This is a huge, historic, and iconic department store that has been in the heart of Kowloon's now…read moreolder shopping district for decades (since 1959 to be exact). It is located very prominently at the intersection of Jordan Road and Kowloon's main commercial artery Nathan Road. Back in 1995, when I lived in Hong Kong for 4 months on a work assignment, this was one of the stores I would occasionally putz around in. And now in 2024, 29 years later, it is virtually the same and it's like having walked through a time warp. It's like the old-fashioned flagship version of Macy's of Hong Kong and a store full of traditional Chinese goods and products, and some of them exotic. What struck me the most, and I recall the same sentiment back in 1995, was the number of staffers they have. It seems there are more of them than customers, and there are a lot of customers in this 5 story (plus fully stocked basement) store! Some practices are still antiquated. For example, the sister-in-law wanted to buy some dry goods in the basement, and there was an advertised 20% off promotion. To get the promotion, she had to go up to a clerk on the 5th floor to get her receipt hand-stamped. Then she returned to the basement to complete the transaction. It all took maybe 20 minutes, but it did allow us to use their interestingly tiny and slow elevator. As a tourist, it's worth a walk-through just to say you've seen the store and the surrounding historic Nathan Road shopping area.

Growing up and spending summers in Hong Kong, you can imagine how HOT and humid it would be…read more Turning on the air conditioner was a luxury (more often than not, the fan would be running all day long instead). To combat the heat at night, I cherished the cotton weave breathable blankets that you could only buy in Hong Kong. When I got older, I tried finding one in the states (specifically, NYC Chinatown), but to no avail. So, I would ask my Uncle to help me get one whenever he went back for a visit. Well, this store, Yue Hwa, still has these special blankets for sale. Even though I have 3 of them, I just couldn't help buy another. This store is huge, and I haven't had the time to really browse properly, but I really like what I've seen so far. You can really find some traditional things here, but it can be on the expensive side.

I found out about this store ever since I started getting back into puzzling. I thought of doing…read morepuzzles again, since the pandemic is still going on about. Today was my first time visiting the store and I was amazed by the amount of puzzles that they have on their shelves. For a small store, they have a lot of puzzles to offer. Genres range from anime to Disney and there were even puzzles about maps and nature sceneries too! They have puzzle sets for all age groups, whether it's for your puzzling hobby or a gift for a relative. Moreover, the lady was very nice and she was very helpful with finding the puzzle my brother and I wanted. She was very sweet and welcoming. I highly recommend checking out this place if you ever want to try out puzzling or find challenging sets to your collection. Any puzzle lover out the there, try adding this place to your bucket list of to go's. At the end of of day, my brother and I were very happy when we showed the lady the image of our favourite anime. It's a Jojo's Bizarre Adventure 500 piece puzzle set. We came across the image when we went through their Facebook page. I also recommend checking out their socials (Puzzle Angel) too if you want to find any specific puzzle set of your interest.

Puzzle City is so far my favorite puzzle shop is Hong Kong. I'm not sure if this is the biggest…read morepuzzle shop in the city as the website said, but you can easily find puzzle in good price here. Compare to other puzzle shops, the price here is more reasonable, and there is always a special price area where puzzles are in really good prices. Maybe you will think those puzzles must be unpopular or too boring for sales. No! I used to find some Disneyland, Japanese anime or the classic western art work and all in good quality. I got a Heye German puzzle in 2000 pieces last time and guess how much, just $330! If you are looking for some old puzzles, come here to check, they have many brands and categories, you can easily find something unique here. Everything when I walk into the shop, I feel like I'm a child who is opening a Christmas box, so many surprises can be found in here. Another point to mention, not many puzzle shops sells puzzle more than 1000 pieces, but they have few here, the biggest one I saw is of 8000 pieces, will be a challenge but I do want to try. Oh, by the way, even the Mong kok shop is their branch shop but is way smaller and less puzzles to choose, go to the main shop if you are looking for a nice puzzle.

