roads at bewildering speeds, and yell out to the driver to stop when they want to get off.

The Upper House

The Upper House

Style Celestial sleek
Setting Admiralty eyrie
Best for Sticklers for service
Our reviewer says It feels more like staying at your best friend’s sleek-and-chic, Asian-style pad in Los Angeles, complete with jars of ‘help yourself’ cookies and sweeties, an iPod Touch, palatial (for Hong Kong) spa-style bathroom and – nice detail – complimentary drinks.’

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Viewpoints

Viewpoints

This may not be a city associated with getting back to nature but among Hong Kong’s best-kept secrets are its spectacular hiking trails. Set aside a whole day, pack a picnic and tackle The Dragon’s Back. This 8.5km trail runs from just outside To Tei Wan village to Tai Long Wan and takes you over some of the most gorgeous landscapes you’d never expect to see. At 284 metres above the bay and with panoramas stretching for miles, the trail’s viewpoints ensure you’ll have an envy-inducing Instagram feed. If a six-hour schlep sounds like too much legwork, you can also get your fix of jaw-dropping views via the Ngong Ping 360 – a 5.7km ride in a glass-floored cable car from Tung Chung over the water and past the Big Buddha of Tian Tan to Ngong Ping on Lantau island. 

Five things to know before you go

Five things to know before you go

1. The world is your octopus. London may have its Oyster, but Hong Kong’s multipurpose Octopus card blows it out of the water. The contactless card doesn’t just get you around on public transport; it can also be used to pay in supermarkets, carparks, vending machines, convenience stores and cinemas.

2. It’s colder on the inside. Hong Kong loves air-con. Sometimes a bit too much. Carry an extra layer whatever the weather. No matter how cosy they look, some venues (even buses) may be almost Antarctic

3. You’ll need more than a T-shirt. Hong Kong weather is unpredictable, often starting the day with a thick fog, bringing out baking sunshine by lunch and finishing with a light afternoon storm. Packing the appropriate wardrobe will require more than cabin baggage.

4. Don’t worry; be appy. Smartphone obsession is global, but Hong Kong takes it to a new (Candy Crush) level. To ensure you fit in – and discover even more of the hidden side of Hong Kong – download My Hong Kong Guide, a nifty app that lets you plan and share your itinerary, browse suggestions from bloggers and artists and, ingeniously, discover what’s going on around you just by shaking your phone.

5. Public transport is an adventure in itself. In need of an adrenaline rush? Hop on one of those cute PLBs (Public Light Buses). Nothing perks you up quite like hurtling through the streets with no discernible sense of direction or end point. Prefer to take it sedate and scenic? Jump aboard a ‘ding ding’, one of the flat-fare double-decker trams that have been pootling their way around Hong Kong Island for the last 100 years. Needless to say, both accept Octopus.

Eats on the streets

Eats on the streets

The tradition of the street stall and the dai pai dong roadside eatery (as well as the hundreds of varieties of snacky steamed dim sum dishes that many of them sell) is an essential part of the city’s culinary heritage. The variety on offer is enormous, but there are a few staples, both sweet and savoury, to look out for…

• Egg waffles (gai daan jai) Sweet egg-based pancake batter grilled in bubbled moulds.

• Pineapple Bun (bo lo baau) Hot, sweet, melt-in-the-mouth bread with a crunchy crust (and no pineapple involved).

• Egg Tart (daan tat) A colonial-legacy relative of the Portuguese pastel de nata egg-custard pastry found on Macau, but made with lard and without the browned-off top.

• Curried fish balls (yu dan) A lightly spiced blend of fish, flour and flavourings, boiled in curry sauce and served on skewers.

• Stinky tofu (chau dau fu) Pungently scented squares of fermented tofu, deep-fried and served with chilli sauce.

• Cheong fun A dim sum dish of steamed sheets of rice noodle, rolled and served on sticks, sometimes stuffed with meat or fish, and served with sweet, sesame-laced sauce.

Each neighbourhood has its own specialities. In mall-‘n’-market haven Mong Kok, you’ll find stalls on every corner. Fish balls and crimson barbecued pork are highlights, and the air around Dundas Street is fragrant with the inimitable aroma of stinky tofu. In Yau Ma Tei, the Temple Street Night Market is the best place in the city to be hungry in the evening. Here, beside the electronics stalls and trinket sellers, street restaurants offer visitors everything from fresh steamed scallops to whole roast pigeon.

