If you enjoy a big night out and a good party, the nightlife in Hong Kong is easy to find behind the city’s neon lights and larger-than-life signs. You could start with the cobbled streets of Lan Kwai Fong, a knot of trendy restaurants and buzzing clubs in the middle of Central’s glass and steel. Wan Chai, once a port of call for sailors on shore leave, is now better known for its British-style pubs and live music venues.
Wherever you end up, Hong Kong is still one of the safest big cities in the world to let your hair down. Here are some of the best areas in Hong Kong for a night out.
Best nightlife areas in Hong Kong
Lan Kwai Fong
Most expat nightlife is on Hong Kong Island, and Lan Kwai Fong is the jewel in the party crown. It is a small but lively area where bars and clubs are packed in cheek by jowl with restaurants, and it has long been a firm favourite. Part of the appeal is the street drinking, which is perfectly legal here: you can buy a can from a nearby shop and wander between bars with it in hand.
Soho
For something a bit more grown-up, Soho is a few minutes above Lan Kwai Fong on the Central-Mid-Levels Escalator. You can pick from dozens of bars and restaurants along the escalator’s covered walkways. There is something for most tastes here, from pisco sours to posh wine bars, and the crowd is older and calmer than in Lan Kwai Fong. The busiest streets are Staunton, Elgin, Peel, and Hollywood Road, and there are a few more haunts tucked into the side alleys.
Wan Chai
There are two very different sides to Wan Chai. The restaurants along Ship Street are a match for Soho’s smart dining set, whereas Lockhart Road is where the after-dark crowd heads for British-style pubs and clubs, along with the hostess bars behind the area’s old reputation as a red-light district.
For live music, Wan Chai is hard to beat, and its clubs have been a home for local rock, blues, jazz, and indie bands for decades.
Kowloon
In Kowloon, most of the nightlife is in Tsim Sha Tsui, and the big draw is the prospect of a cocktail in a smart bar with the harbour and the Island’s neon skyline in front of you. Knutsford Terrace, a pedestrian strip of bars and restaurants, is Kowloon’s answer to Lan Kwai Fong and usually easier on the wallet. For the ultimate vantage point, Ozone at the Ritz-Carlton in West Kowloon is on the 118th floor of the ICC and the highest bar in the city. The view is at its best on a clear night.