Victoria Harbour

Absolutely beautiful! Got to Victoria harbor by a ferry, which only cost less than $ 1. Came during the evening, did a little shopping, and came back at night to see the city lights! It’s definitely a must when in town. My friends and I grabbed a couple beers at 7 – 11 to watch the sun set. At first, I was a little worried about drinking in public, but then saw that we were not the only ones. Also, be on the look out for an ice cream truck! The soft serve is so rich and creamy! Perfect for Hong Kong’s hot weather!

Victoria Peak is beautiful, however its extremely congested and there is a terrible amount of smog pollution over the gorgeous skyline. Nonetheless, its worth seeing. I saw it in the afternoon and the evening. I’d recommend going in the evening before or after dinner because there is a laser light show every night at 8 pm called The Symphony of Lights.
A must see if in Hong Kong!!!

One of the free events around the city is the Laser Light Show nightly at 8pm?
I find one of the best places for viewing is on Kowloon side along the Avenue of Stars. There are benches all along the waterfront, go early and scout out a good bench.
We find some good places in front of the Intercontinental Hotel. Walk over from the Peninsula Hotel, go behind the museum and there is a small stage of entertainment at night, go along the left side and walk along the waterfront, once you pass the Bruce Lee Statue, you have gone too far to see the light show. Walk back.
On a clear night the light show is amazing highlighting all the buildings. There might be some announcement but its only in Chinese.

Absolutely stunning.
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.
The Symphony of Lights is a laser light ‘show’ along the skyline of Hong Kong Island seen from Victoria Harbour. 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 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, 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.
We took the Airport Express Train from Hong Kong International Airport to the Kowloon Station (if you have a group of 4+ you can buy group tickets for MUCH cheaper at the customer service counter. the group tickets were not in the ticket machines). then it isn’t a far walk to the Harbour, but we did take a very cheap taxi since we were rushing to see The Symphony of Lights… plus we only had 12 hours in HK :)

Hong Kong would not be Hong Kong if it wasn’t for the harbor– the name itself is a dead giveaway because HK’s Chinese name actually means «fragrant harbor». Don’t ask me why its fragrant because honestly it doesn’t smell all that nice but it is home all the same to me.
«Victoria Harbour» is usually given to mean the body of water stretching from Kennedy Town all the way over to Chai Wan– this is the ever narrowing strip that separates Kowloon from Hong Kong Island and it is the where you get the amazing cityscape photos taken. Why is it called Victoria? Not quite sure, but I would say that its A) Colonial naming strategy (for Queen and Country) and B) Central and bits of Sheung Wan was known as «City of Victoria» in HK’s early days. I guess this is enough reason to name a natural harbor after a monarch.
History aside, this has been the lifeline for Hong Kong in the past and present– our deep seaport is still one of the world’s busiest and the harbor provides itself as a tourist spot, means of transport and simply a place of respite for everyone. It is also common for people to forget that there are actually many promenades that run along the harbor side; its just that they are at more obscure locations that we usually forget about them. It is once you get to those places that you truly appreciate this place from all angles and be thankful that we have something like this to call home.