Hong Kong's Top 5 Staycations: Escape Without Leaving
Sure, you live here. But that doesn’t mean you can’t see the city anew with these fantastic staycations.
Blast from the Past
A journey into Hong Kong’s history doesn’t have to mean a boring old trek around the Sun Yat Sen Memorial Trail. Jordan and Yau Ma Tei are at the very heart of the city’s heritage—and it’s alive and well.
Where to Stay: Hotel Stage is an urban nomad’s dream pad. This brand-new boutique hotel is cloistered away just off Nathan Road, with colonial buildings on one side and Zaha Hadid’s avant-garde Innovation Tower in the distance. The hotel is all beautiful shades of gray offset by warm wood, and it’s strongly rooted in the city. Unique artwork from Hong Kong artists is the name of the game—we stayed in a suite decorated with a wall-wide depiction of the Mido Café just around the corner, painted by up-and-comer Kwong Man-chun. A library-lounge space and the gorgeous wine bar-slash-exhibition-and-performance-space Muse are the perfect places to perfect that screenplay, if the cutting-edge cool of the rooms isn’t doing it for you. Rooms from $1,430 per night. 1 Chi Wo St., Jordan, 3953-2222, www.hotelstage.com
What to See: Cross the road from Hotel Stage to check out the forbidding Old South Kowloon District Court (38 Gascoigne Rd., Yau Ma Tei), a beautiful colonial building built in 1936 that now serves as the Lands Tribunal. From there venture around the corner to the Kowloon Union Church (4 Jordan Rd., Jordan). Built in 1931, this house of worship stands out thanks to its red-brick construction, neo-gothic windows—and Chinese-style tiled roof. Used as a stable by the Japanese during World War II, nowadays it’s a fully restored place of peace—complete with wooden vaulted ceiling and fans hanging from on high. Next, wander down to the Former Kowloon British School (136 Nathan Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui): Built in 1902 for the children of expatriates, this Victorian school building is full of tropical flourishes, such as a wide verandah and pitched roofs.
Head north along Shanghai Street (see more things to do on p.20), where you’ll find Man Wah Tailor (文華洋服, 176 Shanghai St., Jordan, 2384-9197). This shop has been around since 1966, and you’re sure to see sifu Lee Yim-ming at the cutting table—or playing mahjong with his friends.