By day, make a beeline for Graham Street in Central. Roll up to the junction with Stanley Street after 11am, and enjoy some of the freshest, most authentic cuisine Hong Kong has to offer. And, should you visit Tai O on Lantau Island, seek out the egg-ball man of Market Street. You won’t regret it.

If you fancy a little help navigating your way around the street-food scene, enlist the expert guidance of Hong Kong Foodie Tours. They’ll take you on a total-immersion tasting tour of Hong Kong’s culinary heritage.

Hotel Icon

Hotel Icon

Style Home-grown Hong Kong
Setting Colourful Kowloon
Best for Serenity seekers
Our reviewer says Ladies and gentlemen, if you’re going to do Hong Kong in style, this is where it’s at. Our boudoir, while not enormous, is beautiful. Sweeping views across the entire length of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island; a grandiose bathroom, decadent (and free!) minibar, and the most divine bed I have ever felt. Do I jump up and down on it giggling hysterically? Yes. I do.’

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J Plus Hotel by Yoo

J Plus Hotel by Yoo

Style Sleek boutique, Starck-style
Setting Hong Kong Island shopping hub
Best for Design aficionados
Our reviewer says ‘J Plus is not your ordinary bolthole. For a start, its 54 rooms are located in a 25-storey former office block. Transcending its humble origins, it has been redesigned by French design guru Philippe Starck – hence the impeccably stylish lobby.’

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Dining Haute

Dining Haute

Thanks to its global-melting-pot status, HK has long been luring in some of the biggest hitters of the chef world, and the refined tastes of its affluent residences have seen some of the world’s headline restaurants spring up in its skyscrapers. Read on for a few long-standing Smith favourites.
 

Lung King Heen 
Set in the Four Seasons hotel, this restaurant’s name means ‘view of the dragon’, but the harbour views themselves, spectacular as they are, play second fiddle to exquisite Cantonese food. Helmed by the remarkable Chan Yan Tak, Lung King Heen was the world’s first Chinese restaurant to be awarded three Michelin stars, and it has held them for six years.

Pierre
Lording it over the harbour on the 25th floor of the Mandarin Oriental hotel, this Modern French restaurant is the Hong Kong outpost of flavour revolutionary Pierre Gagnaire (the chef behind London’s Sketch). His trusty number two Jean Denis mans the kitchen, fiercely guarding Pierre's two Michelin stars.

8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana
Another Hong Kong first from the tyre folk: 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana was the first Italian eatery outside the Bel Paese to earn three Michelin stars. On the second floor of Landmark Alexandra, Umberto Bombano dishes up decadent and ever-changing menu of modern Italian delights, such as burrata ravioli and Tajima short rib tenderloin. He’s a wizard with truffles, too.

Café Gray Deluxe
With a view this good (a sweeping panorama of Victoria Harbour), you might not expect the food to get much of a look-in, but at the Upper House hotel’s Café Gray Deluxe, well-travelled master chef Gray Kunz presents finely honed Modern European dishes that are as visually delightful as they are delicious.

Amber
With two Michelin stars and a host of placings on world’s best restaurant listings, the Mandarin Oriental’s chic, golden-toned Amber restaurant is a temple to modern French cuisine. Dutch-born chef Richard Ekkebus oversees a kitchen that brings classical European culinary tradition into cahoots with Hong Kong’s East-meets-West ingredient-sourcing possibilities, resulting in a wonderfully inventive seasonal menu.

The Landmark Mandarin Oriental

The Landmark Mandarin Oriental

Style Sleek urban retreat
Setting Central’s shopping strip
Best for Mallrats and luxury lovers
Our reviewer says Poised between ultra-luxe and cutting-edge, the Landmark Mandarin Oriental is perfect for discovering Hong Kong’s inner-city charms.’

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Design

Design

Until Foster & Partners completes West Kowloon Cultural District in 2018, the unofficial headquarters of HK creativity is PMQ in Central. This colossal space houses more than 100 design studios and a host of shops, pop-up and permanent, selling the latest designs across fashion, home ware, food, furniture, jewellery and more. In Tseung Kwan O, the Hong Kong Design Institute has an excellent little gallery devoted to contemporary international design.

Meanwhile, the brains behind the Cultural District are running a visual culture museum without actually having a building to put it in. The M+ museum building, when it opens, will house exhibits focusing on 20th and 21st-century design, art, film and architecture but until then, Mobile M+ is a series of events and exhibitions at venues around the city.