We leave the port behind us to discover the most famous and fashionable places of the island of Hong Kong on a historic double decker bus.
We drive by the Western Market, located in a red brick Edwardian building restored in 1991 and featuring many shops selling handicrafts and fabric.
We then cross a few historic districts such as the modern Central district where the British settled in 1842 and now a business hub boasting luxury hotels and shopping centres, the trendy Wan Chai district with its narrow alleyways and fashionable venues and the Admiralty, whose name derives from the fact that the area was once home to a shipyard and is now considered the temple of shopping in Hong Kong brimming with shopping centres, boutiques and even stalls selling inexpensive goods.
While we drive around the lively busy streets and colourful signs, our guide provides us with information on the sights and even tells us a few curiosities.
We thus reach Causeway Bay, a young modern district with luxury boutiques, huge shopping centre, many restaurants and a lively night-life.
As we continue our tour, we reach the famous Nathan Road, Kowloon’s main street stretching for around 3 km with colourful neon signs and dotted with shops and restaurants.
Before returning to the ship, we have one last unmissable stop: the Temple Street Night Market named after the nearby Tin Hau temple. This market is very popular when it comes to men’s fashion, so much so that it is also known as “Men’s Street”, however all kinds of goods and second-hand items are sold here: clothing, antiques, electrical goods, costume jewellery, food, etc. Card readers, fortune-tellers and street artists also populate the area, which has been an ideal shooting location for many films set in Hong Kong.
In Temple Street, we get off our tram and have around one hour of free time available to go shopping and savour some local food.
After our shopping break, we return to the ship.