I'm a huge puzzle nerd, and am so happy that this store has stood the test of time. I've been…read morecoming here for years to purchase puzzles - they have a wide range of selections and sizes to suit your needs. I also find that they keep up with popular trends in the city (gudetama, tsum tsum, etc), and will stock up on certain puzzle designs around those times. The puzzles all come with frames, but if you don't want the frame, they'll give you the puzzle at a cheaper price. You can also custom order frames, but it may take up to a few weeks to arrive. The owner is nice and clearly very enthusiastic about puzzles, and just might give you a discount if you do a little nudging.

They have renovated this place since I came in February 2014. They offer varieties of puzzles and…read morethe two times I stop by Hong Kong, I managed to get at least one Disney puzzle and a frame here. This place is located opposite the famous departmental store (Sogo). It is located on the 2nd floor (go up the escalator 3 times) and you will not miss it. Price for the puzzles is definitely cheaper than what I could get in Singapore. Sales lady was friendly and she is able to speak in mandarin if you cannot speak Cantonese. Do stop by this place if you enjoy fixing puzzles like I do ;)

Considered the premier skate store in Hong Kong, 8Five2 Shop (stylized as 8FIVE2SHOP) has been…read moreinstrumental in bringing skate brands to the city such as Vans Syndicate, Girl, Fourstar Clothing, Lakai, and many more. It has been around for 15 years and has relocated to a higher floor in the same building. I enjoyed the older space, as it was much larger and the selection seemed more varied. Nonetheless, the new space still looks neat. I've been shopping at 8FIVE2SHOP since 2010, since their selection of Vans shoes are unparalleled. I have also bought a t-shirt and a complete board from them. If you're after a discount, try shopping around Chinese New Year and Christmas as the prices usually drop 50 to 80 percent, depending on the number of items that you buy. There is also a discount going on at the moment, during the 8th of every month they offer 50 percent off if you purchase a minimum of two items. 8FIVE2SHOP also has the only indoor skatepark (Sk8FIVE2) in town, so if you find yourself wanting to skate when it's raining, head on over. They also have another shop at the skatepark. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable (I'm thinking this is a requirement for all their staff), and all are skateboarders. You can ask them for recommendations and they'll be happy to discuss options with you. Also, don't forget to ask for stickers once you're done with your purchase!

Korean make up. Stores in Laforete, Harajuku Tokyo and here in Time Square, both are in the…read morebasement of the shopping mall. I love the stuff, despite the fact it is obviously targeting much younger audience, it's for the most part, pink in packaging so as a middle age woman, you'd think it's not good for you, wrong. Here is what I suggest you should purchase at this fabulous little pink house. 1. Eyebrow pencils. Soft tip, very easy to use, never have to sharpen. 2. Mineral powder. Way better than any U.S. brands. Perfect for Asian skin tone. 3. Eyeliners. Go nuts. There are so many shades. So soft and so pretty. This is a smaller outfit, the Tokyo ones have much more selection, and you can certainly see there is a difference in terms what people in HK are looking for, judging by what they have on offer, but this is pretty neat little store. Buy the cosmetics, replenish your backup supplies, while waiting for your number to be called at the nearby restaurant. A winner. Totally underrated cosmetic brand perfect for our skin tone.

It's my 7th year this year ice skating in festival walk. I find it really fun, tbh the coaches are…read moresome bad some good but I tried different coaches and only found 2 coaches good. I'll give a shout out to Craig and Michelle. I kind gave it away who I am if they are reading this review about festival walk. This mall have everything I need such as clothing store, food court and cosmetics. Me as a teenager I love Dior and other expensive brand. I always needed to go to new town plaza but after they showed up in festival walk I was really delighted and excited to make my bank empty again!! Everything is smooth, I had made thousands of memory in this mall I hanged out with my friends and celebrated my birthday here, these were the highlighted memories I had in this mall!!

Escaping the HK summer heat brought me into this gem of a mall. They have many good quality stores…read moreand not just the typical high end luxury brands. Eating here offers a huge selection of foods from food court to specialty restaurants. A definite must visit in the Kowloon area.