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When you’re tired of Central’s relentless bustle, Hong Kong Park’s open spaces and mature trees make an excellent escape, particularly its strikingly elegant (and free) walk-through aviary. The flowing streams and lush plant life of this improbable mini-rainforest are a peaceful and shaded home to scores of exotic bird species. The park also has lakes, a large conservatory, a viewing tower and the free Museum of Teaware, which is located inside Flagstaff House.

Aviary, Hong Kong Park

As the name suggests, Exchange Square houses Hong Kong’s red-carpeted financial engine room, although the stock exchange is not open to visitors. However, the peaceful square outside it, dominated by a large fountain, is a great place to eat or drink outside. Near the fountain are sculptures by Henry Moore and Dame Elizabeth Frink. The square’s newest building, Two IFC Tower (see Modern Buildings), is a striking addition to the island’s already impressive skyline.

This grand old building served as the British governor’s residence from 1855 until 1997, when the last governor, Chris Patten, handed Hong Kong back to China. Patten’s successor, Tung Chee Hwa, cited bad feng shui created by the needle-like Bank of China building as one reason not to move in, opting to remain in his house on the Peak. Back in the 1940s, the occupying Japanese added the Shinto-style towers to the Georgian structure, which at one time enjoyed harbour views. The building is used for official functions, only opening occasionally to the public – contact HKTB (see HKTB Services) for details.

A wonderful feature of Hong Kong is its 792-m (2,598-ft) long string of escalators, which links all the roads between Queen’s Road and Conduit Street. It’s the best way for pedestrians to get around the steep districts of Central, the Mid-Levels and SoHo. The Escalator runs uphill until midnight, except during the morning rush hour, when it runs downhill.

In the last few years SoHo (so-called for being the area south of Hollywood Road) has been transformed from a sleepy district of traditional Chinese shops into a thriving area for hip bars, cafés and restaurants. Elgin, Shelley and Staunton streets are excellent places to find a drink or bite to eat.

The older, more traditional Chinese areas of town, just west of Central’s sleek corporate headquarters and the smart shops, are worth exploring by foot. The reward is a fascinating array of shops, mostly wholesalers, selling dried seafood (the pervading smell here), ginseng, edible swallows’ nests, snakes, arcane herbal ingredients and paper offerings for the dead. Try the streets around Bonham Strand.

Not much to look at during the day, Lan Kwai Fong (or Orchid Square) only really starts to buzz at night when office workers, including plenty of city suits, come here to unwind at its many bars, clubs and restaurants. The street is packed with revellers on Fridays. The partying spills across to tiny Wing Wah Lane just across D’Aguilar Street with bars and good-value Thai, Malay and Indian restaurants.

Turn right out of the Central Star Ferry for some (admittedly meagre and poorly exploited) open waterside space and benches with good views across to Kowloon. Behind are the 1,700 porthole-style windows of Jardine House, for many years Asia’s tallest building. To the east is the giant upturned gin bottle shape of the Prince of Wales HQ building, now one of the Chinese army’s main Hong Kong barracks.

The gloomy red and gold interior of the Man Mo Temple, dating back to the 1840s, is always thick with sandlewood smoke from the giant incense spirals hanging overhead, which take a couple of weeks to burn through. The temple is dedicated to two deities, Man (the god of literature) and Mo (the god of war). Some of the scenes from the film version of Richard Mason’s The World of Suzy Wong were filmed here.

Man Mo Temple

This mecca for Chinese antiques and curios may no longer offer the bargains it once did but Hollywood Road’s eastern end is still jammed with shops selling ancient ceramics, mammoth ivory carvings and delicate snuff bottles. The stalls and shops on Upper Lascar Row are a good hunting ground for antiques, trinkets, old coins, kitsch and curios. Haggling is definitely acceptable here.