Beaches of Hong Kong
Hong Kong has long coastline which is full of twists and turns. This geographical feature causes many bays to be formed in Hong Kong. Many of them are well sheltered by mountains nearby as Hong Kong is a place where mountain area is much more than plain land. As a result, huge waves seldom appear at the bays, causing them to be suitable for swimming. Therefore, there are quite lot beaches in Hong Kong.
However, along with the development of Hong Kong, the quality of water near some of the bays becomes poorer and poorer, causing them to be closed, for example, Approach Beach, Ting Kau Beach, Anglers' Beach, Gemini Beaches, Hoi Mei Wan Beach, Casam Beach and Lido Beach in Tsuen Wan.
Now there are totally forty beaches in Hong Kong being managed by Leisure and Cultural Services Department. 11 of them are located on the Hong Kong Island and the southern part of Kowloon Peninsula and 29 of them are located in the New Territories, including the outlying islands.
Location of Beaches in Hong Kong
1. Butterfly Beach ( 蝴蝶灣泳灘 ) 2. Castle Peak Beach ( 青山灣泳灘 ) 3. Kadoorie Beach ( 加多利灣泳灘 )
4. Cafeteria Old Beach ( 舊咖啡灣泳灘 ) 5. Cafeteria New Beach ( 新咖啡灣泳灘 ) 6. Golden Beach ( 黃金泳灘 )
7. Anglers’ Beach ( 釣魚灣泳灘 ) 8. Gemini Beaches ( 雙仙灣泳灘 ) 9. Hoi Mei Wan Beach ( 海美灣泳灘 )
10. Casam Beach ( 更生灣泳灘 ) 11. Lido Bay Beach ( 麗都灣泳灘 ) 12. Ting Kau Beach ( 汀九灣泳灘 )
13. Approach Beach ( 近水灣泳灘 ) 14. Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach ( 馬灣東灣泳灘 ) 15. Kiu Tsui Beach ( 橋咀泳灘 )
16. Hap Mun Bay Beach ( 廈門灣泳灘 ) 17. Trio Beach ( 三星灣泳灘 ) 18. Silverstrand Beach ( 銀線灣泳灘 )
19. Clear Water Bay First Beach ( 清水灣第一灣泳灘 ) 20. Clear Water Bay Second Beach ( 清水灣第二灣泳灘 )
21. Big Wave Bay Beach ( 大浪灣泳灘 ) 22. Shek O Beach ( 石澳泳灘 ) 23. Turtle Cove Beach ( 龜背灣泳灘 )
24. Hairpin Bay Beach ( 夏萍灣泳灘 ) 25. Stanley Main Beach ( 赤柱正灘泳灘 ) 26. St. Stephen’s Bay Beach ( 聖士提反灣泳灘 )
27. Chung Hom Kok Beach ( 舂坎角泳灘 ) 28. South Bay Beach ( 南灣泳灘 ) 29. Middle Bay Beach ( 中灣泳灘 )
30. Repulse Bay Beach ( 淺水灣泳灘 ) 31. Deep Water Bay Beach ( 深水灣泳灘 ) 32. Hung Sing Yeh Beach ( 洪聖爺灣泳灘 )
33. Lo So Sing Beach ( 蘆鬚城泳灘 ) 34. Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach ( 長洲東灣泳 灘 )
35. Kwun Yam Wan Beach ( 觀音灣泳灘 ) 36. Silvermine Bay Beach ( 銀礦灣泳灘 ) 37. Pui O Beach ( 貝澳泳灘 )
38. Cheung Sha Upper Beach ( 上長沙泳灘 ) 39. Cheung Sha Lower Beach ( 下長沙泳灘 ) 40. Tong Fuk Beach ( 塘福泳灘 )
Repulse Bay, Hong Kong
Repulse Bay Beach ( 淺 水 灣 泳 灘 ) - Hong Kong Island
Repulse Bay is a well-known beautiful bay with its long line of coast and smooth sands. It is a Grade 1 beach. This means that the water quality of the Beach is good. Also there are seldom huge waves chasing on to the beach. As a result, Repulse Bay is an ideal place for swimming.
