Lantau Island (大嶼山) is the largest island in Hong Kong and the most easily accessed island besides Hong Kong Island. It is almost twice the size of the 2nd largest - Hong Kong Island. The 147.16 km2 (36,324 acre) Lantau Island is located south of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsula with a highway and MRT connected to Kowloon Peninsula.
We decided not to take the ferry and took the MRT and cable car to Ngong Ping (昂坪). We took the MRT from Hong Kong Station and reached Tung Chung (東涌) in just six stops. The ride took us about 30 minutes. There is a large outlet shopping center once we got out of Tung Chung station. The Ngong Ping Cable Car runs from Tung Chung to Ngong Ping and took about 25 minutes. There are 2 types of cabin – Standard Cabin and Crystal Cabin with glass bottom. The 25 minute ride lets you have a 360-degree panoramic view of the sky, land and sea sceneries. You can see the Hong Kong International Airport (香港國際機場) and the soon to be opened Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge (港珠澳大橋) when you start the ride. You can also enjoy the sceneries of the high-rises on the Kowloon Peninsula and the hills below. We arrived at Ngong Ping and the simple environment of the town center made us feel at ease and comfortable. There are restaurants and shops along the short walk to the Ngong Ping Piazza where we saw the famous Tian Tan Buddha (天壇大佛, aka The Big Buddha) and the Po Lin Monastery (寶蓮禪寺). The 250 ton (551,156 lb) and 26.4 m (86.6 ft) tall bronze Buddha is situated at the top of hill, and you need to climb 268 steps to reach the Buddha. It is free if you just stay outside, but you need to pay to go inside the Buddha. It has a unique characteristic of the Buddha facing towards the north to Beijing, the Capital of China. The rest of the Buddha statues in the world are facing south. There has been widespread speculation that it represents Hong Kong is always loyal to mainland China. The Po Lin Monastery is the other popular destination on the island. Last but not least, we went to the three centuries old Tai O Fishing Village (大澳漁村) via bus. It was the highlight of the whole Lantau Island for us. The traditional fishing village still remained its original outlook with hundreds unusual stilt houses (高架屋-棚屋). They are unique and still used by locals. We also took a boat tour around the fishing village.
Personally I would recommend purchasing the 360 Lantau Culture and Heritage Insight Tour by the cable car company especially if you are visiting Lantau first time and want to see the best parts of it in a short time. Comfortable shoes are recommended. Bring your camera with you, and you might need sunburn protection on sunny days because you will stay outside most of the time.
We decided not to take the ferry and took the MRT and cable car to Ngong Ping (昂坪). We took the MRT from Hong Kong Station and reached Tung Chung (東涌) in just six stops. The ride took us about 30 minutes. There is a large outlet shopping center once we got out of Tung Chung station. The Ngong Ping Cable Car runs from Tung Chung to Ngong Ping and took about 25 minutes. There are 2 types of cabin – Standard Cabin and Crystal Cabin with glass bottom. The 25 minute ride lets you have a 360-degree panoramic view of the sky, land and sea sceneries. You can see the Hong Kong International Airport (香港國際機場) and the soon to be opened Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge (港珠澳大橋) when you start the ride. You can also enjoy the sceneries of the high-rises on the Kowloon Peninsula and the hills below. We arrived at Ngong Ping and the simple environment of the town center made us feel at ease and comfortable. There are restaurants and shops along the short walk to the Ngong Ping Piazza where we saw the famous Tian Tan Buddha (天壇大佛, aka The Big Buddha) and the Po Lin Monastery (寶蓮禪寺). The 250 ton (551,156 lb) and 26.4 m (86.6 ft) tall bronze Buddha is situated at the top of hill, and you need to climb 268 steps to reach the Buddha. It is free if you just stay outside, but you need to pay to go inside the Buddha. It has a unique characteristic of the Buddha facing towards the north to Beijing, the Capital of China. The rest of the Buddha statues in the world are facing south. There has been widespread speculation that it represents Hong Kong is always loyal to mainland China. The Po Lin Monastery is the other popular destination on the island. Last but not least, we went to the three centuries old Tai O Fishing Village (大澳漁村) via bus. It was the highlight of the whole Lantau Island for us. The traditional fishing village still remained its original outlook with hundreds unusual stilt houses (高架屋-棚屋). They are unique and still used by locals. We also took a boat tour around the fishing village.
Personally I would recommend purchasing the 360 Lantau Culture and Heritage Insight Tour by the cable car company especially if you are visiting Lantau first time and want to see the best parts of it in a short time. Comfortable shoes are recommended. Bring your camera with you, and you might need sunburn protection on sunny days because you will stay outside most of the time.
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James Huang - All rights reserved.
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