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Life after dark: 10 things best done 'round midnight in Hong Kong
Touring dodgy fruit markets, squid fishing by moonlight, hunting ghosts and pigging out ... it's what we like to get up to at night in the city that never sleeps
Mongkok is best experienced during the neon-lit nights.Hong Kong is one of the rare cities that is even livelier and more interesting at night than it is during the day, yet most people’s nocturnal activity consists of the same old, same old: dinner and drinks then off to bed.
That’s fun, but it gets old after a while. Here’s our pick of alternative activities for the witching hour and beyond.
1. Go squid fishing
Like a nighttime version of the popular daytime junk trip, squid fishing is an excuse to get together with a bunch of friends, rent a boat and spend the evening drinking, talking and enjoying the particularly peaceful experience of being at sea after dark.
Squid and cuttlefish only come out at night; seasoned with a bit of garlic and soy sauce, they make for delicious eating.
You’ll be given a simple line and hook; dip it in the water, pull it back to imitate a fish moving around and you’ll hopefully catch a small squid, which the boat staff will then pan-fry for you.
Plenty of companies offer boat rentals for up to 30 people, see www.thelist.com.hk and hk.88db.com for more details.
2. Visit the 'gwo laan'
Yau Ma Tei's fruit market.
Every night, just as the Temple Street Night Market is packing up, the Yau Mai Tei Wholesale Fruit Market is only getting started.
Known informally as the gwo laan, the market is a shambolic collection of century-old buildings set along narrow alleyways near the corner of Waterloo Road and Reclamation Street.
Though it starts operating as early as 10 p.m., the action doesn’t reach a fever pitch until 4 a.m. when retail buyers negotiate with vendors and tattooed shirtless workers haul crates of apples and lychees.
Though the market has a sketchy reputation, it’s a perfectly welcoming place to wander around. Just don’t get in anyone’s way.
3. Take a red minibus to Mongkok
A corner of Cheung Chau at night.
There’s plenty to keep you interested after midnight: street food, late-night clothing stores, snooker halls, DVD hawkers.
Fuel up with a bowl of noodles at the 24-hour Aberdeen Fishball and Noodles (139 Tung Choi St., +852 2787 6678) or the Sea View Congee Shop (103 Argyle St., +852 2787 7330) and hit the streets for a late night of entertainment.
4. Get lost on Cheung Chau
Sleepy outlying island this is not. While Peng Chau, Lamma and Mui Wo tuck into bed early, Cheung Chau plays host to a miniature night market that gets started after 10 p.m., with delicious treats from sushi to tong shui.
Weekend holidaymakers, meanwhile, keep the beach busy well into the night. But even with all of these activities, it’s still possible to escape: try wandering along the picturesque Peak Road. Ferries return to Central at 11:45 p.m. and 2:20 a.m.
5. Watch a rooftop movie
Beach can be better in the dark.
The open-air harborfront cinema closed in 2007; Moonlight Movies is on indefinite hiatus; and outdoor screenings at the local film festivals are a thing of the past.
Luckily, Rooftop Cinema is doing its best to reinvigorate al fresco cinema with a new series of films that will be shown on the roof of the Fringe Club until May 4th. See rooftopcinema.hk for more details.
