You will not miss this if you are strolling along Tuen Mun Park. Its awkward looking façade that…read moreresembles a giant rock lying in the middle of the park is in fact one of the most major vantage point in the park - the Reptile House. First opened in 1999, it has drawn lots of visitors, especially it is surrounded quite a lot of schools nearby so it has become one of those popular school outings every once a year. It exhibits various reptilian species. (For me, I am not a huge fan of reptiles, to be honest, their scales give me goose bumps; however, I did go in there a lot because of the air-cons and it is still free admission.) As a matter of that, it houses lots of endangered reptiles species and some you cannot even see in Ocean Park! Once you walk it, you can check out the Star Tortoise on your left (which actually looks very much like the façade of this place), they move very slowly and most of them you cannot even tell if they are alive... anyways, they have several display windows showcasing chameleon, iguana, and even python... Apart from the indoor part, it also has a courtyard terrarium where you can see butterflies and all kinds of reptiles. Although this place is not super spacious but it certainly is a very nice place for children. If you are looking for a rather informative day enjoying the natural living of the interesting reptiles, come here and they have professional staff to give you a tour as well.

Ha Pak Nai is a subdivision of Pak Nai ( Ha means 'lower'). It is a coastal area in the…read morenorthwestern area of New Territories, and faces the Deep Bay. Partly a shallow pebbly beach and partly a wetland mangrove, it is listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hong Kong. Besides driving (actually the parking space is kind of limited due to the rush of people at weekends days of good weather), you can also get there by taking minibus route no. 33 at Tai Fung Street at Yuen Long town center, not far from Yeun Long or Long Ping MTR station, and get off after Lau Fau Shan roundabout. Some friends also opted for biking there but it's not an easy route, so only for people with confidence with biking skills. Because of its vantage location along the western coast, it is one of the best places in Hong Kong to view the sunset, unobstructed by buildings in front and overlooks onto the Shekou area of China on the far far horizon. The scene is quiet and open, and the sky stretches to infinity. It is even more serene if there is a bit of cloud in the sky, with the rays of golden lights refracted over the brim of the clouds forming layers of golden cotton candies . Quite a romantic view for couples indeed! On the pebbly beach you can often some fisherman's raising nurseries for seafood and also oysters raised on pieces of concrete blocks. Additionally, it is also very close to Lau Fau Shan, a popular place from Chinese-style fresh seafood in HK for reasonable price, so it is a very common itinerary for the locals to go for the sunset view at Ha Pak Nai and then have a seafood feast over at there.

For a long time this was a hidden secret for those who knew their way amongst the back end of Yuen…read moreLong and Tin Shui Wai; this was the border and unless you lived here or worked here; no one would venture this far. The reasons were clear: there is a track that ran along the seaside with pretty much nothing to do- moreover at night this was a good location for IIs to come ashore so it wasn't the sort of place you would like to hang around. Times have changed though. Shenzhen has become more prosperous and there's more to look at on the opposite side of the shore than there is on this side. After the SARS event Hong Kongers have taken to the countryside which is decidedly a good thing as we now fully appreciate our natural beauty spots; which includes deep bay. This used to be a fishing village where oyster farms were abundant (water quality: not too sure) and most people came to Lau Fau Shan for the famed seafood and the local produce: salted fish and various dried fishery items. These are all still here but I guess the grips of commercialism has hit and it has lost the quiet ambience some what, with cars clogging up the route up here every weekend. Still though, if you venture down the path down deep bay towards the new Western Crossing, you will still find the mud banks which it is famed for. At low tide the mud banks are exposed and you will find all sorts of wild life here: crabs, birds and the sunset view is simply second to none. Cyclist will enjoy the fact that the further you go the less cars there are so they are free to roam this area. There's not much in terms of attractions here but that is in itself the beauty of it.

The beach is small but you can see the sunset from here. There's always someone at the beach no…read morematter what month it is. In Hong Kong, outdoor bbq season starts in March, so you can expect to see a bunch of people grilling away. My favorite part of the beach is definitely the promenade area - Castle Peak Bay Waterfront Promenade. It's actually quite long and there's wonderful views of the ships docked by it.

An oasis of greenery and water features in a bustling metropolis of concrete. Lots of walking…read morepaths, covered pavilions and activities including a RC boat lake and reptile zoo. The park is clean and mostly frequented by the elderly. I saw very few younger people. It would have been nice if they allowed unique snack vendors. There is a fast food concession but options are limited. All in all definitely worth checking out if you are in the area.

This was my favourite childhood hideout place. I remember all those times my primary schoolmates…read moreand I acted like superheroes running around playing hide and seek; paddling swan boats. Since my primary school is right next to it, we would spend hours after school just to have a bit of fun at the park before heading home. Last week I went back there again and I was flabbergasted how it has changed. The lake we used to row boats on are completely drained out and the two of the entrances of badminton court have been blocked by potted plants (there goes my short-cut), luckily one thing that did not change is the mass of greenery. Another thing that surprised me was the crowd here, back then there were only some elderly chilling and doing Tai chi in the morning, now there are more street performers singing classical Chinese songs. This place has become more lively and vivid. (Yet I did read that there have been some kinds of prostitution targeting the elderly there going on lately) With the completion of the West rail and also the newly established V-City and the new residential area, I would not be shocked to see the growing number of people here. Sadly, the crowds also come with more rubbish and I was really disappointed to see the litters on the floor unfortunately. Regardless of the fact that most of the stuff I was familiar with about this place is gone, whenever I pass it by I can vividly recall where my hiding spot was during hide-and-seek; and I am glad that spot still exists, (which is a secret spot of course!)

Summer in Hong Kong is a great time- with our natural beaches lining our coasts, we are spoilt for…read morechoice when it comes to choosing one that we like. Right. But one thing: all of them are on the island or in Sai Kung. Public transport is super crowded on good weekends and parking spaces are almost non-existent by the time you get there (what time do people go, I never understood this). Shek O is a prime example of what I mean. It always turns into a massive hassle which is a good way to ruin a perfect weekend. If you were looking for somewhere to the West of New Territories then you are pretty much stuck with Gold Coast Beach. This beach was artificially built with the entire Gold Coast project and it is probably one of the biggest beaches in Hong Kong. Naturally this beach doesn't have the natural beauty of the other ones on the island- you swim next to the typhoon shelter in a distance and you are offered a view of Tuen Mun rather than the South China Sea. You won't be coming here to spot the hotties either- its families through and thorough here with sand castles, buckets and nowadays entire tents to tend our little darlings. Transport wise its still a headache but at least there is a carpark that's actually big enough nearby and you get the added benefit of being near the Gold Coast complex which means that you can grab something to eat there too. Given the lack of choice in this area I will have to recommend this place.

Used to be wonderful. I've been a customer for 4 years. But customer satisfaction went down. And…read morebugs in room.