Let me start with saying that I'm struggling between giving this three or four stars. I usually watch the light show from the opposite side of the water. And it's cool, but not amazing. I was told it would be great on this side. Since I was already in the area, I rushed to make it here at 8. I was a few minutes late but it was packed and difficult to find a place to stand by the railing. It was really cool but still a bit underwhelming. I think if you haven't experienced something like this before, then it's worth seeing and it's pretty neat. Fun short experience. However, if you've seen it before or seen other light shows elsewhere, this is kinda meh. Worth seeing once. read more

幻彩詠香江 - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Read the reviews. Although the lights on the harbor are beautiful, the Guinness Book of Records holding Symphony of Lights is quite unimpressive. We took a Star Ferry Harbor Cruise for $200 HKD (about $25 USD). We had almost the entire ferry to ourselves which was perfect. The cruise placed us in the center of the harbor. No music, but the lights on the buildings were beautiful. The night was cool and clear. The Symphony of Lights does not match the nightly show at the Supertree Grove in Singapore, but it is also free. Worth a stop if you are in the area. The show happens at 8 PM on clear nights. A relaxing way to end our day touring Hong Kong. read more

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Maybe great when it first started. But by today's standard, definitely not worth the visit or effort. A lot of the evening cruises jack up the prices and tour the event nonetheless. We selected the Golden Bauhinia to view it. Go to the west side of that building. If you don't have a compass just watch which side all the boats are moving towards at 8 pm. Hardly anyone there on the promenade. Maybe a dozen or so on a Friday night. Yup. The synched Music plays in this area from speakers on the promenade. But again nothing special. I didn't realize Yelp was in Hong Kong. I should've read the reviews in advance. read more

The music and light show starts at 8pm every night, and it attracts people to gathering here in TST. It would get even more crowded than the daytime during the show. So be mentally prepared to deal with crowd if you're into it. read more

Of course many mention this as a must go especially if you are on the Tsim Sha Tsui side of HK. Sadly it did not leave me awed as various other light shows in Asia I have seen. Do not get me wrong, if you have not seen a light show of this magnitude, then I am sure it will be a wonderful experience. I guess I have been spoiled in a sense by the glamorous Shanghai light show. Also, I'd suggest getting on the Star Ferry (Very cheap) or one of the authentic HK tourist boat as it offers a more exclusive experience. If you are stuck on land, make sure to make your way to the promenade early as it gets absolutely packed during and slightly before the light show begins at night. Again, if you have time and in the area, it is not a bad show, but for me personally I'd avoid if I visit HK again in the future. read more

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This is an amazing show. And it's free every night. We showed up early to stake out a spot near the front. And waited. And waited. If I were to do it all again, I wouldn't come so early. You can see most of the show from the back of the crowd. read more

幻彩詠香江 - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

As this is my final evening in Kowloon before flying back to Taipei, what could I do or see? The Symphony of Lights was just the event to enjoy! Each evening beginning at 20:00, weather permitting, a fabulous light show on Hong Kong Island can be enjoyed from the Kowloon waterfront. A multi-skyscraper timed to music spectacular eye-pleasing entertaining evening! Wow!! read more

幻彩詠香江 - Victoria Harbour - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

REVIEW #22 I was able to experience the sympathy of Lights during my stay in Hong Kong in November 2016. I have to be honest; I wasn't all that impressed with this light show. I was truly expecting to see this fabulous show that lasted at least 20-30 minutes and I was totally wrong! Instead, I experienced some music playing and some dull lasers...Blahh..Definitely could have been better! I was able to take the ferry boat which I personally believe is the better view. The light show runs nightly from 8PM and last for approximately 10-15 minutes. The Avenue of Stars is close by but unfortunately it's closed for construction (very disappointing). I admit that the best place to view the light show is at Victoria Harbour. Also if you get a chance, take pictures near the huge Hong Kong Buildings! WOULD I RECOMMEND: Not really, I truly believe that Singapore's light show would be a lot better! Don't go out of your way to come here. If you are in the area and it is night time then yes, make a stop and see the lights! REVIEW 228/196 read more