Near the Bay, there are fast food shops and restaurants for people to have their meals. There is also a supermarket for people to buy what they want. It is very convenient to get there as people need not worry about hunger after playing for a long time on the Bay and they need not bring too many things when travelling to the Bay.
In 1841 the bay was used as a base by pirates and caused serious concern to foreign merchant ships trading with China. The pirates were subsequently repulsed by the British Fleet and hence the name.
It is very convenient for people to travel to Repulse Bay as many vehicles can reach the Bay such as bus no. 6, 6A, 6X, 260 from Central.
Besides swimming, there are some places worth sightseeing such as the large statues of two goddesses, Kwun Yum and Tin Hau.
With the above merits of Repulse Bay, many tourists and local people are attracted to get there.
Turtle Cove Beach ( 龜 背 灣 泳 灘 ) - Hong Kong Island
The beach situated at east of Stanley and west of Tai Tam Reservoir is Turtle Cove Beach which is a Grade 1 beach. Being less than 70 meters long it can easily be considered a baby beach. Because there are no signposts, you don't know until you get there that you are already there. It is pretty quiet since it is only frequented by those in the know. Turtle Cove is very well "equipped"; with changing rooms, toilets and showers as well as a small playground, a soft drinks kiosk and a couple of barbecue pits.
To get there, take bus No.14 from exit A of the Sai Wan Ho MTR station, and once you have gone past the Tai Tam Reservoir, keep an eye open for a building called Red Hill on your left. Get off at that stop, and walk on till you see stairs leading you down the hill. Follow those and you are there.
Shek O Beach, Hong Kong
Shek O Beach ( 石 澳 泳 灘 ) - Hong Kong Island
Shek O Beach is on the south-eastern part of the Hong Kong Island. Being a Grade 2 beach, the water quality of Shek O Beach is fair. The sands on the beach are very small too. Also, there are many restaurants and a barbecue area near the beach. So many people go to there for swimming or barbecue on holidays.On the other hand, the crags in the beach provide an excellent place for sports climbing.
It is quite inconvenient for people to go to Shek O Beach because only buses no. 9 from Shau Kei Wan and no. 309 from Central can reach the place and bus no. 309 is only available on Sunday. However, there are quite lot car parks near the beach; so it is still convenient for people to travel to it by private cars.
Due to the isolated situation of Shek O, the environment near the Shek O Beach remains rustic. This becomes the attractive point of Shek O.
Silvermine Beach ( 銀 礦 灣 泳 灘 ) - Lantau Island
Hong Kong's largest island, Lantau, has several beaches that are clean, uncrowded and relatively convenient to get there. For all of them, the first step is to simply take the ferry from Central to Mui Wo. Then, if necessary, you can just hop on a bus.
Silvermine Beach which is a Grade 1 beach is the easiest one to get to since it is located about a 5 minute walk away from the Mui Wo ferry pier. Since there is a sandbar area, this beach is ideal for flinging Frisbees or flying kites. Further along the beach is a swimming area with several lifeguards on duty. Many Lantau natives rent a bike for the afternoon, and stop off at the many refreshment kiosks and little restaurants along the road fronting the beach. If you don't feel like hurrying back into the city, you can also choose to stay overnight at the Silvermine Beach Hotel, located right on the waterfront. If not, there are several other hotels and guesthouses around there.
Golden Beach ( 黃 金 泳 灘 ) - New Territories
Golden Beach is located at 18.5 milestone of Castle Peak Road in Tuen Mun. It is the largest beach in Tuen Mun with total area 7.85 hectares and length 545 meters. Also it is the first artificial beach in Hong Kong. The water quality of Golden Beach is fair as it is classified as a Grade 2 beach. The Beach is beautiful with its golden sands. So it is a good place for lovers to stroll along the sea-shore.
Near the Beach, there are refreshment kiosks, hotel and shopping mall where souvenir, articles for daily use and snack are available for people to buy. People can buy almost what they need from there; so it is quite convenient.
