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When marauding Mongols drive the Song dynasty emperor’s family out of the imperial capital of Kaifeng, one princess escapes to the walled village of Kam Tin in the New Territories, where she marries into the powerful Tang clan.

In a decisive move during the First Opium War between China and Britain, Captain Charles Elliot of the British Royal Navy lands on Hong Kong Island and plants the Union Jack on January 25. The 8,000-odd locals seem to take it in their stride, but China and Britain continue to fight over other Chinese trading cities. The 1842 Treaty of Nanking cedes Hong Kong Island to Britain.

The good times are rolling in Hong Kong, where the population has now swelled to more than 86,000. The island is becoming cramped, however, and after a series of further skirmishes between Britain and China, the Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutter’s Island are ceded to Britain.

Britain digs in, turning Hong Kong into a mighty fort. Lyemun at the eastern end of the island bristles with guns and the world’s first wire-guided torpedo. Breathing space and water supplies are assured when on July 1, the 99-year lease of the New Territories is signed in Peking.

Hong Kong has guns galore defending the sea, but the Japanese come by land. They have little trouble breaching the aptly named Gin Drinkers Line – a motley string of pillboxes. Hong Kong is surrendered two days before Christmas, beginning a brutal three-year occupation.

The territory’s economic miracle begins to unfold, as incoming refugees from China provide an eager workforce, and British rule keeps things on an even keel. Hong Kong’s transformation into a manufacturing centre begins.

The Sino-British Joint Declaration is promulgated, after years of secret talks between Margaret Thatcher and Deng Xiaoping. Deng coins the phrase “one country, two systems” to quell fears.

Handover night on 30 June is widely regarded as an anticlimax after years of anticipation. The media focuses on soggy Union Jacks, last governor Chris Patten’s tears, Prince Charles and his yacht, and Jiang Zemin’s triumphant toast. The following dawn sees armoured cars rolling across the border.

Asia’s economic “tigers” are humbled as years of living on borrowed money finally take their toll. Hong Kong is not as badly hit as some countries, but the financial crisis bites nonetheless.

For many years, the popular version of history was that Hong Kong was a “barren rock” devoid of people when the British arrived. In fact, archaeology now shows that scattered primitive clans had settled by the seaside on Hong Kong Island and the New Territories six millennia ago. Their diet was not politically correct by today’s standards: bone fragments show they liked to eat dolphin.

Take the tram to the lofty heights of Victoria Peak for an amazing view of the city (see The Peak).

Hong Kong Island’s northeast is the region’s administrative centre. Colonial remnants and exciting modern architecture stand next to each other around Statue Square (see Central’s Statue Square).

Stunning waterfalls amid lush forest. Take the camera and wear sensible shoes.

The pool is a popular picnic spot. Weekends are best avoided, but visit midweek and, with luck, you will have this glorious, wooded course of rockpools and cascades all to yourself.

It may be only 7 miles (11 km) directly south of Hong Kong’s busy Central district, but Cape D’Aguilar feels like another world. The wild coastline has wave-lashed rock formations and a marine life so rich that researchers have discovered 20 species “new to science” in these waters.

Take these steep steps up the rock from Three Fathom’s Cove, and enter an expanse of remote uplands and boulder-strewn paths, leading, in the north, to Mount Hallowes. There are exquisite views of the Tolo Channel.

Central’s futuristic office towers and concrete canyons give way to the low-rise charm of antique shops, galleries and bars the further west you go, ending up in Western’s archetypal Chinese shopping streets and docksides. A must. (see Hong Kong Island – Northwest)

Various walks and beaches on offer here. From Tai Au Mun, you can walk to the less than inspiringly named Clearwater Bay Beach One and Beach Two or Lung Ha Wan (Lobster Bay). Shark sightings send the locals into a lather each summer, and recently holes have been found in some nets. You’ve been warned.

On weekends this short walkway from Kowloon Star Ferry around past the Inter-Continental is invaded by innumerable families and their rampaging children. At other times, though, it offers one of the most animated harbour views you will see anywhere (see Cultural Centre).

On weekends this short walkway from Kowloon Star Ferry around past the Inter-Continental is invaded by innumerable families and their rampaging children. At other times, though, it offers one of the most animated harbour views you will see anywhere (see Cultural Centre).

The long inlets and sheltered coves of this 260 hectare marine park in northern Sai Kung are made for snorkelling. Stony coral and reef fish galore.

Relatively inaccessible little gem of a beach. Don’t get too carried away with the view as you descend the vertiginous goat track, or you may find yourself at the bottom sooner than you intended.

The mountain’s name means “saddle”, a reference to its shape (see Ma On Shan).

The marsh on the western edge of the New Territories is a bird sanctuary (see Mai Po Marsh).

A joyously tacky and tawdry strip, the Golden Mile, Hong Kong’s own Broadway, runs up the Kowloon peninsula, passing hotels and tourist shops at the upscale southern end, before downgrading into the sleazy karaoke lounges and low-rent storefronts of central Kowloon. Just don’t buy any electronics along the way. (see The Golden Mile)

Hong Kong’s countryside achieves a quiet grandeur among the empty valleys and sublime uplands of Pat Sin (“eight spirits”). Peaks range up to 639 m (2,095 ft), and the views are humbling.