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The Symphony of Lights has been around for years and is the world's largest continuing light show. It starts at 8pm and lasts exactly 15 minutes every night. It has been a fixture in Hong Kong's incredible skyline for the last dozen years, making it one of the city's best free attractions. Best spot to view the festivities? Formally the Avenue of Stars was the place to be, but the Promenade in Tsim Sha Tsui is the spot to see it all. There is also Wanchai next to the Bauhinia landmark and an added bonus: some cheesy elevator music synced with the lights. One thing that is pretty nuts is the broadcast of the show is only done in Cantonese on Sunday. Otherwise it's split between Mandarin (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday), and English (Monday,Wednesday, Friday). The lights themselves are in an order that, according to organizers, is aimed at showcasing the diversity and vibrant nature of Hong Kong. Touristy as it may be, it hasn't been a popular feature with the locals. The waste of electricity, along with the constant light pollution has been the subject of criticism amongst city goers forever. If you didn't catch it the first time around, there is always the next night. read more

Watching the show of lights was amazing! Be sure to be early though as they start the show on time. I can only wish we have something like this in our country. We will be featuring our HK trip soon so if you would like, you can check our page at https://deartravellingknot.wordpress.com/ . There´s something magical about watching the show of lights across the bay with so many people so it really marked our HK tour! read more

A Symphony of Lights is a show that they put on in Victoria Harbor every night with participating towers lighting up. It starts at 8pm and lasts about 13 minutes. I honestly was expecting more. Only about five skyscrapers lit up. I was expecting most of the towers along the water to light up. Some of the buildings flashed beams. It was an ok experience since it was free. I wouldn't pay money to see it. Right after you pass the clock tower, there are stairs leading up to the upper level. That's where you can get the best view. read more

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No. Just no please. Reasons: (1) It's over hyped by the government. Largest permanent light and sound show in the world is such a "well-worded" title, but it's not that amazing even for the dozens of visiting friends I have entertained. (I didn't make that call. Most of them insisted to watch the show.) (2) The arrangement is mediocre. It's like a bunch of kids playing with their green laser beams. The colors of the LED among buildings are hardly coordinated. The music, if you happen to be at Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront between the Avenue of Stars and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, or the promenade at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wanchai, is very cheesy to say the least. (3) And again, if you are at TST or Wanchai, be prepared it will be flooded with Mainland Chinese tourists. And the narration on Tue/Thu/Sat will only be in Mandarin. It's not like the Mainland Chinese particular like the show, but since the show is free, the Mainland Chinese tour groups (hundreds of them everyday) prefer to drop them off here to spend the time. The only reason you'd enjoy this show is if you are having dinner at Aqua, Red, Sevva, Hooray, Tapagria, etc and happen to see it, then yeah go for it. But otherwise, "meh, I've experienced better." is a pretty good summary. read more

幻彩詠香江 - Under a (relatively) clear sky. - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Incredibly underwhelming! I expected a show of equal (or better) caliber as the Lights Show in Singapore by the Marina Bay and was sorely disappointed. Don't waste your time with the show but do definitely explore the promenade at night read more

幻彩詠香江 - The Victoria's Harbour - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Overhyped and we came way too early to try to save our spot for the show It's free so can't complain too much but definitely something you just gotta do when in HK The show didn't wow me much but I didn't watch it from the waterfront Tip you can see if from the steps too so you don't have to stand They play it twice a night! read more

I was excited to see this since I'm staying in TST. There were a lot of people gathering so I had high expectations but it was disappointing. I didn't stay for the entire show despite getting there a little early for a good spot. read more

幻彩詠香江 - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Hong Kong review #19 My friend who had never been to Hong Kong, really wanted to see the "harbor view lights" as he put it. The only place I could think of to get that view, aside from floating around in a boat in the harbor, was from Kowloon looking back across the water. We arrive by taxi (who over charged me by HK$15 - the basturd!) and find hoards of people clamoring to see what they can along the railing. The view.... the view is truly spectacular because the Hong Kong skyline itself is... well, truly spectacular! All of the multi colored lights, brand name advertising and now large video screens atop these tall building.... it's really beautiful and quite impressive to see! As we look at the buildings across the bay, I hear music playing near by and see green laser lights and other lights which are more or less in sync with the music. At that point I realized this was the "Symphony of Lights" I'd read about here on Yelp. In a way this "Symphony" was kinda neat, but that thought only lasted a few minutes before turning to "this is kinda hokey". Sure it's a nice idea, but the results are less than impressive (for more than a couple minutes anyway) due to execution and the music being piped into a very small area, when compared to how spread out the people were watching this. OVERALL: If you've been living in the middle of nowhere, or under a rock for a long time, this Symphony of Lights is really something to see. However, while I have not seen a better show anywhere else, I was just not impressed. read more