To go to Golden Beach, people can travel Bus no. 52M from Kwai Fong and no. 53 from Tsuen Wan.
Hung Shing Yeh Beach ( 洪 聖 爺 灣 泳 灘 )--Lamma Island
Hung Shing Yeh Beach is one of famous beaches on Lamma Island. The sand on the beach is very fine like powder. The water of the Beach is clean and it is classified as a Grade 1 beach.
Near the Beach, there is a barbecue area and refreshment kiosk.
However, it is inconvenient for people to go to there because no public transport reaches the place. People need to travel to Yung Shue Wan or Sok Kwu Wan on Lamma Island from Central by ferry. Then they need to walk for a period of time to reach the Beach.
Clearwater Bay Beaches ( 清 水 灣 泳 灘 ) - New Territories
There are two beaches Clearwater Bay First Beach and Second Beach located at the Clearwater Bay Peninsula. The good water quality there are simply shown by their name and truly both of them are classified as Grade 2 beaches.
The scenery there is very beautiful and life-guard and shark nets facilites are provided looking after the swimmers' safety. Carparking facilities, refreshment kiosks, barbecue pits can also be found. That's why many people enjoy their family day there.
To go to Clearwater Bay, Bus no. 91 can be taken in Diamond Hill MTR station.
Clearwater Beach, Hong Kong
Clearwater Beach, Hong Kong
Kwun Yam Beach (觀音灣) – Cheung Chau Island
There are two main beaches on Cheung Chau Island, East Bay and Kwun Yam Beach. They are not as big as those well-known beaches along the Hong Kong Island Coast. But, they do have their own characters. Kwun Yam Beach is a beautiful fine white beach situated at the east coast of Cheung Chau Island. The water quality is good and it is classified as grade 1 beach. It provides a series of water sports facilities. Many lovers like to take leisure walk there and to enjoy the village scene. Also, it is the place that Hong Kong first Olympic medalist Lee Lai Shan always practiced at and has also built her training base there. This made the beach become popular.
There are ferries from Central pier to Cheung Chau Island which are scheduled in every 20 minutes from Monday to Saturday and every 30 minutes on Sunday and public holidays. The route takes 45 minutes or 25 minutes for ordinary ferry and high speed ship respectively.
Kwun Yam Beach, Cheung Chau Island
Kwun Yam Beach, Cheung Chau Island
Grading System of beach ( 泳灘等級制 )
Beaches in Hong Kong are classified into four grades ( Grades 1 – 4 ) according to the level of E. coli in the water of the beaches. This is done by Environmental Protection Department. Every week, water sample of each beach is collected for analysis to find out its bacterial level.
Grade 1 means that the water qualities of the beaches are good. The amount of E. coil is no more than 24 counts per 100 mL of beach water. Also no case of skin and gastrointestinal illnesses is detected for swimmers who have swum in the beaches.
Grade 2 means that the water qualities of the beaches are fair. The amount of E. coil is about 25 – 180 counts per 100 mL of beach water. Also the rate of skin and gastrointestinal illnesses is no more than 10 cases per 1000 swimmers.
Grade 3 means that the water qualities of the beaches are poor. The amount of E. coil is about 181 – 610 counts per 100 mL of beach water. Also the rate of skin and gastrointestinal illnesses is about 11 – 15 cases per 1000 swimmers.
Grade 4 means that the water quality is very poor. The amount of E. coil is greater than 610 counts per 100 mL of beach water. Also the rate of skin and gastrointestinal illnesses is greater than 15 cases per 1000 swimmers. As a result, swimmers are advised not to swim in the Grade 4 beaches.
Safety Rules at Beaches
- Don't swim Alone.
- Don't swim in the Dark.
- Don't swim if the Shark Warning Flag is hoisted.
- Don't swim if the red flag is hoisted because of Red Tide.
- Don't swim if the red flag is hoisted because of Water Pollution.
- Don't swim if the red flag is hoisted because of Big Wave.
- Don't stay under the water while thunderstorm.