If you're looking for a little adventure off Lantau Island but only have a few hours to kill, try Tsing Yi Park. It's a gem of a place and it's just two stops away on the MTR. If you're looking for sun and sand, try this Sunny Bay Secret Beach.
Tsing Yi Park was opened in 1996 and boasts an impressive 70,000 square meters of recreation space, although a lot of that is taken up with beautiful ponds and a waterfall. Any reptile fans will be in for a treat as there are hundreds of terrapins living in the various ponds and streams - Probably released pets but they make for fun animal spotting.
Next to the Maritime entrance sits my second favourite tree in Hong Kong. We call it the Dragon Tree as we told the kids that dragons use it as a house and as a portal to another realm. If they're really quiet they can watch them in the upper branches.
If you follow the path past the Dragon Tree and carry straight on there is a little cafe at the end. It's closed as of October 2023 but is due to open 1 December 2023 and does a decent beef noodle and has a great view of a waterfall. Make sure to bring some bug spray though as the midges love all the water, and your ankles.
There's a series of little playgrounds towards the back of the park. One holds a mad little snake see-saw thing that throws kids off onto the thankfully softish surface. It's a total death trap but excellent fun.
Speaking of death traps, the vines of a banyan make excellent swings! It's a slightly hilly park so also great for scooters or skates.
To get there, exit the MTR and head straight through M&S (which has a food section on the ground floor if you fancy a very expensive picnic.) Head to the ground floor and walk through the middle of the mall, so you have the two jewellery shops on either side of you and the bookshop behind you. Follow that to the end, past Tom Lee Music and exit through the doors at the end of the hall. Take the walkway over the road and you're there. Enjoy!
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