To rest wasn’t an option on this trip, not in a destination like Hong Kong, which has so much to divulge, so much to see and with such little time available in our schedule to get it done, it was essential to keep on the go and get in as much as possible. In that case, the second edition of our holiday in HK would always be full-on, as the action-packed Hong Kong family holiday continued its momentum.

To begin with, you can find all the events in the first edition of Hong Kong Diaries with a click of this link, and the highlights were plentiful right from arrival. We visited attractions that included a family package tour of Hong Kong Disneyland, the vibrant Tsim Sha Tsui, and the impressive Tian Tan Buddha. The list would only continue to expand as we explored the vast regions during our Hong Kong tour. Even if, at that stage, we had only scratched at the barrel on our Hong Kong vacation.

In the final days, the action didn’t stop either. For the second leg of our trip, we headed over to Hong Kong Island and their famous Peak; we got mesmerised by Chau Island and even had a last-minute spur-of-the-moment idea to cross the border into mainland China to Shenzhen city.

As the Hong Kong Family Holiday concluded, all this and much more were the major highlights of Hong Kong Diaries’ second and last editions.

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The Hong Kong family holiday concludes, but not before some great highlights.

Getting Around Hong Kong Island

Hong Kong Island is a tourist phenomenon you’ll likely visit several times during your stay. That’s assuming you haven’t booked accommodations on the island already. The HK island is famous for Victoria Peak, which gives you gorgeous harbour views over the city, scintillating shopping malls, an abundance of ferry terminals taking you to various ports in Asia and a lengthy Esplanade full of entertainment that looks over Victoria Harbour to Tsim Sha Tsui.

Our accommodation was situated on the mainland of Hong Kong in an area called Tsuen Wan, and the best way to get to Hong Kong Island was via MTR using the Octopus Card and catching the red line to its last stop at Central Station. Although there are other ways to the island, either by car using a taxi or Uber, buses, or the Star Ferry services.

Let’s cover some of the highlights of our adventures on Hong Kong Island.

We admired the views from Hong Kong Island.

It’s all happening at the Victoria Peak.

There is no argument: when you have a Hong Kong holiday, you’ll visit Victoria Peak.

The only decision you’ll need to make is how to get to the Peak. There are a couple of good options to take you there; you can pre-purchase tickets from Klook to catch the Tourist Peak Tram and enjoy a scenic ride to the top or take bus number 15A from various bus stops on Hong Kong Island using the Octopus Card.

On this occasion, we elected to take the regular bus service to the Peak, mainly to avoid the large queues that came with the tourist tram. It’s much cheaper to go by bus, and it takes around 30-40 minutes, depending on traffic.

Getting off the bus at the terminal on arrival at The Peak, the first thing we did was to make our way to The Peak Tower, a uniquely designed building used for multi-purposes such as a shopping mall, a tourist zone with family-fun attractions, number of fine-dining restaurants with great views and an Observation Sky Terrace that gives you 360 views of the surrounding areas.

At the forefront of the Tower, a bit is going on also; you have the stationary tourist tram where you can take a few photos, enter inside for a rest or receive information from the staff member at the desk, who’ll give you helpful information of the best walking tracks to take around Victoria Peak. More on that later.

Inside the actual Peak Tower, you are spoilt for choices with numerous attractions, while we didn’t visit them all, there were a few great things we did do during our travels, but I’ll give you brief run down on what is happening.

As previously mentioned, there is an Observation deck at the top of the Peak Terrace to capture the gorgeous views, including the picturesque Victoria Harbour. You can take dazzling photos inside the Madness 3D adventure, where you can try and trick your family and friends back home that you were doing terrifying stunts during your holiday in Hong Kong. I know my boys had fun with this one, perhaps I did too.

Of course, for those who need retail therapy, you can spend your hard-earned dollars and go shopping with an extensive range of retail outlets to browse through (I still love that black jacket I bought), indulge in a choice of stylish restaurants even though we settled for Burger King, tempt your taste buds with a delicious ice-cream that is sure to hit your waist-line (but it sure was delicious) and find many more fun things available to the tourist if you take your time to wander around and take it all in.

