Hong Kong - Lamma Travel Guides | Hong Kong | Sub Regions | Hong Kong - Lamma

With a long-standing reputation as a hippie haven, Lamma has become built up over the years and now resembles a crowded holiday resort with an ugly sprawl of concrete houses – a far cry from the small agricultural and fishing village of a few decades ago. Still popular with expats attracted by low rent, it is the closest inhabited island to Hong Kong and an easy day out with regular fast ferries from Central ferry pier. Yung Shue Wan, the village closest to the main ferry pier, has many restaurants, cafés and shops, but with a little effort and a map there are lovely walks and quiet villages to explore.

1 hr, suitable for children.

At the end of the Main Street, chock-full of restaurants and shops, a charming little temple, lacking the usual temple opulence, is guarded by two stone lions. The path from here to the tiny Hung Shing Ye beach takes around half an hour, through plantations of ginger lily and banana trees and a couple of unnamed cafés. Overlooking the tiny beach, usually packed on Sundays, is the Concerto Inn which serves decent food on the terrace, although the power station looming in front mars the view. From the beach, the path climbs gently to the Chinese pavilion, with good views over Lamma, Cheung Chau and Lantau. From here, Sok Kwu Wan beach is well signposted and has good seafood restaurants, although the water is not great for swimming.

The marked trail from Sok Kwu Wan to Shan Tei Tong (Mount Stenhouse) at 353 m is a tough climb that gets progressively easier. Another alternative from Yung Shue Wan is to turn off to the right just before reaching Sok Kwu Wan and walk to Lo So Shing, on the western side of the narrow strip of land in the middle of Lamma, which is a much better beach (with a lifeguard during summer). During the Tang Dynasty (seventh-10th century) it was the centre of the local industry, baking seashells to make lime, and there are still two kilns in front of the school and seven beside the nearby beach. At the south of the island is Sham Wan, also known as Turtle Beach. It is the only place on Lamma where green turtles are nesting and laying eggs. It is now protected by a marine park and prevents people entering during the season and stealing the eggs.

Another way of reaching Hong Kong island is a ferry to Aberdeen, either from the northernmost village of Pak Kok, or from Mo Tat Wan on the east.

Cheng Chau, literally meaning “long island” and shaped like a dumb-bell, is just 2.4 km square and the most densely populated of the outlying islands. The busy harbourside promenade, the Praya, is lined with shops and restaurants, although the best dining is in the popular seafood restaurants, the island’s biggest attraction for Hong Kong residents. No cars are allowed and the only motorized vehicles permitted are tiny ambulances and fire engines. Dozens of wooden junk boats are moored in the harbour, home to fishing families who maintain a traditional lifestyle, aided by the latest modern technology.

A 5-min walk along San Hing St, turning left out of the ferry pier.

Built in 1783, here is a temple dedicated to Pak Tai, Taoist god of the sea and protector of fishermen or, more sternly put, the “Supreme Emperor of the Dark Heaven”. His power is symoblized by the serpent and tortoise on the ground, and there are two statues of generals at his altar, Thousand Miles Eye and Favourable Wind Ear, who are said to see and hear any distance. Set in its own little courtyard with ceramic figures on the roof ridges and stone lions, it was completely repainted in 1989 and is now gloriously colourful. Some of its historical relics date back 800 years, including a Sung Dynasty sword and an antique sedan chair. The temple is the centre of festivities for the Bun Festival (see above).

On the eastern side of the narrow strip of land and a 15-minute walk from the pier, this popular beach is home to the island’s largest hotel, the Warwick. At the base of the hotel are 3000-year-old Bronze Age rock carvings encased in glass. It is also home to the famous Cheung Chau Windsurfing Centre, a mecca for local watersports enthusiasts.

Just one-third of the size of Cheung Chau, Peng Chau is linked to Central and Cheung Chau by an inter-island ferry, and is a scaled- down model of the others with many of the traditional ways of life still remaining. Although not really interesting enough to merit a full day out, it makes a pleasant excursion wandering around the fishing harbour, the 200-year-old Tin Hau temple, the morning fish market and the little cottage industry of hand-painted porcelain. There is a well-marked family trail around the island, and fresh seafood can be bought at the old pier and then taken to local restaurants for cooking. There is a kaido, a tiny ferry, across to the peaceful Trappist Monastery on Lantau and ferries to Central and Mui Wo.

The picturesque Po Toi Islands lie off the southeast of Hong Kong Island, accessible via Aberdeen or Stanley, and are one of the most remote and unspoilt areas of Hong Kong. Po Toi, the largest, and where the ferries dock, is a rugged outcrop which is great for rough hill trails and isolated walking along the granite headland above the cliffs, and it also has wonderful seafood and an interesting Tin Hau temple. There are ancient rock carvings and the occasional sighting of white-bellied sea eagles and turtles.

It is also possible to visit other tiny islands like Tap Mun, accessible via Sai Kung or Tolo Harbour, which is an old-fashioned fishing community. Tung Lung, which has an interesting old fort, is accessible by keido on weekends and public holidays or by two ferries from Sai Wan Ho Ferry Pier.

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