Nature Tripping in Hong Kong

With Hong Kong a busy and bustling city with very little natural resources, you would not expect there to be much nature tripping to be done. That would actually be a mistake because Hong Kong has wonderful beaches and gardens that have been attracting tourists and locals alike for many years. The beauty of these shores is that they are very safe for swimming since no large waves can come in due to the mountainous landcape.

Some of the more popular beaches and gardens are:

Repulse Bay

It may have a funny name, but Repulse Garden is one of the most amazing beaches in Hong Kong. You can either take a bus or jump into a cab to get to Repulse Bay. This is a long sandy beach with pristine blue waters. There are many water sports facilities here as well as dining and venues to just sit back and relax.

The reason for the strange name is because history will reveal that in the 19th century, the British were able to repulse pirates from coming in and destroying the area.

Turtle Cove Beach

This beach is in western side of the Tai Tam Reservoir. Many fondly call it a baby beach because it has a short beach area of only 70 meters, which technically makes it a cove. The beauty about this cove is that here you can get away from all the rush and excitement of being in Hong Kong and relax in absolute solitude.

There are very few facilities here like toilets, changing rooms, showers, a drink kiosk, and a small playground with barbecue pits. It’s all very basic and back to nature.

Golden Beach

This beach is located along Castle Peak Road in New Territories. It is an artificial beach which stretches for half a kilometer only. It is fairly commercial with a mall, hotel, refreshment kiosks, and a volleyball court.

Among the various garden in Hong Kong, these are some of the more popular ones.

Hong Kong Park

Since Hong Kong has been described as a city flourishing with large skyscrapers and buildings, it is a breath of fresh air to stumble upon Hong Kong Park. This park has over 2000 rare plants and an aviary with over 800 birds. Weekends and holidays find this park amass with people just wanting to sit back and enjoy the beauty of a lush green surroundings.

Victoria Park

In the city centre of Hong Kong island is Victoria Park. It was build and opened to the public in 1957 and named after British’s Queen Victoria. There are quite a number of recreational facilities like tennis courts, swimming pools, and jogging tracks. On special holidays like Chinese New Year, expect swarms of people to come and enjoy the park.

The Zoological and Botanical Gardens

This garden is situated in the Central District and many residents frequently stop and enjoy the beautiful surroundings, especially when the flowers are all in bloom. A famous Chinese exercise called Tai Chi is practiced in this garden by the locals. It’s an enchanting slow paced exercise for people of all ages.

Here in this lush garden of o0ver 1000 kinds of plants, 600 birds, 20 reptiles, and 90 mammals, you cannot find a more wondrous setting inside the city. It’s like a shangrila that provides busy city folk a moment of serenity and tranquility amidst all the chaos of daily life in Hong Kong.