3 Great Hikes on Lantau Island,  Hong Kong

Shaded by canopies of banyan trees and waxy palms, the trail meanders past old orchards and abandoned huts.

Lizards resting along the path and fiddler crabs on the beach skitter away at the crunching sound of our approaching feet. We’re stepping out on one of the hikes on Lantatu Island in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong hiking

True, the city is better known for its dizzying shopping, neon-lit skyscrapers and the energy of people, people everywhere.

But more than 70% of the territory’s land mass is made up of rural mountains, forests and over 200 outlying islands.

Take lush, hilly Lantau Island. Hong Kong’s largest island, it’s popular with day-trippers who catch the ferry over to visit (a 30- to 50-minute ride).

Hikes on Lantau Island

Tai O hike

From the Big Buddha, this hike takes you mostly downhill, some four miles through the countryside to Tai O.

01.

Hiking the Lantau Trail

A circular 44-mile hiking route, divided into 12 sections, it winds through forests of acacia and pine trees.

02.

Mui Wo hike

Apart from a few other hikers, the only living creatures we encounter on this trail are cranky cows.

03.

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