From the name "A Symphony of Lights", I was expecting an impressive and organized array of light shows from the giants of Hong Kong. Instead, the display was a mess with each building trying to fight one another for the spotlight with cheesy elevator music in the background The Bank of China tower is doing one thing and the one with the giant Samsung sign is doing another off-sync, while the shorter buildings are just "waving their arms around" trying to capture some attention. If this were indeed a musical symphony with every building as instrument players, it must be a horror to the ears. This is not to discount the gorgeous night skyline of Hong Kong. However, please don't waste your time and energy fighting the crowd at the Victoria Harbour if you are hoping to be amazed by this famous yet disappointing light show. Just go see the skyline in peace anytime much before 8 PM or after 8:20 PM when the "symphony" is over. read more

I was in Hong Kong for vacation and one of the "must-do things" is to go watch this Symphony of Lights show! When I told my aunt and uncle, who are both locals, responded with, "Sure, if you want to..." I was puzzled as to why they responded that way. It was a Friday night and my aunt said we needed to get there before 8pm so we can get a spot to sit! We got there at 7pm. There were quite a few people there and it was drizzling. We were waiting anxiously for the show to start at 8pm. We were chit chatting and suddenly we saw a green laser light. Then we saw another, and then another. We had NO idea that the show had started! It was so sad. I had asked my aunt if there was music to go along with the laser show and she said no. However, as the show went on, we realized that the very soft music playing in the background, which could barely be heard by anyone, was supposed to be going along with the laser show. I don't even think people knew that music was playing because it was so quiet. This was the saddest laser show ever. Only a few of the commercial buildings participated in the show so not very many of them lit up to go along with the laser show. When the show ended and as people were walking out, I heard may people say, "Good thing we didn't pay for this!" I couldn't agree more! GOOD THING WE DIDN'T PAY FOR IT! If YOU paid ME to go, I still wouldn't go. It was a waste of TIME! So please, don't waste your valuable time on your vacation to go watch this show. It isn't worth it at all! read more

The Symphony of Lights is a laser light 'show' along the skyline of Hong Kong Island. I use the word show a bit loosely because I'll be honest in that the show is not all that incredibly impressive... however, the skyline itself IS impressive. We hoofed it over here after our plane actually managed to arrive EARLY and after basically running from the airport to the train to a taxi and to the river, we were absolutely blown away by the size and beauty of the skyline in front of us. We never got to see it during the daylight, but at night it only adds to the impressiveness that Hong Kong is as a city. We ended up taking the Star Ferry over to the other side, and it was such a neat experience seeing the city at night. Our next stop was the tram station up to Victoria Peak, which I also highly recommend. So, even if you can't make the 8pm show, still make seeing the Hong Kong Island skyline at night a priority! A must-see!! Tons of food and nice shopping in the immediate surrounding area too. read more

幻彩詠香江 - Symphony of Lights on a Sunday night - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

Yeah, I've experienced better. I mean, the show is nice, but the lights and music are just an add-on to the already stunning view. I've been to the show three times, the two last ones with friends and family who came to visit and I felt the light show was one of those must see for them. And they did enjoy it, but we all concluded that: it's so packed that it may not be worth it. In fact, I think it's a much better option to walk along the Avenue of Stars at a less busy time during the week, just for the sake of it. Hong Kong skyline is amazing anytime, but especially at night and there's no other excuse for you to get yourself to TST for a walk along the shore. Don't get me wrong, the show itself is a great one: for 10 minutes landmark buildings are involved in a light and laser performance and the music is synchronised with them. I could imagine anyone enjoying that if you weren't squeezed into the crowd and having to stay on your toes to see something in the sea of mobile phones and cameras. It's still a great initiative to show it daily at the same time, and that's probably the key: avoid weekends (!) and walk further along the Avenue where there are less people. That's what I'm doing next time, as this will still be in my compulsory list of things to do for my friends coming next month. read more