Naturally, when you visit the Peak, you will want to walk briskly along one of the trails to capture more mesmerising On this occasion, we took the Peak Circle Walk, which starts close to the Peak Tower and is around a 90-minute loop walk with ample stopping areas to take that memorable photo over Victoria Harbour. I hope the day is more straightforward for you than it was for me when you visited, but that’s life when you travel to Hong Kong in winter.

On an overcast day, the Victoria Harbour views from the Peak are still pretty good.

The Promenade at dark and the Symphony of Lights Show

Because we came back from The Peak during rush hour, it took a good hour to arrive at the Promenade precinct, and the Hong Kong night lights were well and truly in effect with the usual 5:30 pm sunset in the middle part of December.

We got off the 15A bus at Queensway Plaza. We wandered through the mall, cutting through the streets and stepping over the footbridge until we reached Tamar Park and the Central and Western District Promenade, where a dazzling lighting experience awaited us. Let’s be honest: Hong Kong is dark, with towering buildings and spectacular Christmas lights.

During December, which ran from November 29 to February 24 2019, there was a Hong Kong Pulse Light Festival showcasing a range of lighting arts throughout the promenade. The lighting show is perfect for all kinds of travellers, be it a family experience or a couple’s romantic stroll, and you can admire the dazzling event through the Hong Kong Observation Wheel and Ferry Terminal.

Not only can you appreciate the light show, but you can also look across Victoria Harbour to watch the ferries and cruise boats flowing through the water and further towards Tsim Sha Tsui, where more buildings in the distance look delightful in the night sky. Hong Kong is a city that is completely lit up.

It’s at 8 pm every evening, all through the year, that everyone searches for a great vantage point to watch the Symphony of Lights show. It’s a lighting performance from the high buildings on Hong Kong Island as the lights beam over the harbour and dazzle the on-lookers.

Usually, the best spot to watch the show is from the Tsim Sha Tsui side looking back towards HK Island; however, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it from Hong Kong Island, where we were located, with good vantage points from the ferry terminal, as we did, or from the Golden Bauhinia Square.

For those who want to watch the Symphony of Lights show in style, you can view it from Aqua Luna Cruise. It is a popular tourist cruise that runs daily and has a variety of sessions throughout the evening to appreciate the night lights further. This short cruise is ideal for lovers as you set sail on the Harbour, receive a complimentary alcoholic drink and admire the views hand in hand from a unique-looking cruise boat. You can purchase your Aqua Luna tickets from Klook for the cheapest prices.

The Symphony of Lights show.

Crystal Jade Dining Experience at Queensway Plaza

As the night descended, we couldn’t help but admire the mesmerising illuminating the surroundings. However, the rumble in our stomachs reminded us it was time for dinner. We decided to head back to the Queensway Shopping Mall, a place we had visited earlier, and our eyes were set on the Crystal Jade restaurant. It had piqued our interest due to its reputation as a fine dining restaurant that offered mainly Hong Kong cuisine. The restaurant wasn’t cheap, but the reviews promised top-quality food, and we were eager to experience it for ourselves.

A warm and elegant ambience greeted us as we entered the restaurant, setting the perfect evening tone. The menu was diverse and extensive, and we had difficulty deciding what to order. After much contemplation, we finally settled on dishes that caught our fancy – from the classic Peking duck to the iconic dim sums, everything looked sumptuous and delectable.

The food didn’t disappoint – it was exquisite, and every dish was a feast for our taste buds. The Peking duck was succulent and flavorful, and the dim sums were delicate and perfectly steamed. We savoured every bite, and it was evident that the food was made with the utmost care and precision.

As we finished our meal, we couldn’t help but feel content and satisfied. The food exceeded our expectations and was the perfect way to end a hectic day. We caught the train back to the Royal View Hotel, relishing the memories of a memorable evening, and it was undoubtedly a late finish to the day.

The Aqua Luna Cruise is ideal for lovers in the evening lights.

A day in Shenzhen – China

Visiting Shenzhen for the day was a spur-of-the-moment idea that provided a few dramas for the family. It is not the fault of the city but the lack of research when studying about going to Shenzhen from Hong Kong and the Visa requirements needed to enter mainland China.

