Hong Kong and Macau_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 14th Edition) - Andrew Stone [143]
Much of Central’s fun nightlife revolves around the now-legendary Lan Kwai Fong and the streets immediately above and to the west of it. During busy times it can be full to bursting. Lan Kwai Fong’s clientele tends to be young, hip, cashed up and increasingly Chinese as well as expatriate. It’s huge fun if you’re in the mood for revelry, but it can be a bit of a circus and arguably the better bars these days are to be found elsewhere.
Geared more to dining than drinking, Soho is worth a look for more intimate venues; it’s just a short journey away on foot or via the Central Escalator up the hill. The extent of the bar district is stretching ever further west towards Sheung Wan these days.
While Wan Chai remains a byword for sleaze (and a longstanding port of call for American sailors and GIs since the Vietnam War) it has cleaned its act up of late. Much of the western part of the district offers lively, respectable bars, although hostess bars still line Lockhart Rd. What might be dubbed old Wan Chai, further inland behind the tram tracks, is becoming another little epicentre of fine dining and sophisticated drinking (check out the Pawn), making it an area well worth exploring.
Pickings get thinner the further east you go from here, but there are a few nightspots in Causeway Bay and Quarry Bay.
While Kowloon may play second fiddle to Hong Kong Island, if you head back from the bustle of Nathan Rd there are some great little bar areas, not least the karaoke bar scene around Minden Rd and a more touristy, but no less buzzy, food-and-drink ghetto along Knutsford Terrace in the north of Tsim Sha Tsui.
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What’s On
Several freebies offer up-to-date listings, including HK Magazine (www.asia-city.com), a comprehensive entertainment magazine that also has articles on current trends and reviews of restaurants and bars. It appears on Friday and can be picked up at restaurants, bars, shops and hotels throughout the territory.
Also worth checking out is bc magazine (www.bcmagazine.net), a fortnightly guide to Hong Kong’s entertainment and partying scene. One of the most useful features in this highly visual and glossy publication is its complete listing of bars and clubs. It is also free and can usually be found alongside copies of HK Magazine.
Time Out (www.time-out.com.hk) magazine, meanwhile, offers more polished and extensive fortnightly coverage of the entertainment scene online and in print (HK$18).
The Hong Kong Arts Centre (www.hkac.org.hk) publishes Artslink, a monthly with listings of performances, exhibitions and art-house film screenings. Another invaluable source of information is the monthly Artmap (www.artmap.com.hk), a map with listings that’s available free at venues throughout the territory.
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Tickets & Reservations
Expect to pay around $70 for a seat up the back for the Hong Kong Philharmonic and from about $500 and up for a performance by big-name international acts or an international musical such as Chicago. Bookings for most cultural events can be made by telephone or the internet with Urbtix ( 2111 5999; http://urbtix.cityline.com.hk; h10am-8pm). There are Urbtix windows at the Hong Kong City Hall ( Map; h10am-9.30pm) in Central, Queen Elizabeth Stadium ( Map) in Wan Chi and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre ( Map) in Tsim Sha Tsui. The Fringe Theatre and the Academy for Performing Arts use HK Ticketing ( 3128 8288; www.hkticketing.com).
You can also book tickets for many films and concerts and a great variety of cultural events over the phone or online through City-line ( 2317 6666; www.cityline.com.hk).
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DRINKING
Drinking venues in Hong Kong run the gamut from British-style pubs to flashy style bars and tiny karaoke boltholes aimed at a young Cantonese clientele. Quite a few bars also serve food, blurring the line between drinking joint and restaurant.