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• See the country's oldest Chinese temple, Man Mo Temple on Hong Kong Island, which honours the gods of literature (Man) and war (Mo). On the China border is Fung Ying Seen Koon Temple, built in the traditional Taoist style with a double-tiered roof of orange tiles.
• View Hong Kong on high from Victoria Peak. The futuristic, seven-storey Peak Tower is reached by the Peak Tram, that rises 386m (1,266ft) up the mountainside (website: www.thepeak.com.hk). In the New Territories, the Waterfront Park in Tai Po has a futuristic Lookout Tower that provides breathtaking views across Tolo Harbour.
• Observe glimpses of Hong Kong's colonial past, such as Government House, the residence of 25 British governors from 1855 until Hong Kong's handover to China in 1997 (website: www.ceo.gov.hk/gh/eng). Other vestiges are seen in St John's Cathedral, thought to be the oldest Christian church in the Far East (website: www.stjohnscathedral.org.hk).
• Go to the Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware, an imposing colonial-style building in Hong Kong Park housing ancient Chinese artefacts used in tea-making (website: www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/cs_mus_lcsd.php). In Kowloon, check the time on the Clock Tower near to the star ferry pier, the remaining piece from the old Kowloon-Canton railway station.
• See the impressive 78-storey Central Plaza (website: www.centralplaza.com.hk). Visitors can view the city from the Sky Lobby on its 46th floor. After 1800 each day, neon rooftop lights change colour every hour to denote the time. Two International Finance Centre, or 2 IFC, has taken over as Hong Kong's tallest building, with 88 floors (website: www.ifc.com.hk).
• Visit the pristine beach of Repulse Bay, overlooked by the Tin Hau Temple. Lantau Island has the white sandy beach, Cheung Sha, and the amazing Shek Pik Reservoir Dam.
• For a more spiritual retreat, visit either the Chi Lin Nunnery, a spectacular Tang Dynasty-style complex, or Wong Tai Sin Temple. See Hong Kong's only historic pagoda, the Tsui Shing Lau Pagoda, built in 1486 in the Yuen Lang district.
• Mingle with the crowds at Mong Kok, thought to be the world's most densely populated urban area. Exotic fish and amphibians are sold at the Goldfish Market, and near the Yuen Po Street Bird Garden, intricate bamboo birdcages and songbirds can be purchased.
• Visit the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery in the New Territories hills above Sha Tin, which actually houses around 13,000 small Buddha statues (website: www.10kbuddhas.org). Also in the New Territories, amble around a beautifully designed complex, located in Tuen Mun, which features pavilions, bonsai trees, lotus ponds and a Taoist temple.
• Take the Ngong Ping 360 (website: www.np360.com.hk), a 5.7km (3.5-mile) cable car ride, to the Giant Buddha on Lantau Island. The Buddha sits upon Ngong Ping Plateau at the Po Lin Monastery (website: www.plm.org.hk). At 26m (85ft) high and weighing in at 202 tonnes of bronze, it is the world's largest seated outdoor Buddha.
Further information: More details on many of Hong Kong's museums and historical buildings are available from the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (website: www.lcsd.gov.hk).
See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.
• View Hong Kong on high from Victoria Peak. The futuristic, seven-storey Peak Tower is reached by the Peak Tram, that rises 386m (1,266ft) up the mountainside (website: www.thepeak.com.hk). In the New Territories, the Waterfront Park in Tai Po has a futuristic Lookout Tower that provides breathtaking views across Tolo Harbour.
• Observe glimpses of Hong Kong's colonial past, such as Government House, the residence of 25 British governors from 1855 until Hong Kong's handover to China in 1997 (website: www.ceo.gov.hk/gh/eng). Other vestiges are seen in St John's Cathedral, thought to be the oldest Christian church in the Far East (website: www.stjohnscathedral.org.hk).
• Go to the Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware, an imposing colonial-style building in Hong Kong Park housing ancient Chinese artefacts used in tea-making (website: www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/cs_mus_lcsd.php). In Kowloon, check the time on the Clock Tower near to the star ferry pier, the remaining piece from the old Kowloon-Canton railway station.
• See the impressive 78-storey Central Plaza (website: www.centralplaza.com.hk). Visitors can view the city from the Sky Lobby on its 46th floor. After 1800 each day, neon rooftop lights change colour every hour to denote the time. Two International Finance Centre, or 2 IFC, has taken over as Hong Kong's tallest building, with 88 floors (website: www.ifc.com.hk).
• Visit the pristine beach of Repulse Bay, overlooked by the Tin Hau Temple. Lantau Island has the white sandy beach, Cheung Sha, and the amazing Shek Pik Reservoir Dam.
• For a more spiritual retreat, visit either the Chi Lin Nunnery, a spectacular Tang Dynasty-style complex, or Wong Tai Sin Temple. See Hong Kong's only historic pagoda, the Tsui Shing Lau Pagoda, built in 1486 in the Yuen Lang district.
• Mingle with the crowds at Mong Kok, thought to be the world's most densely populated urban area. Exotic fish and amphibians are sold at the Goldfish Market, and near the Yuen Po Street Bird Garden, intricate bamboo birdcages and songbirds can be purchased.
• Visit the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery in the New Territories hills above Sha Tin, which actually houses around 13,000 small Buddha statues (website: www.10kbuddhas.org). Also in the New Territories, amble around a beautifully designed complex, located in Tuen Mun, which features pavilions, bonsai trees, lotus ponds and a Taoist temple.
• Take the Ngong Ping 360 (website: www.np360.com.hk), a 5.7km (3.5-mile) cable car ride, to the Giant Buddha on Lantau Island. The Buddha sits upon Ngong Ping Plateau at the Po Lin Monastery (website: www.plm.org.hk). At 26m (85ft) high and weighing in at 202 tonnes of bronze, it is the world's largest seated outdoor Buddha.
Further information: More details on many of Hong Kong's museums and historical buildings are available from the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (website: www.lcsd.gov.hk).
See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.