Hong Kong Holidays

This former British imperial enclave (situated at the mouth of the Pearl River Delta, on the southwestern coast of China) has been rapidly changing since the hand-over from British colonial to Chinese sovereignty in 1997. Or rather, the underlying city presents a new guise without the imperial overlay. Hong Kongs role as gateway to China is more in question than ever, with the Bamboo Curtain a distant memory, WTO accession opening the entire mainland to foreign economic penetration and China enjoying surging growth while Hong Kong is still emerging from long-term recession. Hong Kong has also become far more Chinese than ever before, with many ex-pats departed and an overwhelmingly Cantonese government presiding over the Filipinos, Indians, Nepalese and other minorities that make up the citys ethnic patchwork. Nevertheless, the Hong Kongers resist assimilation, reluctantly yielding to pressures for economic integration while jealously guarding their separate freedoms and identity.

With the political reasons for its creation fast receding into history, Hong Kongs geographical oddity comes into focus. The few square kilometres of territory conceded to the British now top the UN list for urban population density. Hong Kong Island itself is the core of the old imperial possession, with Kowloon just across the harbour forming the other half of the main conurbation. Further north are the New Territories, leased from China in 1898, which form a slightly more rural hinterland. And around this main focus are the large islands of Lamma and Lantau and the smaller Outlying Islands that complete the patchwork.

This assortment of pinnacles and paddies sits slap in the South China Seas typhoon alley. In winter and early spring, the climate can be mild and fresh but, in May, the ever-present humidity skyrockets and summer is both hot and frequently wet. Typhoons hit during summer and early autumn and, even without them, ferocious rainstorms fall intermittently. Hong Kong is not the ideal summer holiday destination.

The citys economy has suffered since the Asian economic crisis of 1997, but although commerce remains subdued, Hong Kong is beginning to experience some green shoots of recovery. The tourism industry is leading the way. Strong international marketing has enabled tourism to recover vigorously from the 2003 SARS outbreak, and Hong Kong expects to welcome 20.5 million visitors during 2004. In the proverbial scale of Cantonese values, money comes first. And Hong Kong still has plenty of that. Hong Kong has a more determined sense of its separate identity than ever before, although it remains a thrustingly commercial city, whose dedication to fast money has never been greater. However, its economic future lies, undoubtedly, in aligning itself closely with the Pan-Pearl River Delta cities, who are working together to create an economic power zone in southern China, Hong Kong and Macau.

Away from the business of making money, and its traditional fine dining, great shopping and world-class hotels, Hong Kong has its unsung natural beauties, in the shape of looming mountains, secluded islets, white beaches, hiking trails and island landscapes. The Special Administrative Region (SAR) government recently branded the entire city as Asias World City. Visitors can judge how true that is but, unquestionably, Hong Kong remains unique.