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Asia’s cities are sometimes maligned as concrete jungles bedevilled by chaotic or crawling traffic, made worse by tens of thousands of motorcycles.
India’s cities have long had a bad reputation for smog and pollution, while Jakarta, Indonesia’s vast capital, is notorious for two- and three-hour journeys that would take no more than 10 or 15 minutes in free-flowing traffic.
But for all that, some of Asia’s cities have worthwhile hikes and treks.
Staff at travel booking provider Agoda have listed five of their favourites, which give an “unmatched perspective on some of Asia’s most dynamic cities” and offer “the perfect blend of city life and nature”.

1. Kuala Lumpur
The least physically demanding – despite the sometimes baking heat or monsoon-season humidity and downpours – is the Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s biggest city and home to the Petronas Twin Towers, the world’s tallest buildings for a time in the 1990s.
Offering the “unique experience of trekking through a tropical rainforest right in the city centre”, the trail is relatively easy, the Agoda team say.

2. Taipei
Visitors to Taipei are urged to try the “short but rewarding climb” up Elephant Hill, where they can get great views of the Taiwanese capital’s skyline.
3. Singapore
Singapore – carefully planned and self-consciously modern – has gardens and green spaces aplenty, including Pulau Ubin, a small island with cycling and walking trails along mangroves and where village life has been frozen in time and remains how it was in the 1960s – or so the slogans say.
The Agoda team, however, recommends the Southern Ridges trail, a 10km (6-mile) “moderate hike through a series of interconnected parks and gardens”.

4. Seoul
For a more demanding walk, go to Seoul and trek up Namsan to the landmark N Seoul Tower for stunning views of the city below and, for lovebirds, the chance to hang a padlock with the couple’s names on it – similar to the Pont des Arts in Paris.
5. Hong Kong
The toughest trek on Agoda’s list is Hong Kong’s Dragon’s Back, which takes hikers up and down and up again to get a spectacular view of the city and the South China Sea.
It goes without saying that Hong Kong has other worthwhile city hikes besides the one picked out by the Agoda team.

Others
In better days – before the military retook control Myanmar in 2021 and the country descended into civil war – for travellers a visit to its biggest city, Yangon, meant the chance to stroll around Inya Lake.
This floral waterfront seems a world away from the city’s traffic-filled streets, and features footpaths and masses of betel plants.

Across the Myanmar-Thailand border is Chiang Mai and a rolling, tree-lined trail up Doi Suthep, a hill 1,600 metres (5,250ft) high. At the top is Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a striking 14th century Buddhist temple. The final ascent to the temple is via a 306-step staircase.
Far to the south, East Timor’s low-rise capital, Dili, sits under hills that an adventurous traveller can try to hike.
An easier goal is a coastal walk stretching 5-6km from the town’s edge to Cristo Rei (Christ the King) beach. The route takes in palm-fringed beaches and the sizzle of freshly caught fish smoking over charcoal.
From there, another climb and some steps – 570 of them – takes visitors up to a mini replica of the famous Christ the Redeemer statue above Rio de Janeiro, from where there are spectacular views along the northern coast of East Timor.


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Asia travel

Trekkers on Dragon’s Back in Hong Kong. Photo: Shutterstock

Tourists photograph Taipei’s skyline from Elephant Hill, one of the best places to hike to in Asian cities for relaxation, exercise and great views. Photo: Shutterstock

With its sweeping views of the city and sea, Dragon’s Back in Hong Kong is the toughest hike on Agoda’s list. Photo: Shutterstock

Walking through Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve, you are never far from the Kuala Lumpur syline. Photo: Shutterstock

The walk up Namsan to N Seoul Tower features a spot where couples can hang padlocks bearing their names. Photo: Shutterstock

Chiang Mai’s Wat Phra That Doi Suthep temple sits atop a hill and is reachable via a trail that ends in 306 steps. Photo: Shutterstock

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Invisible Cities guide Sonny Murray leads a tour in Edinburgh. Photo: AFP

Invisible Cities tour guide Sonny Murray was once homeless and in and out of prison. Now he shows visitors Scotland’s capital from a different angle. Photo: AFP

Sonny Murray leads a tour of Canongate Kirk, a 17th century church in Edinburgh where notable people are buried including Scottish economist Adam Smith and 18th century poet Robert Fergusson. Photo: AFP

Murray struggled with addiction and was in and out of prison before joining Invisible Cities. Photo: AFP

Invisible Cities founder Zakia Moulaoui Guery says the initiative, while providing experiences for tourists, is also “to empower people” like Murray “to be visible”. Photo: AFP

Murray leads a tour of Edinburgh’s Canongate Kirk church. The ethos behind Invisible Cities is to take visitors beneath the Scottish capital’s picture-postcard surface. Photo: AFP

Murray enjoys a coffee break before one of his walking tours. Photo: AFP

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Ananya R (4th from right), with members of the Aathpahariya community. Photo: courtesy Ananya R

Neema Thapa Magar at her homestay Robin’s Nest, in Lekhnath, a rural town in Nepal. She is one of the Nepalese residents offering off-the-beaten-path tourist experiences hard to find in well travelled parts of the country. Photo: Robin’s Nest

Ananya R (4th from right), with members of Dhankuta’s indigenous Aathpahariya community. Photo: courtesy Ananya R

Teh (left) with her host Kumari in Panauti, Nepal. Photo: courtesy Choy Teh

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From a tropical rainforest trek to a stroll through parks and gardens to bracing uphill walks rewarded with great views, city walks in Asia


From a tropical rainforest trek to a stroll through parks and gardens to bracing uphill walks rewarded with great views, city walks in Asia.