I don’t want to bore you with all the details here because I have written a separate article, which can be found with this link and will cover most things you’ll need to know for entry.

To get to the bottom story, we initially went to the wrong border area at Futian Checkpoint, where they don’t hand out on-the-spot Visas. Since we had already scanned our passports to exit Hong Kong, we had to get marched back through to Hong Kong, back to the MTR and took another train to the Lo Wu checkpoint. The train ride only took around 10 minutes to Lo Wu, where we got our five-day Visa for China, and before we knew it, we were in Shenzhen. At least, it seemed that straightforward, but please see the Shenzhen Visa article for a detailed description.

I am on the way to Shenzhen from Hong Kong.

My oldest son inspired the decision to go to Shenzhen; he is fascinated with large buildings, and Shenzhen is the home of the fourth tallest building in the world. I speak of the Ping An Financial Building. It’s a flush building that was only recently completed in 2017 and is well-guarded by security detectors at most entrance points.

The Ping An Centre is a business district and a mega shopping mall that, when we visited, was half empty due to its recent opening. Still, it was a superb modern layout, with retail outlets and fine-dining restaurants that looked five stars.

The primary purpose of visiting the Ping An building was to see the Free Sky Observation deck; it cost 200 yuan to go to the top, and I felt the admittance fee was worth it, even if our views were spoilt by a foggy day. Up the top of the observation area, you can capture the birds-eye view of Shenzhen and beyond, ride on the virtual slide down the building, learn a few facts about the building and buy a souvenir item or two from the souvenir shop.

Now, I was only in Shenzhen for a short time, so I am not your ideal travel guide to the city; there are plenty of other resources for that. In our short time in the Chinese city, we wandered the streets of Shenzhen, got lost in the extensive MTR system, explored the underground world of malls that led to the MTR stations and visited the boutique —- shopping mall.

A busy day in mainland China was well spent after all the morning drama before going back on course and continuing our travel tours in Hong Kong.

Ping An Financial Centre in Shenzhen.

A day trip to Cheung Chau Island

Cheung Chau Island, WOW!!! It is one of the best tourist attractions and a tourist destination that needs to be added to the list for travel in Hong Kong with kids.

A rare, perfect sunny day embraced our day on Cheung Chau, and many tourists had the same idea: make their way to the picturesque island by ferry. Cheung Chau Island has no skyscrapers, modern buildings, or motorised vehicles. You need to either get around the pretty island by foot (the preferred and safest option) or hire a pedal bike from several locations that are pretty affordable. The only modern thing you’ll find on the island is a McDonald’s fast-food restaurant, and to be honest, that is genuinely wasted with several delicious seafood restaurants that overlook the harbour.

Cheung Chau gets your attention on initial sight, first of all you’ll see hundreds of boats anchored in the harbour and as you look into the distance, you’ll see an open highland that creates beautiful scenery from lower ground of the main town ship area. The best part of the Island will be wandering the back alleyways into further stores, marketplaces, restaurants and even run-down apartment buildings where the locals live. It’s all quite fascinating.

The further you go around Cheung Chau, you’ll find many beautiful things to see and do. You’ll stumble across many small temples that are hardly any masterpiece, but they are there, nonetheless. You can view mesmerising coastlines that offer scenic views over the bay and even provide a chance to take a refreshing swim on the several beaches available.

There are rock carvings, nature walks, and lookout towers to capture even better views, and the island even has a Mini Great Wall that is ideally located on the ocean’s edge. A full day is well spent on Cheung Chau Island, and it’s a must-visit for all tourists to Hong Kong. Don’t forget to have a seafood lunch with a glass of beer; it was delicious and perfectly capped off our time on the island.

A day trip to Cheung Chau Island.

What’s Next? Macau

Our Hong Kong Family Holiday has concluded with Cheung Chau Island, pretty much the last attraction we visited, and I have no doubt our time was spent wisely during the trip, as you have figured out in our Hong Kong diaries.

However, the trip to the region did not entirely end there, with a ferry trip to Macau that followed Hong Kong immediately. Now, all you need to do is wait and check out our adventures in Macau, a destination I have never seen before.

All smiles in Hong Kong.