As Canadians contemplate vacation destinations, our parameters have shifted. Many are no longer going south of the border, some feel that Mexico is unsafe and with wars in various places toward the East, zeroing in on your ideal paradise feels tricky. A welcome surprise destination that should be on your radar? Hong Kong.
In case you haven’t brushed up on history, English is spoken widely in Hong Kong due to its former British influence. This linguistic quirk made getting around as an Anglo Canadian a breeze. People are extremely friendly and courteous, making interaction warm and welcoming. Those familiar with Toronto can expect a similar hustle and bustle, with cleaner streets and tropic island temperatures.
My trip started with business class flight on Cathay Pacific airlines, who are celebrating 80 years. On board, I was treated to my own pod with a fully reclining seat that turned into a bed for maximum comfort, a welcome drink, a hygiene kit, slippers and the fluffiest blanket ever. As the flight was over 15 hours direct, all of these perks were welcomed and it made the long-haul flight a breeze. The food on board was delicious, featuring some Hong Kong partners like Louise – a Michelin-star restaurant, famous Hong Kong egg tarts, soup, noodles and even a cheese burger. There was even fresh fruit and snacks in the galley to browse anytime during the flight.
Once landed, we made our way to the New World Millennium Hotel. This hotel overlooks Kowloon Bay, is near several shopping spaces including the K11 and K11 Musea. The hotel has a rooftop pool, gym and sauna, a residence club for those staying on floors 11 to 14 with a bar. The hotel offers an Epic Suite, that has a full living room, kitchen, walk in closet, several bathrooms and a grand bedroom. The hotel also has several restaurants in it with different cuisines. Tao Li offers a delicious Cantonese style dinner, Cafe Est has a lovely international buffet style breakfast, and The Lounge has delicious drinks to end your evening, with live music and a gorgeous chandelier within the encased wine cellar we had the privilege of touring. Of course, there are even more restaurants highlighting Tappenyaki and Japanese cuisines as well.
If you’re looking ahead to next year, March offers Art Month in Hong Kong with events at Art Central and Art Basel, off-site art events and live art sales at Christie’s. Art Central has a variety of artists on exhibit ranging from emerging to gallery’s selling works by Banksy. The venue offered one expansive floor of art, talks, live art performances, food and beverage – a perfect place to connect, collect or learn more about art globally but with a heavy focus on the East. Art Basel is an art behemoth spanning several floors of a convention centre and sees close to 100,000 visitors. Art Basel has activations from sponsors like Louis Vuitton and Hoka, galleries which take over sections and create mini gallery salons within the space, art that can be 7 feet tall, animatronic or be as prestigious as a Yayoi Kusama. One could spend days at Art Basel, and some art aficionados do as the space features private meeting spaces for collectors. At the top level of art experiences was visiting Christie’s auction house ahead of their live auction. Pieces for sale included Kusama, Van Gogh, Monet, and Hockney all to be added to someone’s private collection and possibly hidden away for years. Christie’s spans several floors of the Henderson’s building and at the top has a meeting space with exclusive jewellery and Birkin’s available for purchase without bidding. Have you ever seen a wall with over 1 Million dollars in Birkin bags?
Of course no trip is complete without discussing the food and flavours. Hong Kong was not short on culinary experiences. We did a food tour with Humig with a chance of Fishballs, taking us through the region called Central. We had milk tea, egg tarts, tasted Dai Pai Dong local food stalls and even learned how to wash our dishes with tea like a local. For extravagant experiences, we had multi-course tastings at Cathay Pacific partner Louise, which has a focus on French cuisine. We also had a sixteen course lunch at Asia’s second best restaurant Wing by Chef Vicky. We also ate at the ever-popular Mott 32.
For further cultural experiences, we visited the M+ museum and the Hong Kong Palace Museum, both with focuses on fashion, art, ceramics ranging in contemporary and historic exhibits. The Centre for Heritage Arts & Textile offer a museum and great shopping experience. PMQ is the best place to get your shopping done if you are looking for artsy, cultural goods that are often environmentally friendly and locally sourced.
We ended our trip island hopping around Sai Kung, learning about the Hakka people, volcanos and rocks, seeing hikers and exploring gorgeous island edifices. With the gorgeous warm weather, it was a great way to wrap our trip.
Our last stop though took place in the Hong Kong airport as we were able to experience the Cathay First Class lounge, The Pier as well as The Bridge. The Pier includes a spa with massages available on a first come first serve reservation basis, with delectable dining and lots of nooks for relaxation. The Bridge is best known for their infamous noodle bar! All Cathay Pacific lounges are a great way to start unwinding before your flight back, but trust me that the flight will also still be luxurious in business class!
Thank you to the Hong Kong Tourism Board for this life changing trip.
Hillary LeBlanc
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