Water, Water Everywhere - Swimming
Hong Kong's reputation as a shopping and dining center creates the impression, sometimes, that there is little else to do here. Contraire!
Hong Kong was, at one time, almost completely made up of small fishing communities. The sea is very much a part of Hong Kong's history and its present.
Every type of water sport from swimming to yachting is available here. I'll talk about swimming in this article and cover other water sports and water related activities in subsequent postings.
There are literally dozens of beautiful, pristine, swimming beaches, 32 to be exact. There are also 37 public pools for swimming enthusiasts. Yes, they can be crowded, especially on weekends but swimming in a crowded pool is part of the Hong Kong experience.
20 years ago the beaches were in poor shape, with 86% rated poor or very poor. Now only 17% are rated poor, the rest being rated good or fair. Most of the beaches and all of the pools have lifeguards and, where necessary, shark nets. (not in the pools, of course).
A complete list of all the beaches and pools with lifeguard and opening hours are available on the Leisure and Cultural Services Department web-site.
So, if you are a visitor, you now have another activity you can enjoy in Hong Kong. If you live here, you don't have to travel to enjoy a short-term beach break. You can go to the nearest beach or visit one of the outer island beaches. Now that it's rated fair, you can even body-surf at Big Wave Bay Beach in Shek O on Hong Kong Island.
Come on in. The water's fine.