This review is on something quite different from your usual one, this is not a restaurant, a mall or a location- it actually best descried as an event. The Symphony of Lights is a pyrotechnic laser show that takes place every evening at around 8 pm at the Harbour. Some twenty-odd buildings along the Hong Kong Island side have fitted lights to the roof and at the bases of the buildings to create a show that could not be seen anywhere in the world. I say this a lot but this one really is unique to Hong Kong as it would be difficult to re-create anywhere else. When it first started I think everybody was quite excited about it- it was first introduced to lure tourists back to Hong Kong after the SARS epidemic and it felt really fresh. We have seen fireworks, light shows but one on this scale? I for one have never seen it before. The light show goes on for around 15 minutes and on a clear night it really is possible to see the lasers sweeping thorugh the night sky (a bit like Gotham) but once again it showcases Hong Kong' s beautiful cityscape. Does it cost anything? Nope, its completely free and at certain locations along the TST waterfront you get the music that goes with it as well. On some special days they even have a little fireworks display coming from the top the HKCEC but not quite sure when that is. read more

If I were to rate the light show only, there would be fewer stars but it is worth checking out the view of the harbour at night so you might as well check it out during the timing of the light show. If you miss the light show, it is no big loss though. I guess the area covered is too big to maximize the visual effect so you tend to lose interest halfway through the show. Just admiring the skyline of Hong Kong alone is enjoyable so I still highly recommend dropping by at night. read more

幻彩詠香江 - View of the skyline at night - Local Flavor Near Me - Hong Kong, HK

The Hong Kong skyline at night is breathtaking, the byproduct of having the most skyscrapers for any city in the entire world. Hong Kong also holds the Guinness World Record for the largest permanent light and sound show--A Symphony of Lights. Leaning against the rail at the edge of Victoria Harbour on the Kowloon side, there is literally no direction I can turn my head that doesn't show me a horizon hidden by buildings 60 stories high or taller. And there's about to be a light show using this ridiculous city as its canvas? There are times when pushing six people out of your way on the MTR is absolutely legitimate, and making it here to see this show was one of them. Its a shame then that the show is pretty terrible. In theory music plays and a mix of lasers and lights on the buildings themselves turn off and on in matching rhythm. The reality is not every building still participates apparently, or their default state is to have lights flashing up and down their sides with no connection to the show making things a bit of a confusing mess. Example: The first part of the show where the narrator names off all the major buildings in the skyline while the buildings respond with their own flashing lights is a great idea. I look at some of these needle-topped towers all day and have no clue what they're called. Too bad more than half the architecture took personal days during my show. "So which one was that?" was a repeated phrase by people around us. The music is laughably bad, like something written by out-of-touch marketing execs in the late '80s or early '90s. For all I know it was. Mercifully, the show only lasts about 10-15 minutes and you still have a beautiful view you get to enjoy. The show is government funded by the tourism board which probably explains 98% of the quality issues. It's free, so opportunity cost is the only thing at stake. Even then it's still not worth it due to the mood-ruining music and extra crowds you'll have to fight. Just visit the Avenue of the Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui after dark and bring your own soundtrack. Schedule: 8pm daily English - M W F Mandarin - T Th Sat Cantonese - Sun read more

-5. This shouldn't be called a show at all to avoid mass disappointment. Times square or any of the shopping complexes have more light action than this. read more

I can't believe people come to see this show. It may have been worth it to see the show a few years ago but now they've skimped on EVERYTHING. You basically just see a countdown and listen to some music. Don't waste your time. read more

Overhyped undersold! Waste of time and effort waiting for such dismal multimedia displays. The background music is too soft, the floodlights are too dim, and it's a good clear day out. Unless you happen to be in the area, there are better things to do. read more

Are you kidding me? How is this still known as an attraction? My husband and I quitely turned our head to face each other and bursted into laughter. "Did we really wait all this time for this?!??" Dont waste your time here. The night view is very pretty- just enjoy that. Waiting for the Sympony of Light just makes the experience way worse. read more

This gets hyped up a lot, but the show itself is mediocre at best.

Goodness. If you're going to advertise something as a "symphony of lights", have some lights! Don't let the images deceive you. This attraction was so underwhelming I wouldn't even recommend this for families who have little children (who are easily amused). Albeit, the view of the Hong Kong skyline was definitely a sight to see. I say just come here anytime throughout the night. There's nothing but one or two buildings that participate. read more

I really enjoyed the show.!! Love the city and how tourist friendly they all are.. it's a FREE light show ppl, please stop complaining read more