Hong Kong Attractions

On July 1st 1997, after a century and a half of British administration, Hong Kong (in Chinese, in Pinyin transcription, Xiang Gang) became a Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China with its own administration. This status applies to the Kowloon peninsula, the main island of Hong Kong (in Cantonese Heung Keung, "Fragrant Strait"), the New Territories and a scatter of 236 smaller islands, not all of them inhabited.

The regulations on entry to Hong Kong, even after its return to China, differ from those operative in the People's Republic, and the border with China is therefore strictly controlled, any illegal immigrants into Hong Kong are being sent back to China.

Hong Kong lies on the coast of the South China Sea in the delta area, here up to 30km/19mi wide, of the Canton River (in Chinese Chukiang/Zhu Jiang, in English Pearl River), just to the south of the Tropic of Cancer. Its average height above sea level is 33m/108ft. It is bounded on the north by the Chinese province of Kwantung/Guangdong.

Hong Kong lies on the southeastern edge of a range of foothills of the mountains of South China, whose much dissected relief it shares. Upthrusts and depressions of the earth's crust and fluctuations in sea level have produced a labyrinth of islands and inlets and one of the best natural deep-sea harbors in the world. The highest points are Tai Mo Shan (New Territories; 958m/3144ft), Lantau Peak on Lantau Island (934m/3065ft) and Victoria Peak on Hong Kong Island (554m/1818ft). Rounded granite hilltops and steep slopes, continuing the pattern of the mountains of South China, add to the scenic charm of this stretch of coast. Once covered in forest, the slopes of the hills are now much eroded and covered with grass and a sparse growth of pines. The numerous tropical plants include pink azaleas and the Hong Kong orchid (Bauhinia blakeana), now the official emblem of Hong Kong.

As a result of its geographical situation Hong Kong has a subtropical climate with rainy summers, influenced by the northeast/southeast monsoon. Ninety per cent of the annual rainfall falls between April and September, often in the form of heavy showers. Summers are hot and humid, winters cool though normally dry and sunny. Spring and autumn are very short, but their equable climate, with an average temperature range between day and night of only 5.5°C/9.9°F, makes them a good time to visit Hong Kong. Daytime temperatures in summer usually lie between 25°C/77°F and 31°C/88°F. The high humidity, often as much as 90%, makes the climate at this time of year oppressive, Between May and September Hong Kong is frequently hit by typhoons. In winter temperatures only occasionally fall below 15°C/59°F, and on fine days can climb to as much as 20°C/68°F or more. In January-March, however, temperatures can fall well below 15°C/59°F.

Victoria, now generally called the Central District of Hong Kong Island, is the official capital of Hong Kong. Hong Kong consists of Hong Kong Island, with Victoria (once a town in its own right, now the "Central District") as its administrative center, the Kowloon ("Nine Dragons") Peninsula, with an urban district of the same name, and the more rural New Territories, including most of Hong Kong`s 236 islands and islets.

Some 98% of the population of Hong Kong are Chinese, predominantly of Cantonese stock; the next largest groups are Sze Yap and Chiu Chow. The rest of the population consists of Asians, nationals of Commonwealth countries, including about 18,000 British, together with Americans, Japanese, Pakistanis, Germans and French.