The plateaus and grassy slopes of the 702-m ((2,302-ft) high Ma On Shan (“Saddle Mountain”) allow wide-screen views of mountainous country, without the insidious intrusion of city skyline in the distance. The effect is truly majestic.

Ignore the subterranean road and rail links between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. The thrilling way to cross the water is on the Star Ferry (see Star Ferry).

An old fort steeped in colonial history and reminders of World War II, Stanley on the Southside of Hong Kong Island is a peaceful diversion from the frenetic city (see Stanley).

Kowloon is at its most atmospheric at night. Head up the peninsula to the narrow lanes of Yau Ma Tei for some serious haggling (see Temple Street Night Market).

Near Sha Tin in the New Territories, Hong Kong’s best museum is a must. Splendid high-tech audio-visual displays cover the region’s rich cultural heritage and natural history (see Heritage Museum).

The remote, rugged Sai Kung Peninsula in the New Territories is the place to find Hong Kong’s finest beaches (see Tai Long Wan Coastline).

Of the many islands around Hong Kong, tiny Cheung Chau is arguably the loveliest, with traces of old China (see Cheung Chau Island).

In the middle of hilly Lantau Island, Po Lin Monastery is a major destination for devotees and tourists alike. The extraordinary seated Big Buddha image facing the monastery can be seen from miles away (see Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery).

For a modern take on ancient China, check out the Chi Lin Nunnery in Kowloon. This gorgeous replica of a seven-hall Tang Dynasty (AD 618–907) complex took 10 years to build, using traditional techniques and materials. Bliss out as stubble-headed nuns chant to the Sakyamuni Buddha (see Chi Lin Nunnery).

Should your attention span wane on the fleeting 22-minute ride from the airport to Central, the AEL offers personal TVs in the back of every seat. Bright, shiny and a joy to use.

Gain some perspective on the dramatic skyline of the islands. The Star Ferries offer the best chance to capture the dramatic skyscrapers (see Star Ferry).

(“Below Hollywood Road”) The start of the journey takes you through the heart of this hip quarter.

Beat the pollution and enjoy the buzz at Oxyvital’s Central “oxygen bar”.

Hong Kong’s double-decker buses are a British legacy, although these mostly come air-conditioned and (in a universally loathed development) with onboard TVs blaring ceaseless advertising. The low cost of using them may help you overcome this irritant.

The escalator begins opposite this agreeably raucous fruit and vegetable market.

Hong Kong’s largest urban park opened in 1957, and features a bronze statue of the killjoy British monarch, which one “art activist” once redecorated with a can of red paint. There’s a swimming pool, tennis courts and lawn bowling greens. It’s also the venue for the Chinese New Year Flower Market, and every Sunday at noon would-be politicians can stand up and shoot their mouths off at the forum.

Residential blocks crowd Aberdeen’s small, lovely harbour, which is still filled with high-prowed wooden fishing boats despite the fact that overfishing and pollution have decimated the Hong Kong fishing industry. Ignore the ugly town centre and instead photograph the tyre-festooned sampans, or walk to the busy wholesale fish market at the western end of the harbour and watch the catches being loaded onto trucks and vans.

Fish market, Aberdeen Harbour

An odd tower of rocks near Lion Rock Tunnel that when viewed from a certain angle, looks eerily like a woman with a baby on her back, hence the name. Legend holds that theamah’s husband sailed overseas to find work, while she waited patiently for his return. When a storm sunk his boat, she was so grief-stricken she turned to stone. An alternative interpretation is that the rock was created as an ancient phallic symbol. Take your pick.

Supposedly the most densely populated island in the world, Ap Lei Chau (or Duck Island), opposite the Aberdeen waterfront, is crowded with new high-rise developments. Bargain hunters may find a visit to the discount outlets at the southern end of the island worthwhile (see Designer Outlets in Ap Lei Chau). Close to the ferry pier are some small family businesses, boatyards and temples that have survived the modern developments.

This huge street market is full of all sorts of strange junk and pirated goods. You’ll feel you’re on another planet here – this is as “local” as Hong Kong gets. It includes perhaps the world’s biggest collection of secondhand electrical stuff. Occasionally you can spot the odd retro turntable or radio, but most of it is rubbish.

The small but pretty Bird Garden is where local folk, mostly elderly, take their birds to sing and get some fresh air. There’s also a small bird market here selling sparrows, finches and songbirds in elegant little cages. Fresh bird food, in the form of live grasshoppers, is fed to the birds through the cage bars with chopsticks.

This isn’t actually a cove, at least, not any more. In fact it’s a massive reservoir which was created by building a dam across the mouth of the bay, then pumping all the seawater out and pumping in fresh water from China. Hike or bike the trails. Maps from HKTB.

Cheap, sturdy woks, steamers, choppers and pretty much everything else you might desire for the well-equipped kitchen.